Leading Perth trainer elects to go out on his own

Tom Walter - Monday October 23

Prominent Perth trainer Simon Miller and Aquanita Racing will part ways from January 1 next year.

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Trainer Simon Miller (left) will leave his position at Aquanita Racing on January 1 next year.

Miller has prepared more than 400 winners since Aquanita appointed him to run their first Perth stable in 2008.

However, the trainer told The West Australian on Sunday that he is keen to establish his own operation.

"It's been great from my point of view starting off training and not having to worry about the financial and business side of it," Miller said.

"The landscape has changed here and I want to go full-on.

"From January 1, I'm on my own and I'm preparing my own colours now. The good thing is I've got the key component down, which is training, and now I can have a look at the business side of it.

"My partner Ellie Crispe wants to jump in and do all the accounts and the admin side of it. We've had good success.

"We've set a high standard and that's what we'll adhere to moving forward. Sometimes you get a bit stale and you need a new challenge – hopefully this is it."

Miller, who honed his craft under the tutelage of Robert Smerdon, John O'Shea, Tony Vasil and Robbie Griffiths, will remain at his current Ascot stable instead of returning to his home state of Victoria.

"I only have to go home and see how hard my mates are training there, seven days a week, driving four hours one day for a meeting and five hours the next," he said.

"When I realised I was going to lock myself down here, that was another reason to go out on my own.

"We're back on Sky Thoroughbred Central, the Ascot track looks amazing, Bunbury's standalone meeting was brilliant and prize money is going up again next year.

"There's a lot of positives. I'm in a good head space and I'm enjoying it here again."

Since setting up in the west, Miller has travelled a handful of horses over to the eastern states during carnival time, including last season's Group I Thousand Guineas (1600m) third placegetter Whispering Brook.

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