Though the winners of three of the four divisions already have been determined, the top spot is up for grabs. Hillwood Stable's Cordmaker currently leads the overall standings with 36 points, followed by Hello Beautiful—owned by Madaket Stables, Albert Frassetto, Mark Parkinson, K-Mac Stables and Magic City Stables—with 27 points.

Cordmaker, a 6-year-old Curlin gelding trained by Rodney Jenkins, has started in all five legs of the 3-Year-Olds and Up Long—Dirt division and has two victories, one at Colonial Downs and the other at Laurel, where he has won eight times in his career. A sixth series start in the 1 1/8-mile Robert T. Manfuso Stakes will earn him another 3 bonus points to go along with points earned by finish position. The maximum number of points Cordmaker can end the series with is 49, with a minimum of 40.

Hello Beautiful, a 4-year-old Golden Lad trained by Brittany Russell, also has two series victories, one at Pimlico Race Course and the other at Laurel, where she has won nine races in her career. Hello Beautiful will pick up 5 bonus points for her fourth series start in the six-furlong Willa On the Move Stakes in the Filly and Mare Sprint—Dirt division. With a victory, her maximum number of points would be 42, with a minimum 33.

MATCH Series participants in each stakes collect 10 points for a win, 7 for second, 5 for third, 3 for fourth, 2 for fifth and 1 for sixth through last. Bonus points are awarded as follows: 5 for a fourth start in the same division, 2 for a fifth and 3 for a sixth start.

MATCH Series division bonus money is awarded to the owner and trainer of the top horses by points as follows: $20,000/$10,000 for first, $15,000/$7,500 for second, and $7,500/$3,000 for third. In addition, the owner and trainer of the overall points-earner regardless of division will receive $20,000 and $10,000, respectively. A horse must start at least three times in one division to qualify for bonus money.

In addition, bonuses will be distributed to the breeder of the top overall point-earning Maryland-bred horse and Maryland-sired horse in the series as follows—$3,000 for Maryland-bred and $3,000 for Maryland-sired.

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Madaket Stables, Albert Frassetto, Mark Parkinson, K-Mac Stables, and Magic City Stables' Hello Beautiful had a three-race win streak snapped when she finished last of five as the favorite in the six-furlong Politely Nov. 26 at Laurel. Russell said the Golden Lad filly came back well, if agitated, from the performance.

“She was very unhappy after the race, in a just [ticked] off kind of way. She knew that it wasn't supposed to go like that,” Russell said. “When I went back to check on her, it wasn't her normal munching her hay. It was like, 'Get away from me.' The important thing is she's doing well, and she's still Hello Beautiful.

“She's been fine. She really only ran about a quarter of a mile, if you really look at how it went down,” she added. “She came back no worse for the wear. She's doing fine, and she's trained well since.”

Prior to the Politely, Hello Beautiful was a front-running winner of the Alma North at historic Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Md., and the Weather Vane and Maryland Million Distaff to put her career win total at 10, eight of them in stakes. She is one of only seven horses in event history with three Maryland Million victories.

Hello Beautiful broke from the rail and found herself atypically behind horses in the Politely, outrun to the lead by Princess Kokachin, another speedy type that drew the post just outside the favorite. Jockey Jevian Toledo opted to drop back and then make a run that never materialized.

“I probably should have been a little more clear with Toledo to just kind of stay on that filly. We know our filly. She was a step slow that day, but you've got to go. You've got to go with her,” Russell said. “They were moving, they were going quick, but that's our game, too. When she kind of got checked out of there, it was over.”

Toledo climbs back aboard for the fourth straight race in place of Russell's husband, injured jockey Sheldon Russell, and they drew Post 6 in a field of eight at 124 pounds, a topweight she shares with Call On Mischief and Jakarta.

“You can look at it all different ways, but had our filly drawn outside that filly that day, it might have been a different outcome, too. It's fine. It happens,” Russell said. “You better learn how to lose races, because we lose a lot more than we win. Just be a good loser and hopefully, she bounces back next time.”

Eric Rizer's homebred Princess Kokachin will break inside Hello Beautiful from Post 3 under regular rider Xavier Perez, looking to extend her win streak to six races. The Politely marked the stakes debut for the Jerry Robb-trained 3-year-old Graydar filly, with all of those victories coming against older horses. She set testing fractions of :21.98 and :45.12 before finishing up in 1:11.22 to win by 5 ½ lengths.

Beaten in the Alma North and May 15 Skipat, also at Pimlico, in two previous trips to Maryland this year, Down Neck Stables' Call On Mischief is set to make her Laurel debut. She prevailed by a half-length after a prolonged drive to win the six-furlong Mahoning Distaff Nov. 22, and was most recently second in the Garland of Roses Dec. 11 over a sloppy surface at Aqueduct Racetrack in Ozone Park, N.Y.

Five Hellions Farm's Dontletsweetfoolya captured last year's Willa On the Move to cap her 3-year-old campaign on a five-race win streak. Winless in her first four starts to open 2021, she went three months between the Grade 3 Runhappy Barbara Fritchie Feb. 20 and Skipat, and returned to the winner's circle with a popular 6 ¼-length optional claiming allowance triumph in front-running fashion sprinting six furlongs Nov. 5 at Laurel.

Also entered are Three Diamonds Farm's Jakarta, a stakes winner making her first start for trainer Mike Trombetta and first dirt start since running fourth in the June 2020 G3 Vagrancy at Belmont Park in Elmont, N.Y.; Kaylasaurus, racing first off the claim for Penn National-based trainer Tim Kreiser; Kentucky shipper Miss Mosiac; and multiple stakes-placed Paisley Singing.

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Fresh off a record-tying performance in last month's Maryland Million Distaff, Hello Beautiful will go after her ninth career stakes victory in Friday's $75,000 Politely at Laurel Park.

The 39th running of the six-furlong Politely for fillies and mares 3 and up and fifth renewal of the $75,000 Howard and Sondra Bender Memorial for 3-year-olds and up sprinting seven furlongs highlight a nine-race, post-Thanksgiving Day program.

Both races, restricted to Maryland-bred/sired horses, return after a one-year absence due to the coronavirus pandemic. First race post time is 12:25 p.m.

On Oct. 23 Madaket Stables, Albert Frassetto, Mark Parkinson, K-Mac Stables and Magic City Stables' Hello Beautiful became only the seventh horse since the event's inception in 1986 to win a third Maryland Million race, adding to her victories in the 2020 Distaff and 2019 Lassie.

It was the third consecutive win for the Golden Lad filly and 10th in 18 career starts including a 9-for-13 record at Laurel, her home track. In the time since her most recent win, Hello Beautiful showed Russell she's raring to go.

“She's great. She's awesome. She's touting herself again. If there was any indication otherwise we would skip it, but it seems like a good spot,” Russell said. “It would probably be this spot and potentially the MATCH Series race in December if all goes well. Then she'll probably get some sort of a break.”

The $100,000 Willa On the Move for fillies and mares sprinting six furlongs is Dec. 26 at Laurel and the finale of the filly and mare dirt sprint division in the Mid-Atlantic Thoroughbred Championship (MATCH) Series. Hello Beautiful leads the division with 27 points, also good for the overall series lead.

“It's one of those things. Why not?” Russell said. “She's ready to go. It's a good spot, [so] let's run.”

Russell purchased Hello Beautiful for just $6,500 from Fasig-Tipton's Midlantic December 2018 mixed sale at the Maryland State Fairgrounds in Timonium. She has gone on to earn $582,570 in purses with $265,460 coming in six 2021 starts. Her four wins have come in the What a Summer, Alma North, Weather Vane and Distaff.

“We're kind of blessed with a good thing here. She spoils you because you walk into the barn and – I'm touching wood as we talk – it's one of those things. She just goes about her business every day,” Russell said. “She trains and she's straightforward. There's never anything to get too excited about. I'm walking in the barn and dealing with the 30-plus others that all have issues, and she spoils you. You walk her over there, she runs in good races, and she wins. She's just a pleasure to train.”

Hello Beautiful has finished worse than third just four times in her career, the most recent coming when fifth in the Runhappy Barbara Fritchie (G3) Feb. 20 at Laurel. She was second in her return, the June 13 Shine Again at Laurel, prior to her current win streak.

“She's easy-going and she's nice to be around. She's a very good girl,” Russell said. “You walk in the barn and she always has her butt to the stall door. That's her. She does her thing every day and she doesn't really like her schedule to be changed, but she's a cool filly. Everybody that's around her loves her. Her rider loves her. Her groom loves her. She's nice to have around.”

Her Distaff win was not only the first stakes win for Hello Beautiful, but also the first for Russell in her first full season as a trainer. Hello Beautiful cruised by 3 ½ lengths over Malibu Beauty with Street Lute third, both of which return in the Politely.

“That was awesome, just to see that she was able to do it three years in a row,” Russell said. “To just kind of be able to maintain that form and stay on her game for so long, we're lucky. Hopefully she has another good year because it looks like we'll probably get to race her next year.”

Jevian Toledo will ride Hello Beautiful from the rail at topweight of 124 pounds.

Russell also entered MOW Racing's Miss Chesapeake, a 3-year-old daughter of Uncle Lino that won her only prior start, a 2 ¾-length triumph as the favorite in a six-furlong waiver maiden claimer Oct. 22 at Laurel.

R. Larry Johnson's 5-year-old homebred mare Never Enough Time is second to Hello Beautiful in the MATCH division standings and third overall. Winner of the 2020 Alma North and Skipat in successive starts last fall, the Mike Trombetta trainee was third in the Weather Vane and second in the Oct. 31 Pumpkin Pie at Belmont Park in her two most recent starts.

Street Lute is an eight-time stakes winner for Lucky 7 Stables and trainer Jerry Robb, the most recent coming in the Sept. 25 Tax Free District at Delaware Park prior to the Maryland Million, where she was beaten a nose for second. She is 9-for-15 lifetime and five-for-eight at Laurel, never having finished worse than third.

Robb won the Politely the last time it was run with Anna's Bandit in 2019. He also entered Eric Rizer's 3-year-old filly Princess Kokachin, a winner of four consecutive races since Sept. 18 and six of 10 starts on the year, the last coming by 5 ¼ lengths in a Nov. 13 optional claiming allowance at Laurel.

Malibu Beauty, winner of the Aug. 21 Miss Disco at historic Pimlico Race Course and second in the Tax Free District and Maryland Million Distaff; stakes-placed Paisley Singing; and Proper Attire are also entered.

The Politely honors Maryland's Horse of the Year in 1967 and 1968, bred and raced by Mrs. Richard du Pont. Politely won 13 stakes and placed in eight others from age 2 to 5, setting an Atlantic City track record in the 1967 Matchmaker and matching it the following year. Retired following the 1968 season, she won 21 of 49 career starts and was a member of the inaugural Maryland-bred Thoroughbred Hall of Fame Class of 2013.

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Stakes action begins Friday, Nov. 26 with a pair of $75,000 events for Maryland-bred/sired horses, the seven-furlong Howard and Sondra Bender Memorial for 3-year-olds and six-furlong Politely for fillies and mares 3 and up.

Hillside Equestrian Meadows' 8-year-old Laki, unraced since finishing sixth Sept. 18 in defense of his 2020 Grade 3 Frank J. De Francis Memorial Dash victory at Laurel but a winner of at least one stakes race five straight years, is one of 25 nominees to the Bender. Madaket Stables, Ten Strike Racing, Michael Kisber, and BTR Racing's Whereshetoldmetogo owns 12 career wins, nine in stakes, is Grade 2 placed and five-for-seven lifetime at Laurel.

Other prominent Bender nominees are Oct. 23 Maryland Million Sprint winner Air Token and multiple stakes winners Double Crown, twice graded-stakes placed Alwaysmining, Galerio, 14-time career winner Penguin Power, and 3-year-old filly Street Lute.

Lucky 7 Stables' Street Lute is among 19 nominees to the Politely. The daughter of Street Magician has won nine of 15 lifetime starts with eight of those victories in stakes. Most recently, she ran third in the Oct. 23 Maryland Million Distaff behind Madaket Stables, Albert Frassetto, Mark Parkinson, K-Mac Stables, and Magic City Stables' Hello Beautiful, also nominated.

Purchased by trainer Brittany Russell for just $6,500 in December 2018, 4-year-old Hello Beautiful is 10-for-18 in her career and nine-for-13 at Laurel with $582,570 in purse earnings and eight stakes wins, including three in a row. She made history in the Distaff as one of just eight horses with three career Maryland Million victories.

Saturday, Nov. 27 will feature three $100,000 stakes – the City of Laurel for 3-year-olds and Safely Kept for 3-year-old fillies, both sprinting seven furlongs, and the 1 1/8-mile Richard W. Small for 3-year-olds and up.

Roseland Farm Stable's 2020 G3 Nashua winner Pickin' Time is among 25 nominees to the City of Laurel. The Stay Thirsty colt was second behind Jackie's Warrior in the G2 Gallant Bob Sept. 25 and most recently fifth to fellow City of Laurel nominee He'smyhoneybadger in the Oct. 23 Perryville at Keeneland Race Course in Lexington, Ky.

Louis Ulman and Neil Glasser's Kenny Had a Notion, a stakes winner on turf and dirt that snapped a seven-race losing streak Nov. 11 at Laurel, is nominated to both the City of Laurel and Bender. Other City of Laurel nominees include stakes winners Beren, Everett's Song, Maythehorsebwithu, Mohs, Officiating, The King Cheek, and Waist Deep, and graded-stakes placed Momos and Riden With Biden.

Mopo Racing's Moquist tops 22 horses nominated to the Safely Kept. The daughter of G1 Florida Derby and G1 Kentucky Derby winner and 2-year-old male champion Nyquist is 4-0 lifetime, all this year, with the last three of her wins coming at Laurel. A winner by 13 ¼ combined lengths, Moquist will be facing her own age group for the first time in the Safely Kept.

Also nominated are Li'l Tootsie, third last out in the G2 Prioress Sept. 4 at Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, N.Y.; stakes winners Lovely Ride, Malibu Beauty, Prodigy Doll, and Street Lute; Fraudulent Charge, who has four seconds, three in stakes, from six starts; and Oct. 23 Maryland Million Ladies runner-up Maldives Model.

The Small attracted 23 nominations including Trin-Brook Stables, Inc.'s Informative, winner of the June 12 G3 Salvator Mile at Monmouth Park in Oceanport, N.J.; Sept. 25 G3 Greenwood Cup winner Magic Michael; multiple stakes winner Cordmaker, third in the 2019 and 2020 G3 Pimlico Special; 2019 G1 Woodward runner-up Bal Harbour; and 7-year-old gelding Bobby G, who has earned 13 of his 15 career wins at Laurel.

Laurel will host its traditional Thanksgiving Day program Thursday, Nov. 25, featuring the return of the popular family-sized pie giveaway with the purchase of a racing program, while supplies last.

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The 4-year-old filly dispatched her six rivals by 3 ½ lengths to become just the seventh horse to win three Maryland Million races since its inception in 1986, joining Ben's Cat, Countus In, Docent, Eighttofasttocatch, Mz. Zill Bear, and Hall of Fame mare Safely Kept.

“She looks awesome this morning,” trainer Brittany Russell said. “[She's] pleased with herself.

“She's been good to us. She kind of has this cocky attitude about her,” she added. “When you walk into the barn, she doesn't greet you. You walk in that first stall, her bum's getting you at the door. She has an air about her. She's very straightforward to train, knock on wood.”

Hello Beautiful won the 2019 Lassie as a 2-year-old and 2020 Distaff among her eight career stakes wins. She didn't break sharply in Saturday's race but quickly inherited the lead and was left alone up front despite the presence of speedy eight-time stakes winner Street Lute, who figured to pose an early challenge.

“It sort of the same thing it always is. I feel like there's speed in the race and she's the fastest horse. If they want to go with her, go with her,” Russell said. “It's not like she jumped out of there and had the lead from the first jump. She ran a little faster probably that first part and they sat off of her.”

It was fellow stakes winner Malibu Beauty who stayed closest to Hello Beautiful, getting to within 1 ½ lengths after a half mile, before the 1-5 favorite steadily gained separation on the field and pulled away through the lane as Street Lute mounted her bid, only to get nosed at the wire for second by Malibu Beauty.

Street Lute's former Jerry Robb-trained stablemate, 11-time stakes winner Anna's Bandit who was retired in August, was honored between races prior to the Distaff, which she won in 2019, adding to the significance of Hello Beautiful's subsequent victory.

“This is special. There's been a lot of good fillies. You saw Anna's Bandit walk over here [yesterday]. Hello Beautiful, she's won three Maryland Millions, she's won open races. It's that graded race that's missing on her resume,” Russell said. “Unfortunately, she probably won't be able to get it because of the Lasix situation, but that's OK. She keeps doing her thing and we're having fun with her.”

All graded stakes in Maryland are contested without Lasix. Riding a three-race win streak, Hello Beautiful ran fifth in the Grade 3 Runhappy Barbara Fritchie Feb. 20 at Laurel in her most recent graded attempt.

“It's disappointing, I think, more because she's a filly that has the ability to do it. You see her numbers and you see how she runs,” Russell said. “Maybe her 3-year-old year wasn't the year to try it. She didn't have luck with shipping and all those things, but I think now, as a mature horse, you wish you had the chance.

“Maybe if she runs as a 5-year-old next year knowing that she'd be retired as a 6-year-old [we'd try again],” she added. “I'm not saying it's completely out of the question but at this stage to keep her where she is and keep her healthy and do the right thing by her, it sort of all makes sense.”

A decision has yet to be made whether Hello Beautiful returns to race in 2022. There are two upcoming spots for her in Maryland this year, the $75,000 Politely for Maryland-bred/sired horses Nov. 26 and $100,000 Willa On the Move Dec. 26, both for fillies and mares 3 and up sprinting six furlongs.

“I don't know when we're going to come to that decision. We have time. There's still two potential spots this year,” Russell said. “It just depends on how things shake out. If she keeps winning, I think they'd probably rather keep her racing, but that's just me. You have a horse who's winning, and winning stakes, she can be a broodmare next year. If she stubs her toe by the end of the year, maybe we make a different decision but if she stays healthy …”

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A trio of Maryland stallions registered two-win days on the 36th annual Jim McKay Maryland Million program: Great Notion, the state's annual leading sire by earnings from 2018-20, has now sired at least one Maryland Million Day winner for 12 consecutive years. Golden Lad, who entered the day third in 2021 earnings by Maryland-breds, accounted for two main-track winners at six and seven furlongs. The offspring of Buffum, who died in 2019, swept the two juvenile sprint stakes.

Four of the afternoon's eight stakes produced tight finishes with winning margins of less than half a length, including a wild four-way photo in the $100,000 Turf Classic in which noses separated the top three finishers.

And there was even a dramatic touch of reclamation in the $100,000 Ladies S. on the turf: The 2020 winner of that stakes, Epic Idea (Great Notion), had gotten disqualified from her win in May 2021 when the Maryland Racing Commission took the unusual step of voting to overturn a stewards' decision to let the results stand even though Epic Idea had drifted out. After getting demoted to second in that 2020 edition of the Ladies S., Epic Idea gamely avenged that DQ by storming back to win the 2021 version.

Even though Hello Beautiful's 3 1/2-length win in the Distaff S. was not technically the feature race on Maryland Million Day, the 4-year-old was the headline horse. She didn't disappoint as the heaviest favorite of the afternoon, assuming command soon after the start and always controlling the race with an authoritative, freewheeling style that was accentuated by the fillies and mares in her wake being under full-out drives while Hello Beautiful soared home confidently under jockey Jevian Toledo, who was subbing for regular rider Sheldon Russell (broken foot).

“It was really emotional today,” said winning trainer Brittany Russell, who noted she was watching the race with her husband Sheldon, who acted as if he was “riding” Hello Beautiful himself instead of being sidelined. “I'm sure Toledo could feel that help,” she said with a laugh.

“She's so special,” Brittany Russell added. “She keeps running, and she keeps running hard.”

Hello Beautiful is owned in partnership by Madaket Stables, Albert Frassetto, Mark Parkinson, K-Mac Stables, and Magic City Stables. Bred by Hillwood Stables, LLC, she wired the seven furlongs in 1:22.22 over a “fast” main track en route to becoming the seventh horse to win three Maryland Million races.

The Classic offered a contrast in styles. Prendimi had finished second, beaten half a length, in this stakes in 2019, then ran last in a field of seven in the 2020 Classic. On Saturday, he cleared the field from post two, got pressured by a 25-1 shot, then appeared to be well within the striking sights of 3-5 fave Tappin Cat (Tritap) turning for home.

Jockey Mychel Sanchez braced for the attack by rousing Prendimi to a furious drive that lasted the length of the straightaway. Even though the narrow lead of the 6-year-old always seemed in peril, Prendimi (which loosely translates to “catch me” in Italian) kept repulsing Tappin Cat's bids to prevail by a neck in 1:50.46 for nine furlongs. The G J Stable homebred is trained by Luis Carvajal Jr.

“We always had faith in him,” Carvajal said. “He's a big horse, and he doesn't like to be behind horses.”

Epic Idea's half-length score in the Ladies S. was a study in ground-saving placement by jockey Daniel Centeno, who shipped in specifically for this stakes mount.

Centeno picked a spot at the fence and sat fourth with his stalking 7-2 shot for most of the nine-furlong trip over firm going before angling out and splitting horses with the Vivian Rall homebred to win in 1:49.46.

“I just looked back at her form,” said trainer Michael Merryman. “Her best race she ever ran was with Centeno. And we wanted to win it, so I made him fly up from Tampa.”

Merryman took the high road when asked post-race about Epic Idea's seven-months-after-the-fact DQ by the racing commission, which Rall had chosen not to appeal.

“It's a big redemption for us. I have to bite my tongue a little bit right now because everyone knows that that was not right,” Merryman said.

In the Turf S., a 20-1 shot set the pace and nearly half the field had a chance to inhale the caving leader off the final turn.

Somekindofmagician (Street Magician) ended up prevailing by a nose for owner Bell Gable Stable, LLC, trainer Gary Contessa, and jockey Angel Cruz. The 4-1 shot, bred by Earl Barnhart, covered the nine furlongs in 1:49.00.

The $100,000 Sprint S. on the Maryland Million card was won by 7-1 Air Token (Golden Lad), who was claimed as a $10,000 maiden by trainer Jose Corrales for his own outfit (Corrales Racing, LLC) back on Aug. 1, 2020.

That investment has now yielded nearly 30 times the claim price in purse earnings. But Air Token's record also shows that he was disqualified from his only other stakes victory, the $100,000 Concern S. at Laurel on Nov. 28, 2020, because of an overage of dimethyl sulfoxide (the anti-inflammatory drug DMSO). According to the stewards' ruling, Corrales was not fined or suspended because of “mitigating circumstances.”

Saturday's winning ride by J.D. Acosta was orchestrated by conceding the lead after Air Token broke running, then stalking a too-hot pace and tipping out for the drive to win going away by 2 1/4 lengths in 1:09.63 for six furlongs. Carol Ann Kaye was the winning breeder.

The two winners of the Maryland Million juvenile stakes not only shared a sire (the late Buffum), but both also had the distinction of re-rallying after briefly losing the lead.

Buff Hello withstood prolonged pace pressure in a spirited three-way go of alternating leaders under jockey Charlie Marquez to win the $100,000 Nursery S. for owner Joseph Besecker and trainer Claudio Gonzalez. Bred by Sergio Gomez, the 5-1 colt was clocked in 1:10.51 for six furlongs while two lengths clear at the wire.

Buff My Boots scored smartly in the $100,000 Lassie S. by slapping back what appeared to be a winning deep-stretch bid to prevail by half a length under Acosta at 9-2 odds in 1:11.14 for six furlongs. Bred by Hope Hill Farm Maryland, she's owned by Bird Mobberley, LLC, and trained by John Salzman, Jr.

A year ago, both Maryland Million juvenile winners had gone through the ring at EASOCT for relatively modest money: Buff My Boots for $7,000 and Buff Hello for $26,000.

In the $75,000 Turf Sprint S., Grateful Bred (Great Notion) sprinted straight to the lead at 1-2 odds and never had an anxious moment, covering 5 1/2 furlongs in 1:02.29 en route to a 1 1/2-length tally. The Gordon Keys homebred is trained by Madison Meyers. Toledo rode.

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Madaket Stables, Albert Frassetto, Mark Parkinson, K-Mac Stables, and Magic City Stables' Hello Beautiful rolled to her second consecutive front-running victory in the $100,000 Distaff Saturday at Laurel Park in Laurel, Md., becoming just the seventh horse in event history with three Maryland Million wins.

The seven-furlong Distaff for fillies and mares 3 and older was among eight stakes and four starter stakes on the 36th Jim McKay Maryland Million program, 'Maryland's Day at the Races' celebrating the progeny of stallions standing in the state.

Hello Beautiful ($2.40) also won the 2019 Lassie as a 2-year-old among her eight career stakes victories and joins Ben's Cat, Countus In, Docent, Eighttofasttocatch, Mz. Zill Bear, and Hall of Fame mare Safely Kept in the exclusive three-win club. She was greeted with a large round of applause from fans as she returned to the winner's circle.

“It's so special, especially with her. It's a tough game, and to have a filly like her she just kind of keeps you up there. She gives you confidence. She shows you that you can do it. She makes you want to wake up in the morning and do it all over again on the bad days,” winning trainer Brittany Russell said. “I have a barn full of horses because of her, and many clients because of her. She's been so good to us.”

Favored at 1-5 in a field of six that included eight-time stakes winner Street Lute, a 3-year-old facing older horses, and Aug. 21 Miss Disco winner Malibu Beauty, Hello Beautiful broke alertly and quickly inherited the lead, going the first quarter-mile in :22.59 with Malibu Beauty giving closest chase and Street Lute settled in third on the inside.

Jockey Jevian Toledo, subbing for the injured Sheldon Russell, Brittany Russell's husband, had yet to move as Hello Beautiful rolled through a half-mile in :45.65. They drifted out to the two-path once straightened for home when Toledo shook the reins and the daughter of Golden Lad steadily pulled clear of her rivals to win by 3 ½ lengths in 1:22.22.

Malibu Beauty nosed out Street Lute for second, followed by Coconut Cake, Whispering Pines, and Street Lute's stablemate Fille d'Esprit, a winner of three straight making her first start since Dec. 18.

“She's a really nice horse. She's just a special filly. You can do anything you want with her,” Toledo said. “She's got the speed, so we used her speed to our advantage because the track is pretty fast today. When I asked her, she just took off in the stretch. She just put her head in front and she wouldn't let them go by.”

Sheldon Russell had surgery last week on his right foot, injured in a pre-race spill Sept. 9 at Laurel. He joined his wife, who is expecting the couple's second child, and members of the ownership group in the winner's circle.

“He's the one that made me all emotional. He was screaming like a crazy man in there,” Brittany Russell said. “I felt confident, and he kept going, 'Turn her loose! Turn her loose!' He and Toledo are tight, so Toledo picking up the mount is the next best thing.”

A $6,500 purchase in December 2018, Hello Beautiful earned her third straight win following the July 31 Alma North at historic Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Md., and Sept. 18 Weather Vane at Laurel, and 10th from 18 career starts, pushing her career bankroll near the $600,000 mark. She is 9-for-11 lifetime over Laurel's main track.

“The way she bounced out of her last one, it didn't seem like a hard effort for her. She just responds,” Russell said. “When we walk her over, she's ready to go. She's been touting herself.”

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The seven-furlong Distaff for fillies and mares 3 and older is among eight stakes and four starter stakes on the 36th Jim McKay Maryland Million program, 'Maryland's Day at the Races' celebrating the progeny of stallions standing in the state.

Highlighted by the $150,000 Classic for 3-year-olds and up, first race post time is 11:30 a.m.

Since its inception in 1986, only six horses have won three Maryland Million races and not since Eighttofasttocatch captured his third Classic in four years in 2014. The others are Ben's Cat, Countus In, Docent, Mz. Zill Bear and Hall of Fame mare Safely Kept, who won the Distaff from 1989-91.

Madaket Stables, Albert Frassetto, Mark Parkinson, K-Mac Stables and Magic City Stables' Hello Beautiful won the Lassie as a 2-year-old in 2019 before her 11 ¼-length romp in last year's Distaff.

“She's had a good year, anyway. I like to be humble about things,” trainer Brittany Russell said. “Our filly's doing good and I hope she runs her race. Just stay humble and be happy that she's healthy.”

Hello Beautiful enters the Distaff off back-to-back front-running victories in the Alma North July 31 at historic Pimlico Race Course and Weather Vane Sept. 18 at Laurel, both going six furlongs. The Alma North was jockey Sheldon Russell's 1,500th career win and the Weather Vane came by 10 ¼ lengths under Jevian Toledo after Russell – the trainer's husband – injured his foot Sept. 9 and remains sidelined.

“Since she won last time she's been great, and I'm very pleased with her,” Brittany Russell said. “Nothing in the morning or watching her come out of that last run would indicate a regression. Of course, you don't know until you run but all signs are positive with her right now.”

Hello Beautiful has won nine of 17 career starts with $524,610 in purse earnings, is 8-for-12 lifetime at Laurel and owns three wins in four tries at the distance including the Distaff and Safely Kept to cap a 2020 season interrupted by the coronavirus pandemic that altered racing and included unsuccessful road trips to Ellis Park and Saratoga for stakes.

“We tried some things last year. It was a bit of a tough year and just to get her back on track on [Maryland Million] day was huge, and to get a second Maryland million win,” Russell said. “It's fun to have a filly like this for a day like this, [one] that you hope can keep kind of making us all proud.”

Toledo gets the return call from Post 1 aboard Hello Beautiful at topweight of 122 pounds, giving four to six pounds to her rivals. Russell said her stable star continues to thrive since her most recent victory.

“Her exercise rider jumped off of her [Tuesday] morning and he was all smiles. He was like, 'Wow.' If she was good on Sunday, she was even better today. That just makes you feel good,” she said. “Hopefully we'll be lucky enough to see her next year as a 5-year-old. I don't know quite yet what the plans are, but it's exciting.”

To achieve her milestone win, Hello Beautiful will face a stiff challenge from eight-time stakes winner Street Lute, a 3-year-old daughter of Street Magician owned by Lucky 7 Stables and trained by John 'Jerry' Robb in what is expected to be an intriguing matchup of speedy fillies.

“It's definitely going to be one of her tougher spots. She's got to run against older horses [and] Hello Beautiful is a very tough older horse,” Robb said. “There's one day when they ran the same day, back-to-back races. Street Lute's race went faster than hers did, but then like a week later they adjusted the time. But, we've known all along we were going to have to hook up sooner or later.”

Street Lute was favored to win last year's Lassie but was caught at the wire by Miss Nondescript and came up a neck short. She then proceeded to reel off five consecutive wins, all in Laurel stakes, improving her record to 5-for-7 over her home track, where she has yet to lose going seven furlongs in three tries.

Sixth by 2 ½ lengths in the M. Tyson Gilpin on the grass July 19 at Colonial Downs, Street Lute ran seventh in the Charles Town Oaks (G3) Aug. 27 but came back with a three-quarter-length triumph over her elders including fellow Distaff entrant Malibu Beauty in the six-furlong Tax Free Distaff Sept. 25 at Delaware Park.

“She's always been doing great. She didn't like the grass and she bled at Charles Town in the graded race,” Robb said. “She's good. Just draw a line through those two races and there are no bad ones.”

Street Lute, whose most recent victories have come from off the pace, doesn't figure to let Hello Beautiful out of sight under regular rider Xavier Perez from their rail post. She will carry 118 pounds.

“Hello Beautiful has been getting away with real easy leads and breathers, and I don't see that happening,” Robb said. “She's doing good.”

Robb also entered CJI Phoenix Group and No Guts No Glory Farm's Fille d'Esprit, whose name means 'spirit girl' in French. The 5-year-old Great Notion mare, claimed for $10,000 last August, won four straight races to end 2020 but has yet to race this year after overcoming an injury.

“She got hurt, and she's back and been working lights out. She worked three-quarters the other morning here in 11 flat,” Robb said. “She's just coming back really good, knock on wood. She had won four in a row and she beat some of the horses that are in the Maryland Million when she was winning those races, horses that went on to win stakes. She's a nice filly. I hate to run her seven-eighths first time back, hate to run her against Hello Beautiful first time back, but maybe she's the one that'll pick up the pieces from the speed duel.”

ZWP Stable, Inc. and Non Stop Stable's Malibu Beauty was a front-running winner of the six-furlong Miss Disco against fellow Maryland-bred/sired horses Aug. 21 at Pimlico prior to her loss in the Tax Free District. The 3-year-old Buffum filly has been first or second in seven consecutive starts, four of them wins.

NRS Stable, James Chambers and Avalon Farm's Coconut Cake was riding a three-race win streak heading into last year's Distaff, but was forced to scratch after developing a quarter crack days before the race. She has a win, two seconds and a third in six starts since coming back, most recently running second to Hello Beautiful in the Weather Vane.

Also entered are Maryland-breds Whispering Pines, third by a length in the seven-furlong Conniver March 13 at Laurel and fourth in the Shine Again Aug. 4 at Saratoga, and Factorintheheat.

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Five of the races on the groundbreaking Maryland Million program are scheduled to be contested over Laurel's world-class turf course. Entries will be taken and post positions drawn Wednesday, Oct. 20.

First race post time on Maryland Million Day is 11:30 a.m.

Cordmaker and Galerio are each among 23 horses nominated to the $150,000 Classic, the richest race on the Maryland Million program, for 3-year-olds and up going 1 1/8 miles. Hillwood Stables' Cordmaker, a 6-year-old son of two-time Horse of the Year 2014 Hall of Famer Curlin, owns six career stakes wins, four of them coming at Laurel, and was third in the historic Pimlico Special (G3) in both 2019 and 2020.

Galerio is owned and trained by Jamie Ness, who claimed the 5-year-old Jump Start gelding out of a runner-up finish Aug. 16 at Colonial Downs. Overall, the Maryland-bred has been first or second in 22 of 28 lifetime starts, nine of them wins, and has placed in five stakes including a second to Cordmaker in the March 13 Harrison Johnson Memorial at Laurel and third in the June 12 Salvator Mile (G3) at Monmouth Park.

Also pre-entered in the Classic are multiple stakes winners Alwaysmining, who ran in the 2019 Preakness (G1); 5-year-old mare Artful Splatter, beaten a head when second in the Sept. 18 Twixt at Laurel; and 2019 Classic runner-up Prendimi, as well as Non Stop Stable's Tappin Cat, third in the 2019 Classic and currently riding a three-race win streak for Laurel trainer Gary Capuano.

Madaket Stables, Albert Frassetto, Mark Parkinson, K-Mac Stables and Magic City Stables' Hello Beautiful is pre-entered to defend her title in the $100,000 Distaff for fillies and mares 3 and up sprinting seven furlongs. The 4-year-old daughter of Golden Lad, winner of the 2019 Maryland Million Lassie, is 9-for-17 overall and 3-for-5 this year, each win coming in stakes, including the Alma North and Weathervane in back-to-back starts, the latter her most recent Sept. 18 at Laurel.

Lucky 7 Stables' 3-year-old Street Lute is an eight-time stakes winner who has faced her elders twice before, including a victory over stakes winner and fellow Distaff pre-entrant Malibu Beauty in the Sept. 25 Tax Free District at Delaware Park. Also pre-entered are Coconut Cake and multiple-stakes winner Never Enough Time, respectively second and third in the Weathervane; Kiss the Girl, winner of the Aug. 21 All Brandy at historic Pimlico Race Course; and 3-year-old Moquist, undefeated in her only two starts, both this year.

Another defending champion pre-entered in 2021 is Nancy Heil-bred, owned and trained Karan's Notion in the $100,000 Sprint for 3-year-old and up at six furlongs. Karan's Notion was a front-running winner of last year's Sprint by a length at odds of 16-1 and was third in the six-furlong Not For Love March 13 at Laurel in his most recent stakes attempt.

Also prominent among 22 Sprint pre-entries are Reeves Thoroughbred Racing's Double Crown, a two-time stakes winner that in 2020 ran second in the Chick Lang (G3) at Pimlico and third in the Smile Sprint (G3) at Gulfstream Park; multiple stakes winners Jaxon Traveler, Kenny Had a Notion, Street Lute and Whereshetoldmetogo; and stakes winner Exculpatory.

The $100,000 Turf Sprint for 3-year-olds and up going 5 ½ furlongs returned to the Maryland Million in 2020 after an eight-year absence and was won by the talented Fiya. The second through sixth-place finishers from that race – respectively So Street, Godlovesasinner, Grateful Bred, Love You Much and Joseph – are among 24 pre-entries in 2021 along with stakes winners Can the Queen, Introduced and Kenny Had a Notion.

Lead Off Stable's Pretty Good Year pulled off a 15-1 upset of last year's $100,000 Turf for 3-year-olds and up at 1 1/8 miles, but has gone winless in six subsequent starts, including two at Saratoga this summer. Among the 23 pre-entrants this year are stakes winners Trifor Gold and Somekindofmagician as well as 2020 Turf runner-up Cannon's Roar. Taking Risks Stable's Cannon's Roar has run in the past three Maryland Millions, finishing seventh in the 2019 Turf and fourth in the 2018 Turf Starter Handicap. His trainer, Dale Capuano, owns the most wins in Maryland Million history with 14.

The Turf's companion race, the $100,000 Maryland Million Ladies going 1 1/8 miles on grass for fillies and mares 3 and older, attracted 23 pre-entrants led by Vivian Rall's homebred Epic Idea who finished first by three-quarters of a length in 2020 but in May was disqualified to second following a Maryland Racing Commission ruling on the appeal of Dale Capuano, trainer of runner-up Gennie Highway, who was subsequently placed first. Kiss the Girl, a stakes winner on both turf and dirt, and Mike Trombetta-trained stablemate No Mo Lady, third in the 2020 Gallorette (G3) at Pimlico, are also among the 23 pre-entries.

Most popular among horsemen was the $100,000 Nursery for 2-year-olds, which drew 28 pre-entries led by Bonuccelli Racing's Cynergy's Star, winner of the Aug. 29 Timonium Juvenile in his most recent start, and Bird Mobberley's Local Motive, winner of the Hickory Tree on the Colonial Downs turf Aug. 2. The $100,000 Lassie saw 21 2-year-old fillies pre-entered including Waterworks, trained by Hall of Famer Steve Asmussen and exiting a 9 ¼-length maiden special weight triumph Sept. 10 at Monmouth; stakes-placed Mama G's Wish; and Jester Calls Nojoy, sixth last out in the Frizette (G1) Oct. 3 at Belmont Park for Hall of Fame trainer Todd Pletcher.

Back for the fifth straight year are the $50,000 Turf Distaff Starter Handicap for fillies and mares 3 and older, where defending champion Jumpstartmyheart is among the pre-entries, and $50,000 Turf Starter Handicap for 3-year-olds and up, both at 1 1/8 miles on the grass.

Rounding out the stakes action are the $40,000 Starter Handicap for 3-year-olds and up, whose pre-entries include defending champion Glengar, and $40,000 Distaff Starter Handicap for fillies and mares 3 and older, with 2019 winner Yesterdaysplan and 2020 runner-up Calypso Ghost among the pre-entries. Both are contested at seven furlongs.

Edgar Prado leads all Maryland Million jockeys with 18 wins, one more than fellow Hall of Famer Ramon Dominguez. Sheldon Russell, currently sidelined with a right foot injury, rode four winners in 2020 including Monday Morning Qb in the Classic.

Dale Capuano and Hall of Famer King Leatherbury, who together have combined for more than 10,000 career victories, rank 1-2 among Maryland Million trainers with 14 and 10 wins, respectively, while Trombetta moved into third last year with his ninth win.

Named for the late Hall of Fame and 13-time Emmy Award-winning broadcaster who helped launch the groundbreaking concept in 1986, the Jim McKay Maryland Million has evolved into the second-biggest day on the state's racing calendar behind only the Preakness Stakes (G1). 'Maryland's Day at the Races' celebrates the stallions who stand in the state as well as a rich and diverse racing history that dates back to the founding of the Maryland Jockey Club in 1743.

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The second running of the six-furlong Weather Vane for fillies and mares 3 and older was the first of four stakes worth $500,000 in purses headlined by the $200,000 Grade 3 Frank J. De Francis Memorial Dash for 3-year-olds and up.

Russell's wife, trainer Brittany Russell, fought back tears as she tried to explain how much the victory meant to her team, particularly since her husband – Maryland's top money-earning jockey this year at the time of his Sept. 9 foot injury – will be out indefinitely.

“It's really bittersweet. I had a tear in my eye, watching it with Sheldon,” she said. “She's just so special.”

Madaket Stables, Albert Frassetto, Mark Parkinson, K-Mac Stables, and Magic City Stables' Hello Beautiful ($2.40), sent off at 1-5, had been ridden by Russell in 14 of her first 16 starts, eight of them wins, including six stakes led by the July 31 Alma North at historic Pimlico Race Course, his 1,500th career victory.

With Jevian Toledo up, Hello Beautiful broke alertly and was quickly in front as her main challenger, fellow multiple stakes winner Never Enough Time, stumbled from the gate. Hello Beautiful was in command throughout, coasting through a quarter-mile in :22.37 and a half in :45.32 and opening up through the stretch to win under wraps in 1:09.56 over a fast track.

“She's a really special filly. When you have a nice horse like her, anyone can win on her like that,” Toledo said. “I have to give her all the credit. I just put her in the front and she grabbed the bit the whole way. In the stretch, I just showed her the stick and she took off, and when I looked back it was easy enough so I just took hold of her and she came back real easy to me.”

Toledo and Russell, both Maryland year-end champions and multiple meet leaders during their careers, are represented by Marty Leonard.

“We have the same agent and we are mates. You never want to see anyone get hurt. I feel bad because I know how special the filly is to him and for his wife,” Toledo said. “Thank God we were able to get the job done. Hopefully, he can come back and ride her the next time.”

Stakes-placed Coconut Cake, racing for the first time since March 13, finished second with Never Enough Time two lengths back in third. Praise and Honor and Fifteen Royals completed the order of finish.

The Weather Vane is named for the Maryland-bred champion older filly of 1998 that won 17 of 36 career starts and 14 stakes including the 1997 Grade 3 Safely Kept.

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