Max Player, a Grade 1 winner who competed in all three legs of the out-of-order 2020 Triple Crown series has been retired from racing, with his future at stud to be determined.
The 6-year-old son of Honor Code finished his career with four wins in 16 starts, earning $1,551,266 for Annestes Racing and majority owner George Hall, who confirmed the horse's retirement to the Paulick Report on Friday.
“He gave us a very exciting 3-year-old campaign, being in all the Triple Crown races, as well as being third in the Belmont and the Travers, so we're really proud of him for his 3-year-old career,” Hall said. “He had a very good 4-year-old season, winning the Suburban and the Jockey Club Gold Cup, and we were very proud of him.
“We ran him a few times as a 5-year-old and it didn't work out for him, so we've retired him, but I still have a lot of faith in the horse, a lot of faith in his physical attributes and capability, and we're going to now try to generate some interest in him as a sire,” he continued.
Bred in Kentucky by K & G Stables, out of the stakes-winning Not For Love mare Fools in Love, Max Player began his on-track career with trainer Linda Rice, for whom he broke his maiden at Parx Racing in his second career start as a 2-year-old. He then established himself as a contender on the Kentucky Derby trail with a 3 1/4-length score in the Grade 3 Withers Stakes.
Max Player's Withers score came just weeks before the racing calendar was turned upside down due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and his next start came in the Belmont Stakes, which was rescheduled and shortened to 1 1/8 miles. He finished third to Tiz the Law in the Belmont, and he finished third again to the same horse in the G1 Travers Stakes at Saratoga Race Course.
The colt was moved to trainer Steve Asmussen ahead of his start in the Kentucky Derby, rescheduled to September, where he finished fifth. He finished fifth again in the Preakness Stakes, held in October.
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If you appreciate our work, you can support us by subscribing to our Patreon stream. Learn more.After a winter sojourn overseas to contest the G1 Saudi Cup in his 4-year-old bow, Max Player got back on the winning track in the summer, catching Dubai World Cup winner Mystic Guide by a neck in the G2 Suburban Stakes at Belmont Park. He followed up with a dominant four-length triumph in the G1 Jockey Club Gold Cup Stakes in Saratoga.
“The race that really got me excited was the Suburban,” Hall said. “He had a few less-than-stellar races, and then he came into the Suburban and that led him to the Jockey Club Gold Cup and he won that to show the Suburban wasn't a fluke. Those two races were probably the most memorable for me.”
After a seven-month layoff, Max Player made his lone start of 2023 on Feb. 25 in an Oaklawn Park allowance optional claiming race, where he lost action and was vanned off in what would be his final race.
The horse was sent to Rood and Riddle Equine Hospital in Lexington, Ky., after the race, where he was treated for an infection. He then spent time at Spy Coast Farm in Lexington for rehabilitation, and Hall said Max Player has since made a full recovery.
In the weeks to come, Max Player will ship to one of Hall's farms in Kentucky or New Jersey, both called Annestes Farm, while long-term plans are made for his stud career.
“I have a little time,” Hall said. “I think we'll probably sponsor it, our group and myself, whether we do it at my farm in Kentucky or whether we get an offer from another stud farm is still up in the air, but if we don't get a good offer from somebody else, I'll just effectively do it with my partners. We're excited about the prospects, and we'll spend the next few months trying to get organized and finalize the road map.”
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