KEY POINTS:
Expect trainer John Dickie's patience to keep paying dividends in the first leg of Pick6 at Cambridge tonight.
Dickie asked his stable star Real Deal Yankee to return to the races only last Friday - even though he could have won three or four races already this season had he started him earlier.
But the result was instantaneous, with Real Deal Yankee distancing many of his rivals tonight to win by nearly five lengths.
That maintained an outstanding record on his home track and confirmed he has genuine open class potential.
Dickie has trained enough top trotters to know that himself and says it is one reason he gave Real Deal Yankee such a long spell at the end of last season.
"I gave him three months off last winter and I think it was the best thing I could have done," he said. "The 4-year-old season can be a really tough one for good trotters so I wanted to take him along quietly."
That was compounded by a virus just before Christmas that put Real Deal Yankee's seasonal debut back even further.
"But he was quickly over that and I was thrilled with the way he won last week."
Last week's victory means Real Deal Yankee will be 10m closer to key rivals then he was last week and will actually be 20m worse off compared with Dux.
Punters would be wise to at least take a saver ticket if they intend anchoring Real Deal Yankee in the first leg of the guaranteed $75,000 Pick6.
Safely through tonight's race, Real Deal Yankee will largely be kept to racing in the grades before being asked to take on his nemesis, Sovereignty, in the Harness Jewels as his last big test of the season.
"Then next season hopefully he can work his way to open class because I think he has the ability to get there."
If Real Deal Yankee makes it that far he will emulate his half-brother Last Sunset, who set a national record in 2001, beating Interdominion champions Take A Moment and Special Force.
