On Tuesday, September 21, trainer Kevin McDermott announced that five-year-old pacer Hypnotic Blue Chip, who won $1,540,628 in his career, has been retired

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Owned by Francis Azur, Hypnotic Blue Chip won four of 24 races this year and earned $169,125. His top triumph came in the $130,000 Spring Pacing Championship at Woodbine Racetrack. On Monday, he finished seventh in the Bobby Quillen Memorial at Harrington Raceway.

Last season, Hypnotic Blue Chip won his $182,500 division of the U.S. Pacing Championship with World Record 1:47.2 mile. He also won the $100,000 Battle of Lake Erie with a track record-equalling 1:49.4 effort around Northfield Park’s half-mile oval. He also notched second-place efforts in the Canadian Pacing Derby, William Haughton Memorial and Bettors Delight in 2011.

Hypnotic Blue Chip, by Art Major out of the mare A Traceofmagic, ended his career with 24 wins from 88 races.

“We feel in our hearts that 'Hypnotic' has not performed as we hoped this year,” McDermott said. “We have not decided if Fran will breed him or sell him. We will weigh our options and then make a decision.

“The horse has given Fran and I thrills we can’t explain and we only want what’s best for the horse. He is a once-in-a-lifetime horse. With his speed and gait, I look forward to breeding our good mares to him and racing them for a long time to come.”

(USTA)