In the all-to-end department, the respectable 9-year-old Ontario boy bred Pink Lloyd Coach Bob Tiller announced (Old Forester) will begin his final career at GII Kennedy Road S. in Woodbine on Saturday.
“He’s getting old, just like I am,” Tiller said. “What does he have to prove? I just don’t want to put him out there against the best anymore. He deserves to retire. He’s never going to go out there and run with $20,000. The decision has been made and we will stick with it. It was a great run. ”
Win or lose on Saturday, Pink Lloyd together marked one of the more remarkable careers in Canadian racing history. He goes into Kennedy Road, which he won in 2017 and 2019, with 28 career wins from 37 starts and 25 bets. All of his races are in Woodbine. When converted to US dollars, his career earnings are $1,786,083.
“He was an angel from heaven,” Tiller said. “He is the Muhammad Ali of all the horses I have trained over the years and I did this for 48 years at Woodbine. He is a man. He is king. Whenever you find another horse that has won 25 stakes and 28 times, you tell me about it”.
Pink Lloyd was owned by owner Frank Di Giulio, Jr. bought for $30,000 at the 2013 Canadian Thoroughbred Fair. He’s been gone for three years, but the best is yet to come. At the age of five, he won eight eight in 2017 and was named Canada’s Horse of the Year.
Tiller lobbied him carefully. He never ran on grass, outside of Canada, or in any race longer than seven segments. The reward is more than five years of excellence maintained. He was named the men’s sprint champion in Canada every year from 2017 to 2020. He was also named the senior horse champion in 2017 and the older men’s sprint champion in 2019.
“I’ll tell you what makes him great – heart and desire and likes what he’s doing and wants to win,” Tiller said. “He chased the horses and he did it from day one. On the first day, we put a three or four year old horse in front of him and he would blow them away when it was his turn. He always wanted to do that.”
After her final race, Pink Lloyd will be sent to the LongRun Thoroughbred Retirement Association in nearby Hillsburgh, Ontario.
“I have a lot of respect for this animal,” Tiller said. “I’m telling the truth. I have the utmost respect and love for this animal and we don’t want to do anything to make it look bad.”
Pink Lloyd is retiring at a time when he is still playing at a high level. He’s won two-fourths of the year and is on the verge of consecutive wins in GIII Bold Venture S. and Ontario Jockey Club S. But he may not have been at his best in the Ontario Jockey Club, where he He had to fight to win by neck as a favorite odds.
Since Kennedy Road is for an open company, it was an uphill race for the 9-year-old. While Tiller would like to see him come out with a win, he says there are more important things than a win.
“I’m looking forward to this race, but it’s not a matter of life or death,” he said. “He has been beaten before for different reasons. Every great horse is defeated. At the end of the day, it’s more important for him to come back from the race safely and sanely. ”
