Breeders Crown: What The Hill scores convincingly in 3-Year-Old Colt Trot final

What The Hill sat a perfect pocket trip behind Lindy The Great and then went by him in the lane to win the $527,500 Breeders Crown 3-Year-Old Colt Trot final Saturday night at Hoosier Park in 1:52 3/5.

Lindy The Great (Tim Tetrick), one of last week's three elimination winners, cleared fellow elimination winner What The Hill (David Miller) for the lead right at the 26 4/5 opening quarter, and he was then unchallenged through middle-half fractions of 55 4/5 and 1:24 2/5.

Miller angled What The Hill, the Canadian Trotting Classic champion, to the outside in the lane, and he would overhaul Lindy The Great. What The Hill would then kick away in deep stretch, defeating the pace-setter by 3 1/4 lengths. International Moni (Scott Zeron) rallied for third, Yes Mickey (Ake Svanstedt) was fourth, and Guardian Angel As (Yannick Gingras) came in fifth.

"That was the way we were hoping it would work out - leave and follow Timmy, and it worked out for us," explained David Miller. "If Yes Mickey had kept coming that would have changed the race a whole lot, but we were going pretty hard into the first turn, so obviously he caught a seat. Just thankful it worked out the way it did."

The victorious Muscle Hill colt is trained by Ron Burke and owned by Burke Racing Stable LLC., Our Horse Cents Stables, J And T Silva Stables LLC., and Deo Volente Farms LLC. He won for the 11th time in his racing career, and he has banked $1,074,337. The 7-5 co-favorite with International Moni, What The Hill returned $4.80 to win.

"He just kept getting better and better and better," said Mike Gulotta of Deo Volente Farms. "Obviously we went from the thrill of victory to the agony of defeat in the Hambletonian, but Dave said he would make it up, and he just made it up."