Barbadian Runner made short work of five rivals in the $100,000 Richard W. Small Stakes at Laurel Park on Saturday, powering home on a muddy track to win by 4 1/4 lengths. Coming off an upset victory over Post Time in the $150,000 Maryland Million Classic last month, the 3-year-old gelding played the part of Goliath this time and easily took care of business in his third straight stakes victory. He paid $2.80 to win, his first stakes victory as a favorite. “He was 3-5 for a reason, I guess,” trainer Henry Walters said. In the past, Walters has said that the most effective way to beat his gelding, now a six-time stakes winner, is by getting away with slow fractions on the front end. Hittheroadjak, the 7-2 second choice trained by Rodolfo Sanchez-Salomon, took his best shot when he hustled into the first turn to take a two-length lead through an opening quarter-mile in 23.72 seconds. :: Access the most trusted data and information in horse racing! DRF Past Performances and Picks are available now. “Once he makes the lead, it's a little easier for him,” Walters said of the heavy favorite. “But it always looks a little testy before he makes that lead.” Jockey Jevian Toledo kept urging Hittheroadjak through a half-mile in 47.53, taking a commanding lead into the far turn with what appeared to be an upset in the cards. In the end, however, the effort was futile. Several months ago, Barbadian Runner might have had a challenging time making up the ground on such a bold pacesetter, but this isn’t the same 3-year-old Walters was hesitant to stretch out in distance in the spring. Unhurried in fourth on the backstretch under jockey Forest Boyce, the gelding seemed to advance on the leader with every stride on the far turn and was already in command by the time he hit the stretch. Phantom Speed, a 9-1 outsider trained by Niall Saville, made the most of a stalking trip to overtake Hittheroadjak for second by 1 1/4 lengths, but the result for first was so straightforward as to appear inevitable. Barbadian Runner loped home to complete the 1 1/8-mile distance in 1:53.40. Before winning the Maryland Million Classic over Post Time, one of the best Maryland-bred horses in recent memory, Barbadian Runner won the $500,000 Robert Hilton Memorial at Charles Town at seven furlongs, defeating Kentucky Derby runners Neoequos and Owen Almighty. For the rapidly improving gelding, the Richard W. Small was merely a pit stop for what could prove to be a profoundly promising 4-year-old campaign. Walters said that Barbadian Runner might run one more time in December, but a layoff is on the horizon in January. The gelding has run without a significant break for 19 straight starts since his debut in June 2024. For his trainer, who went more than two decades without a stakes winner, this 2025 season has been nothing short of heaven-sent. Dave's Friend Stakes Petingas Twin, a 4-year-old gelding trained by Anthony Farrior, has always run hot and cold throughout his 20-race career. Coming off a commanding allowance victory last month, the sprinter officially began another tear on Saturday when he powered home to win a photo finish in the $100,000 Dave’s Friend Stakes at Laurel. A 2-1 favorite in his first stakes victory, Farrior’s gelding started in fifth under jockey Yedsit Hazlewood before quickly advancing to third on the backstretch. Twisted Ride took the early lead on the muddy track through an opening quarter-mile in 22.45 seconds before Showstopper Copper made an early move to take over through a half-mile in 46.53. The shuffling on the front end set up well for Petingas Twin, but it seemed to set up even better for Prince of Jericho, a 5-year-old coming off an eight-month layoff for Brittany Russell. Jockey Sheldon Russell kept the returning runner tucked into a stalking position on the backstretch and kicked forward to a 1 1/2-length lead turning for home. Hazlewood, the leading rider at Laurel’s fall meet, easily maneuvered Petingas Twin past the early leaders and set his sights on Prince of Jericho in the stretch. With a powerful surge down the center of the track, the gelding challenged the leader near the sixteenth pole and found just enough in the final strides to win the photo. He completed the six-furlong sprint in 1:12.08 and paid $6.40 to win. Subrogate, a 5-year-old trained by Jorge Duarte Jr., started the race in fourth and made up late ground to finish third, 1 3/4 lengths behind the top two. Coming off a fourth-place finish in the Grade 3 Bold Ruler at Aqueduct, the 3-1 third choice was never in the mix for a victory. In the summer of 2024, Petingas Twin won three straight races at three different tracks, a torrid stretch that didn’t last. The gelding lost his next eight starts, regressing to also-ran status in races where he had once been a surefire contender.  Willa On the Move Stakes Scratches played a part in the $100,000 Willa On the Move Stakes at Laurel Park on Saturday. After the field of 12 was cut down to just five runners, two shipping 4-year-old fillies proved much the best, as Grammy Girl traveled from New York for trainer Saffie Joseph Jr. and won her first stakes by a head over Parx Racing-based runner Takethemoneyhoney. Not only was the Willa On the Move the first stakes victory for Grammy Girl, but it was also Joseph’s first stakes victory at Laurel. The trainer has entered only six runners in stakes company at the track and had never finished better than fourth before Grammy Girl’s hard-fought win on Saturday. When the filly entered Joseph’s barn earlier this year, she displayed significantly regressed form in two straight starts at Gulfstream Park and Colonial Downs. The trainer continued working with her in New York, where she immediately improved to finish second in an allowance in September. She won her next start and finished second in another allowance on Nov. 13. In Horacio De Paz’s barn to begin her career, Grammy Girl made her first three starts at Laurel, earning her maiden victory before finishing a distant fourth in the 2024 Weber City Miss, her only prior stakes start. The top two betting choices in the shortened Willa On the Move field both stalked early on and made commanding moves on the far turn around pacesetter Miss Harriett. The 9-2 outsider, who completed the opening quarter-mile in 22.25 seconds and half-mile in 46, went on to finish 7 1/4 lengths back in third for trainer Brandon McFarlane. With one rival to beat in the stretch, 4-5 favorite Takethemoneyhoney took the early advantage in her first race off a six-month layoff for trainer Mike Moore. Typically a front-runner, jockey Eliseo Ruiz managed to settle her early and had plenty left near the end. In her last start in May, the Parx Racing-based filly shipped to Monmouth Park and won the $100,000 Serena’s Song by a nose. Her luck ran out at Laurel, however, as Grammy Girl and Mychel Sanchez poked a head in front in the final strides and held that advantage to the wire. She paid $6.80 to win and completed the 6 1/2-furlong distance in 1:18.56. :: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.