It is rare that a movie sequel can live up to the original and while I’m not sure whether Gladiator II equaled its predecessor it certainly came close. Of course, the original film centered around Maximus Decimus Meridius – played brilliantly by Russell Crowe – as he went from high-ranking Roman soldier to gladiator to hero. The character was as skilled as they come in the arena and possessed a certain invincibility regardless of the situation which makes me think of Maximus Miki. Drawing parallels between a mythical gladiator from two thousand years ago and a 2024 Standardbred may seem far-fetched to some. What could they possibly have in common? The first identical marker between horse and man is in the moniker, as they clearly have the same first name of Maximus. While the Roman word maximus translates into greatest in English, it would be unfair to say that either the gladiator or the horse fits that bill. That said, both possess a certain grittiness when in their working environment that is undeniable. “He has an ability that I have not had in a horse yet. He can get up on the rim and he just wants to do all he can do,” said trainer Tom Cancelliere on Maximus Miki’s desire to win. As much as I could discuss Gladiator or Gladiator II all day, this column is meant to shine the spotlight on Maximus Miki, a son of Always B Miki out of Beach Gal who sold for $200,000 at the Lexington Selected Sale back in 2020 to current owner John Cancelliere. While the 5-year-old can’t be heralded for making his owner a huge profit – he’s earned $299,899 in his career – the gelding has proven remarkable in other ways. For his career, Maximus Miki has won a stellar 21 of 44 races. Certainly noteworthy! Even more amazing is his ability to finish in the top three, which he has accomplished 42 times! The only time in his career he has failed to get a check (finish top five) was on December 3, 2022 when he finished seventh at The Meadowlands. There are many horses in the sport which own great records – especially in stakes races and on the fair circuit – but it is much rarer to see it on such a consistent basis among those competing almost exclusively in overnight races, no less a horse racing in the top class at tracks across the East coast. Consider that Maximus Miki has won the Preferred/Open Handicap at The Meadowlands and the Open Handicap at Dover Downs multiple times in 2024. He’s also won the Open at Pocono Downs and the Winners Over at Harrah’s Philadelphia. At least some of the credit for Maximus Miki’s success has to go to his mom Beach Gal. Consider that she produced four consecutive foals from 2018 to 2021 that have earned over $284K, including Maximus Miki’s full brother Always A Miki, her richest foal at $718K and counting. Perhaps even more importantly, all of them are still racing and earning. Maximus Miki certainly took his time getting to the races. He didn’t make his debut until his 3-year-old season, partly because of his size. “He’s a big horse; almost 1,200 pounds,” said Cancelliere. “We brought him along nice and slowly. We put him in non-winners or 1 and non-winners of 2 races. We knew he was a fast horse but you never really know how fast.” Maximus Miki is not just about his record or his earnings. His allure as a horse is just as much his ability to take air while attacking the leader and continuing to find more in the late stages of the race to prove victorious. He simply wears down his foes into submission and there are seemingly endless examples from his 20-race campaign this year. Most recently on November 23, Maximus Miki came first-over into South Beach Star, a $511K earner with 33 career wins, and put him away rather easily to win in 1:49 1/5 on a chilly night at The Meadowlands. He also used his patented attacking style to best an even stronger field that included a former winner (Allywag Hanover) and current leader (Abuckabett Hanover) for Dan Patch Older Pacer of the Year back on May 18 over the same surface. “I close my eyes when I see him pull at the half; like he did the other night, and there were great horses in that race. He’s just a really nice horse,” said Cancelliere. Having never raced as a 2-year-old and with only eight starts as a 3-year-old, Maximus Miki is clearly lightly raced by industry standards. He recorded his first 20-start season just last week and also set his lifetime-best time for a mile this year of 1:48. All that begs the question as to what his future may have in store in terms of continued progression or maybe even stakes appearances in 2025 and beyond. “There are 3-year-olds with more starts than him,” said Cancelliere, blaming some of Maximus Miki’s light schedule on the lack of Open races getting enough horses to fill. “He’ll be staked to all of the big races next year, just like Ruthless Hanover.” For now Maximus Miki will get another four to five starts if he can while racing into January. Then he get about six weeks off and start preparing for a return to the races in May. “He’s a big horse and I don’t want to shut him down completely. I just want to keep him fresh,” said Cancelliere. Given Maximus Miki’s will to win, perhaps we’ll be seeing him in the winner’s circle after some of the biggest races of 2025, and just maybe, like his gladiator namesake, we’ll be cheering “Maximus, Maximus, Maximus” as he does what he loves on the track.