"He’s not the kind of horse that has to have a perfect trip, although that’s what he got last week. But he’s a big strong horse where I think he can endure a little work."
Erv Miller hopes Manofmanymission’s younger brother is growing ready to take on the assignment of facing stakes-level trotters.
Team Six, a five-year-old son of stallion Yankee Glide out of the mare Armbro Vanquish, has won 12 of 35 career races and earned $136,300 so far in his career. He is a full brother to Manofmanymissions, who also was trained by Miller and won the 2010 Breeders Crown for two-year-old male trotters and the 2011 Kentucky Futurity on his way to $1.21 million in lifetime earnings.
In his most recent start, Team Six won the B1/A1 Handicap at the Meadowlands by a half-length over Lindys Tru Grit in 1:53.1 at odds of 50-1. Appomattox, the favourite, was third and Spider Blue Chip fourth.
On Friday, Team Six and driver Marcus Miller will start from post five in the Classified/FFA Handicap at the Big M. The field also includes Modest Prince, Odds On Amethyst, Coffeecake Hanover, Take My Picture, Lindys Tru Grit and Meladys Monet.
“He’s in pretty good company right now, so we’ll have to see how he gets along,” Miller said about Team Six, who was purchased for $200,000 at the 2011 Lexington Selected Sale. “That’s why we kept him, because we hoped he would come on to be an aged trotter; that he could compete at the stakes level against older competition.
“Off and on he shows that kind of ability. I think he’s just coming into his own a little bit right now.”
Team Six was unraced at age two and won three of 13 starts at three. Last season, he won seven of 19 races and established his career mark of 1:52.4.
“He’s starting to come around, I hope,” Miller said. “He’s a pretty heavy horse. Hopefully as he gets a little older, he’ll get along a little better.
“He stays a lot sounder now than he did as a young horse. As a younger horse we had a little trouble keeping him sound. I think (being a heavier horse) was part of it. I think that’s what kept him from being a good two-year-old. He was just a little too immature, a little too heavy boned, to really develop good as a young horse.”
Team Six is owned by Peggy Hood, Mystical Marker Farms, Paymaq Racing and Jorgen Jahre Jr., which is some of the same group that owned Manofmanymissions.
“We had good luck with that horse and those guys wanted to take a shot at the same family,” Miller said. “I’m pretty optimistic that (Team Six) could come on and be a bit of a stakes horse for us."
Miller knows Team Six will have to raise his game to compete at the top level in the older trotting division, but he’s hopeful the horse can find a place among that group.
“There’s room for them if you’ve got one that’s good enough,” Miller said.
Now it’s up to Team Six to accept that mission.
This story courtesy of Harness Racing Communications, a division of the U.S. Trotting Association. For more information, visit www.ustrotting.com.