Max Contract - Mare Pace
Max Contract rallied in the late going to win in 1:50.2, with Andy Miller driving for trainer Julie Miller
When the gate wings folded, 6-5 favorite Grace Hill wasted no time taking command, leading the field to the :25.4 first quarter and :54.4 half, before yielding to Kobe’s Gigi
After the 1:23.3 three-quarter marker. Max Contract followed Kobe’s Gigi down the stretch, then moved outside and powered to victory.
Max Contract, a 4-year-old mare, notched career win 15 and seasonal victory eight for Team Miller, upping her career earnings to $635,305. Max Contract, sent off as the 3-2 second choice, finished one length ahead of 20-1 longshot Silver Label and third-place Kobe’s Gigi.
“I just didn’t want to rush her early,” Andy Miller said. “They got out of there pretty good. I really didn’t want to get away fourth, but it was OK. I just bided my time and then I moved her. (Kobe’s Gigi) came out of the two-hole, so she carried me a little ways. Then I moved her over and she took off.”
Bred by Steve Jones, the daughter of Huntsville-Big Mcdeal, is owned by Andy Miller Stable and Jean Goehlen.It’s tough to transition (from age 3 to 4) but she’s a really fast mare and we kind of spaced her races out,” Miller said. “We didn't race her a whole lot. We were kind of shooting for this.”
The win gave Andy Miller his sixth Breeders Crown and Julie Miller her second. The Millers won together with Lucky Jim in the 2009 Open Trot. Max Contract paid $5 to win.
Photos By John Sanucci for Ⓒ Hambletonian Society/Breeders Crown
Photos By Jim Lisa for Ⓒ Hambletonian Society/Breeders Crown
