Two more starts for Pink Lloyd at Woodbine meet
ETOBICOKE, Ontario – Trainer Robert Tiller said four-time Canadian champion male sprinter Pink Lloyd exited his Sept. 25 victory in the Grade 3 Bold Venture in spry fashion and is planning on running the popular gelding twice more at the Woodbine meet.
Nine-year-old Pink Lloyd finished a troubled second to Souper Stonehenge in each of his first two starts this year in a pair of Grade 3 stakes, the Jacques Cartier and Vigil. Normally a mid-pack closer, he inherited the lead in the paceless Bold Venture and won by a measured three-quarters of a length over a pesky Lucky Curlin.
“He came back like he hadn’t run a race,” Tiller said. “He was a wild man the next morning.”
The $100,000 Ontario Jockey Club Stakes for Ontario-sired runners Nov. 7 is up next for Pink Lloyd, followed by the Grade 2 Kennedy Road Nov. 27, a race he won twice before ending up third in it last year.
“Those are the only possible races he can run in,” Tiller said. “This year, there were only five races for him at Woodbine.”
Tiller was non-committal about retiring Pink Lloyd, and he left the door open for him to return for his 10-year-old season.
“We shall see,” Tiller said. “We’ll take it one race at a time and see at the end of the year. Any race could be his last race. Right now, we’re looking forward to his next one. We just have to work him a couple of times and go from there. You can’t predict the future with a horse that runs like he does. When you’re running fabulous with top competition, what’s the beef?”
Tiller said Pink Lloyd is a rare horse who’s matured at an advanced age.
“He used to lug in on horses,” Tiller said. “He used to break through the gate. He’s had some major incidents in his career. That’s all gone away as a 9-year-old. It’s just amazing.”
In 35 starts, Pink Lloyd has won 27 races, including 24 stakes, for earnings of nearly $2.27 million Canadian.
◗ Tiller entered five horses on Thursday’s eight-race card, including the steady 9-year-old Reconfigure and Forester’s Turn in the sixth, a $32,000 turf sprint.
Reconfigure has been a model of consistency, while on the win-shy side, since Tiller claimed him for a bargain $25,000 in July 2019. He finished second in two of five starts this year, and is coming off a close fourth in a $40,000 claimer on the Tapeta.
“There’s no doubt he’s done the ‘hang’ thing,” Tiller said. “I claimed him for $25,000 and he’s made a couple of hundred thousand. I’ve got no complaints, but if he never did that, he’d have made twice as much. I think he’s better on grass. I hope the race stays on grass.”