Maida strong on the front end in Honorable Miss

Maryland shipper Maida repelled odds-on favorite Grand Job and pulled away to score her first graded victory in Sunday’s $250,000 Honorable Miss (G2) at Saratoga. 

Trained by Brittany Russell and piloted by her husband, Sheldon, the 6.82-1 chance was not quickest into stride from her rail post, but she soon turned on the speed. Maida zoomed past the fast-breaking Grand Job and went two lengths clear through an opening quarter in :22.20.

Grand Job ranged alongside to challenge at the half in :44.95, and the 0.42-1 favorite appeared to have Maida covered as they rounded the far turn. Yet Maida cornered well to reassert herself, and Grand Job had a fight on her hands. 

Brittany Russell knew the magnitude of the moment for Maida. Both of her stakes wins had come in romps at her home base of Laurel. Her only previous graded stakes appearance was a subpar seventh in last fall’s Raven Run (G2). She was obviously better than that, but did she have it in her to succeed on this stage?

“To have Bill Mott’s filly (Grand Job) come up to her, I said, ‘well, here’s the test.’ She's never had a horse like that come to her,” her trainer said. “When she dug in, it makes you feel pretty good.”

Fans might well have expected Grand Job to duel to the end in yet another photo-finish. After all, she missed by a nose in her past two, the Madison (G1) at Keeneland and the Bed o’Roses (G3) at the Spa. Yet this time, Grand Job could not sustain her bid and weakened late.

Maida edged away while completing six furlongs in 1:10.43. In so doing, she entered the equation for the Aug. 29 Ballerina (G1), a seven-furlong “Win and You’re In” for the Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Sprint (G1), but her trainer is taking it one step at a time.

“I’ll enjoy today. I’ll just try and keep this filly healthy and hope she can continue to stay on this path.”

Arkansas-bred celebrity Haulin Ice, usually a pace factor, rattled home late to take second. The gray reported home 1 1/4 lengths behind Maida, but in a manner that suggested she’d look forward to a rematch over another furlong.

“She ran super,” jockey Flavien Prat said of Haulin Ice. “They went fast, and I thought I had speed, just couldn’t get myself any closer…

“She was traveling good and relaxed, and then when we hit the turn, she had probably never been in that position, and it took her a little bit to get going. Then she finally made the run.”

Grand Job was embroiled in another photo, but for third, as she barely lasted from Striker Has Dial. Kappa Kappa wound up fifth after a slow start, trailed by longshots Going Steady and Do Gooder.

Grand Job’s rider, Junior Alvarado, commented on her lack of punch late.

“I had a good spot. Turning for home, I thought I had the horse on the lead, but she couldn't go by, and then she started getting a little flat at the end.

“She never gave me that feeling,” Alvarado added. “Before I got to the horse on the lead, I had to smooch her a couple times. Normally, she does that on her own without me smooching her or making any movement.

“She felt good in post parade, and everything was good. When we turned for home, it wasn't close to what she normally does – she fights, but she didn't have none of that today.”

Harry Papaleo’s homebred Maida did have the necessary fight to improve her record to 7-5-0-0, $335,650. The daughter of Improbable conquered her Laurel stakes – last year’s Weather Vane S. and the June 27 Alma North S. in her reappearance – by a combined margin of 18 lengths. Her only losses were a fourth on debut and her seventh in the Raven Run, where she did not break well.

“If she breaks, there's only one thing to do,” Brittany Russell said of her tactical discussion with Sheldon ahead of the Honorable Miss. “What are we going to do, school her today in a Grade 2? You're going to go, and you're going to see if she’s good enough.”

Sheldon Russell credited the owner/breeder for maintaining his partnership with Maida.

“That was nice. It’s always nice. I don’t know what my record is here at Saratoga, but we were getting to that stage here where maybe it was me,” the jockey quipped. “I appreciate Harry giving me the opportunity.

“Brittany at this stage is getting decent horses – they sort of get to that stage in their career where they have to go into a deep river, and there was never a doubt that I was going to keep the mount, so I appreciate it, especially to see her win. That makes it very special. I got those opportunities with (millionaire) Post Time, so when I get them, I appreciate them.

“She’s lightning fast,” Sheldon said of Maida. “I don’t even think I could sort of make her get away slow, so I think Brittany was confident in that stance; I couldn’t mess it up! She’s always sort of been pretty classy. She’s done everything right. 

“The only bad race was the Keeneland race, and for whatever happened, she didn’t get away good. If you watch the race, she still tried; it just wasn’t her day. 

“Since she’s come back off the layoff, she’s been flawless – stronger, better, faster. I was hoping for a big run, but today was awesome."

The Kentucky-bred four-year-old has now succeeded her dam, the Five Star Day mare Eve Giselle, as a graded stakes-winning sprinter. Eve Giselle’s signature win came in the 2011 Endine (G3) at Delaware Park, and Maida has eclipsed her with a higher-profile trophy. 

“She's quirky,” Brittany Russell said. “I'll watch her some days and she'll train good, and then – it's hard to explain – I just know her so well. When we ran her first time out (as a sophomore at Pimlico), and she ran such a clunker, I questioned a lot of things going into that race because we liked her. Now, seeing what it takes to get her into winner's circle, I wanted to make sure that all the stars aligned coming up here."

Hopefully the stars will align for a return trip for the Ballerina.