Maybe it’s fitting that a horse called “that little guy” by trainer Erv Miller began to turn heads when he won the Mini Me Stakes last August at Balmoral Park in Chicago
. Since then, Power Of A Moment has visited the winner’s circle 11 more times without a defeat. On Saturday night, he will race outside of Illinois for the first time when he goes behind the gate in the first of three North America Cup eliminations at Mohawk Racetrack in Ontario.
Power Of A Moment has won 14 of 17 lifetime starts, including last year’s $240,000 Orange and Blue Stakes at Balmoral Park, and never finished worse than second while earning $323,450. Miller owns the horse with Leland Mathias and Bert Hochsprung. The gelding has been driven in every start by Miller’s 21-year-old son, Marcus, who will again get the call for the North America Cup.
Marcus Miller is in just his second year as a fulltime driver. He just recently completed his junior year at DePaul University in Chicago, where he is majoring in marketing.
The North America Cup final carries a purse of $1.5 million, making it harness racing’s richest race for three-year-old pacers. The top-three finishers in each elimination race and one fourth-place finisher drawn by lot will advance to the June 26 big event.
“I’m wound up,” said Marcus Miller, whose biggest career win to date came with Power Of A Moment in the Orange and Blue Stakes. “I knew he was eligible and after [the Orange & Blue] I was starting to think about what might happen this year and whether I’d get to travel with him. I’ve driven him every time he’s been behind the gate so far, so I guess they’re willing to stick with a winning combination.”
Not that Marcus was taking anything for granted.
“I wasn’t sure and I was kind of scared to ask,” he said, laughing. “I’ve known the owners for a long time and they’ve always been very supportive of me. I think they felt we’ve been successful together and there’s no reason to change it.”
Power Of A Moment is two-for-two this year and coming off a 1:51.1 win over a sloppy track in the $56,700 Cardinal Stakes at Balmoral Park. Starting from Post 7, he was the 3-1 third choice among the bettors, who tabbed Delco Willobee as the favourite and Power Of A Moment’s stablemate Iam Bonasera as the second pick. Marcus Miller was advised by some people to drive Iam Bonasera in the race, but stuck with his familiar pal.
“Marcus has confidence in him and every time they turn to the gate [Power Of A Moment] pays him back,” Erv Miller said.
That confidence blossomed in last year’s $71,000 Mini Me. Marcus Miller tried to take the lead approaching the half-mile point, but got parked outside. Despite a brisk third quarter-mile, in :27.1 seconds, Power Of A Moment had enough in the tank to hold off all challengers in the stretch and win by 1-3/4 lengths in 1:53.1.
“From then on, I knew he was pretty special,” Marcus Miller said. “He tries so hard. He’s really smart and he takes care of himself and he’s all heart. Every time he races he puts in as much as he can – and a little extra. He does what it takes to win.”
Power Of A Moment is a son of Cole Muffler out of the mare Panfastic. Erv Miller purchased him as a yearling for $25,000 at the Cottonwood Sale. Miller trained full siblings Pandemonious ($258,336; 1:51.2), My Perfect Rhyme ($255,492; 1:50.1f) and Vapor In The Wind ($168,118; 1:50) at some point during their careers.
“They were all good racehorses, but not as good as this one,” Erv Miller said. “That little guy surprises me every time he goes to the gate. He’s done everything we’ve asked of him. He’s a special little horse. There were several times last year where we thought he was beat and he just kept digging.
“He’s such a little fighter. I don’t know if he can fight against horses of this caliber or not, we’ll just have to see. But every time we take him to the gate he surprises you, so this might be another surprise.”
Power Of A Moment’s biggest wins so far have come in state-bred restricted races. On Saturday, he will face a field that includes some of harness racing’s brightest stars, including Trot Magazine's Pepsi North America Cup Spring Book favourite Sportswriter, Burlington Stakes division winners Kyle Major and Ideal Matters, Berry’s Creek and New Jersey Sire Stakes champion Rock N Roll Heaven, and Hoosier Cup runner-up Allthatgltrsisgold.
“It looks like the toughest elimination, but if he’s going to win he’s got to beat them anyhow,” Marcus Miller said. “So far, all I’ve had to do is just keep him out of trouble and he’s been able to overpower everybody in Illinois. Obviously, this is a step up in caliber, so he’ll have to be better.”
Marcus, who won 242 races last season and has 163 victories this year, admits to thinking about what it would be like to reach the North America Cup final.
“I’ve thought about it. It’s hard not to,” he said. “I can’t remember the last time he got beat. It just seems that [winning] is what he does and hopefully we can keep doing it.”
To view the fields for the 2010 Pepsi North America Cup elims, click here.
This story courtesy of Harness Racing Communications, a division of the U.S. Trotting Association. For more information, visit www.ustrotting.com.