Saturday’s $200,000 Ruffian Stakes at Aqueduct’s Belmont at the Big A drew a field of seven. Trainer Saffie Joseph Jr., who won this race with eventual Breeders’ Cup winner Soul of an Angel in 2024, ships in a trio from Florida. Notable past winners of the Ruffian, which is held for older fillies and mares around a one-turn mile on dirt, include Cavorting in 2016 and champion Monomoy Girl in 2020.
Here’s a look at the field from the inside (rail) post position out:
Cassiar is seeking her first stakes win for trainer Shug McGaughey and finished runner-up in her most recent start, an allowance optional claimer at Gulfstream Park in February. The City of Light filly won her one prior start at Belmont at the Big A, defeating Ruffian contender Dry Powder in May 2025. Dylan Davis rides. Ultimate Authority, the first entrant for Saffie Joseph, will switch back to dirt after running on turf last time out at Gulfstream and will have jockey Edgard Zayas aboard for the first time. Stablemate Eunomia is fresh off a narrow second-place finish in the Baird Doubledogdare Stakes at Keeneland, where she earned a career-best 102 Equibase Speed Figure. Tyler Gaffalione was initially named to ride Eunomia but will stay at Churchill Downs, and Sahin Civaci has the mount. Dazzling Move completes the Saffie Joseph trio and finished ninth in the Apple Blossom Handicap last time out at Oaklawn Park. The 5-year-old Not This Time mare returns to Belmont at the Big A for the first time since her runner-up finish in the Pumpkin Pie Stakes in 2024. Micah Husbands is named to ride for his first career mount at Aqueduct. Inefficiency, a 4-year-old Constitution filly, is undefeated from two impressive starts at this track and mile distance for trainer Chad Brown. Flavien Prat, who was aboard last time out, retains the mount. Irish Maxima ships in from Parx Racing and has won her last two starts at the allowance optional claiming level by a combined margin of 10 ¾ lengths for trainer John Servis with Frankie Pennington aboard (10-for-17 overall). Pennington makes the trip from Parx for his only mount of the day at Aqueduct. Dry Powder, who has made four Grade 1 bids in her lifetime, rounds out the field for trainer Chad Summers. Kazushi Kimura will be aboard for the first time and travels from Santa Anita Park for his first career mount at Belmont at the Big A.
Analysis and Main Contenders:
Eunomia started her career with another trainer and won her career debut at Keeneland as a 2-year-old going 1 1/16 miles on the dirt. Eunomia made three starts on dirt, winning two of them, and five starts over the turf before switching to Saffie Joseph’s barn this past December. The Tiz the Law filly won her first start after the trainer switch in an allowance optional claiming race at Tampa Bay Downs then took a slight layoff and finished third in her stakes debut, the Grade 3 Royal Delta Stakes, at Gulfstream in February. Notably, first-place finisher Claret Beret and sixth-place finisher Shred the Gnar in the Royal Delta came back to win Grade 1 races in their next starts. Following the Royal Delta, Eunomia improved her Equibase Speed Figure from an 81 to a 97 for her first stakes victory in the Sandy Bottom Stakes, winning by 2 ¾ lengths going a mile over the Colonial Downs dirt in March with Flavien Prat aboard. Queen Azteca, who finished second in the Sandy Bottom, won her next start at Keeneland while going up in class rating. Eunomia again improved her speed figure from a 97 to a 102 last time when stretching out to 1 1/16 miles in the Doubledogdare Stakes at Keeneland, again with Prat aboard. Eunomia dueled down the lane with Alpine Princess in the Doubledogdare but was second best, finishing runner-up by just a neck and crossing the wire 6 ¾ lengths ahead of third place finisher Peignor. Eunomia enters the Ruffian in great form, increasing her Equibase Speed Figures in consecutive starts, and she put in a sharp four-furlong breeze in 48 seconds flat on May 1 at Palm Meadows Training Center. Eunomia is 1-for-1 at this mile distance and is 7-for-7 finishing in the top three with four wins in her career on dirt. She is also tied for first in average speed with a 90 Equibase Figure. Eunomia fits the bill and has a great opportunity to again improve at her preferred distance for Joseph, who wins at 29% with a 504% return on investment over the last five years in graded stakes at Aqueduct or Belmont at the Big A meets.
Flavien Prat, who rode Eunomia last time out, opts to stay aboard Inefficiency for trainer Chad Brown. In the last five years from 65 starts together, Brown and Prat win at an incredible 37% and finish 66% in the money in all races at Aqueduct and Belmont at the Big meets. Inefficiency, unlike her name, has been quite efficient in her two career starts, winning by a combined winning margin of 12 ¼ lengths at Aqueduct. She made her career debut as a 4-year-old in February and romped by six lengths under a hand ride, earning a 83 Equibase Figure, then returned a month later to again dominate, improving from an 83 to a 96 figure with a 6 ¾ length win at the allowance optional claiming level. Adding to Inefficiency’s credentials, the second-place finisher in the March race, stablemate Filly Freedom, came back to win by two lengths in her next start at the same level while going up in class rating. Inefficiency, who was purchased for $350,000 as a yearling by Klaravich Stables, began training at Saratoga in 2024 for the Brown barn and did not make her career debut until nearly two years later. This filly could be the real deal and has shown her strong potential and ability in her races. Inefficiency has a big opportunity to win her stakes debut and with her proven affinity at this track and distance, along with Prat retaining the mount, and she should be on every ticket.
Irish Maxima is a mare who knows how to find the winner’s circle, taking 10 out of her 17 career starts, with 10 of those starts being in stakes races. Frankie Pennington and Irish Maxima have eight wins together and it says a lot that Pennington is leaving his mounts at Parx to ride this mare for his only mount of the day at Aqueduct. Irish Maxima’s only graded stakes win came at this track, the Grade 3 Distaff Stakes in April 2025 going seven furlongs on dirt. She also finished fifth as a 2-year-old in the Grade 1 Frizette Stakes on this track. Irish Maxima has run in sprints in every start since the Frizette but despite this she ranks first this field by late pace with a 118.0 rating, 6.5 points higher than any other entrant. In her most recent start at Aqueduct in March, Irish Maxima went gate-to-wire and drew clear to win by 4 ½ lengths over Nic’s Style, who went on to win the FHBPA Fillies and Mares Sprint Stakes at Gulfstream Park by 5 ½ lengths in her next start. Irish Maxima faces a tough task to stretch out to a route; however trainer John Servis is winning at 33% with horses going from sprints to routes on the dirt over the past year. Irish Maxima is in top form and comes into this race with three consecutive increasing Equibase figures, including a 102 last time out for her 6 ½ length romp in an allowance optional claiming race at Parx on April 14.
The rest of the field, with their best Equibase Speed Figures in similar races, is Cassiar (92), Ultimate Authority (98), Dazzling Move (98), and Dry Powder (105).
Win Contenders in Preference Order:
Eunomia
Inefficiency
Irish Maxima
