Miller to Take Hiatus From Training

Southern California-based trainer Peter Miller announced Nov. 18 that he would be stepping away from training, beginning Nov. 29. The five-time Breeders' Cup-winning trainer, currently ranked 14th this year by North American earnings, made the surprise announcement in a press release distributed Thursday evening.

Miller, 55, indicated he wants to spend more time with his family and focus on his overall health.

"I have been working virtually every day on the backstretch of a racetrack since the day after I graduated from high school in 1984," he said in the release. "On that day, I was lucky enough to be hired by the great Hall of Fame trainer Charlie Whittingham. I am and forever will be grateful for all that he taught me.

"Throughout my career I have derived great joy in the pursuit of my passion as a trainer. Managing a large stable is a 24 hour, 365-day a year endeavor. The effort to compete at the highest level of my profession has taken its toll on my family and my health and I believe this decision is best for me, my family, and our future.

"I know that there may be some speculation related to this decision," he added. "However, I want to make it very clear that it is not a result of any regulatory action, secret agreement, or hidden agenda of any kind. This is strictly a personal decision.

"So as of Nov. 29 I will be taking a step back. I am grateful to all of my clients and my talented hard-working team. I am completely indebted to them for the successes we have shared. My extremely capable and longtime assistant Ruben Alvarado will be taking the reins and I will continue to act as an advisor/racing manager to my owners and my assistants as well as staying involved as an owner myself.

"My love for horses lured me to the racetrack as a teenager and held me there for the next 38 years. I trust that it will bring me back after this hiatus."

This year Miller has experienced success with graded stakes victories from Mo Forza , C Z Rocket , None Above the Law , Hembree , and Anothertwistafate , but 2022 has also brought regulatory action toward the trainer and challenging equine losses.

He was fined $500 by stewards in California after Hembree tested positive for isoflupredone after winning the Joe Hernandez Stakes (G2T) at Santa Anita Park Jan. 1, one of numerous sanctions he has received from the CHRB this year.

According to CHRB records, six Miller-trained horses have died in training or racing over the past 12 months, five from musculoskeletal injuries.

Miller took out his trainer's license in 1987. As of Nov. 18, his runners have captured 1,332 races and more than $68.8 million in earnings, highlighted by his achievements in the Breeders' Cup over the last five years.

In 2017 when the Breeders' Cup was first hosted at Del Mar, he won both the TwinSpires Breeders' Cup Sprint (G1) with Roy H  and the Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint (G1T) with Stormy Liberal . That duo came back the next year and repeated, this time at Churchill Downs. His fifth victory also came in the Turf Sprint, this time with Belvoir Bay  in 2019.

The latter was a survivor of the California wildfire that ravaged San Luis Rey Downs in December 2017. The fire killed 46 horses, including five trained by Miller.