Irish Maxima starts 4-year-old campaign in Barbara Fritchie

Irish Maxima capped a solid 3-year-old campaign in 2024 with a dominant 13 3/4-length victory in the Mrs. Claus Stakes at Parx on Dec. 31. On the surface – which was extremely sloppy that day – trainer John Servis said that race wasn’t as impressive as it may look on paper.

“For me, it’s a throw-out race because everything went to the lead that day and was running like wild,” Servis said. “I’m not going off that race.”

Fortunately, Servis can point to a plethora of performances that make Irish Maxima a major player in Saturday’s $200,000 Barbara Fritchie Stakes at Laurel Park, which serves as Irish Maxima’s 4-year-old debut.

There were allowance wins at Delaware Park and Parx that were solid. There was a victory in the Weather Vane Stakes last September at Laurel that makes Irish Maxima a fit in this spot. Even her lone defeat in the Cheryl White Memorial at Mahoning Valley in November was noteworthy when you consider the horse that beat her, Benedetta, has now won four consecutive races after her victory in the American Beauty two weeks ago at Oaklawn Park.

:: Bet the races with a $200 First Deposit Match + FREE All Access PPs! Join DRF Bets.

Servis has also been pleased with how Irish Maxima is coming into the Fritchie, a seven-furlong race which drew only six horses.

“She’s a very nice filly. If she runs like she’s training she’ll be very tough,” Servis said. “If she gets lucky and wins then maybe we’ll start trying graded stakes company.”

Irish Maxima has been successful on wet and dry tracks, from on the pace or just off it.

“She’s got enough speed, she’s been in front in most of them, but the Weather Vane, she sat off the pace and rated nicely went on and won well,” Servis said. “She’s matured a lot.”

Servis admits he probably got ahead of himself a little bit when he ran her in the Grade 1 Frizette at Aqueduct in the fall of her 2-year-old campaign. He then compounded that mistake by running her in another stakes at Churchill Downs a month later.

“I think more than anything that was me getting a little too high on her,” Servis said. “Early on I threw her to the wolves. When I had her in Florida for her 3-year-old campaign, she started to go the other way on me so we gave her a break. I always liked her, I always thought she was ultra-talented.”

Among the other Barbara Fritchie entrants, Aussie Girl is expected to scratch and instead point for Turfway’s Wintergreen Stakes on March 1, trainer Will Walden said.

The New York-based St. Benedicts Prep makes her second ship to Maryland seeking stakes success. On Jan. 18, she was beaten a nose by Ms. Bucchero in the What a Summer Stakes. Trainer Linda Rice wheeled her back a week later, when she finished second in the seven-furlong Interborough Stakes.

“I think seven-eighths is her best distance. She’s a big, hearty filly who carries a lot of weight,” Rice said. “Right now, we’re trying to make most of the opportunities that are in front of us. I didn’t initially plan on going to this race but after entering and looking at the race I decided to run.”

Jaime Rodriguez will ride St. Benedicts Prep.

Royal Spa is in from Oaklawn for trainer Rodolphe Brisset. She finished second, albeit 5 3/4 lengths behind, to Too Sharp in the Grade 3 Chilukki at Churchill Downs before finishing third and fourth in a pair of stakes at Oaklawn Park.

Mary Q, a winner of Pennsylvania-bred allowance at Parx on Jan. 29, and I’m a Cutie Pie complete the field.

Nellie Morse Stakes

New York shipper Headline Numbers may have found the right spot to land a stakes victory when she runs in Saturday’s $100,000 Nellie Morse Stakes.

The 1 1/16-mile race drew just six horses, but is likely to lose Call Another Play, who is entered in an allowance race on Sunday. Trainer Mike Trombetta said he was leaning toward the Sunday race or he just might wait for the Conniver Stakes for Maryland-breds on March 8.

Headline Numbers, a daughter of Gun Runner trained by Chad Brown, has only run four times. She won her maiden by 11 3/4 lengths last July 4. She was put up via disqualification in a 1 1/8-mile allowance race at Saratoga before finishing fifth, 1 3/4 lengths behind Tarifa, in the Grade 2 Mother Goose. Most recently, she finished fifth of seven as the 6-5 favorite in an second-level allowance on Jan. 5.

“She’s always trained a bit better than she’s run,” Brown told Maryland publicity. “She debuted the way we thought, but she’s never quite run to her works after that, which is a little confusing. I thought we’d try a different surface at Laurel since she disappointed at Aqueduct last time.”

Sea Dancer, after racing exclusively on turf in Southern California, was shipped east by her owners, SF Racing, and upset the Carousel Stakes in her dirt debut at 16-1 for trainer Brittany Russell.

Bailintin, Peppermint Class, and Sweet Heidelberg complete the field.

:: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.