SARATOGA SPRINGS — If trainer Ronny Werner was anxious about his post position for Thursday’s Grade II Saratoga Special, he didn’t pass it on to his horse.

Unbeaten in two previous starts and already a graded stakes winner, Run Away and Hide didn’t give it a second thought.

“Over in the detention barn, he laid down and slept all day,” Werner said. “There’s not a lot of horses, especially babies, that are going to do that. He’s just a classy horse, is all I can say.”

Given a rail trip by jockey Robby Albarado, Run Away and Hide found room at the top of the stretch and shook off a game Break Water Edison to win the Saratoga Special for 2-year-olds by 11⁄4 lengths.

Break Water Edison was a clear second, 53⁄4 lengths head of 5-2

favorite Reynaldothewizard, who got up by a neck over Join in the Dance.

The third choice of a crowd of 19,342 at 3-1, Run Away and Hide went 61⁄2 furlongs in 1:15.67 to keep his perfect record intact. It was his second straight Grade II win, and the first at Saratoga for Werner.

“I was worried about it, but it worked out like we wanted,” Werner said. “He got away a little bit slow, which was OK. That was what we were looking for. He didn’t rush up, and Robby did an excellent job. He set him up just right and gave us a little spot on the rail, and it worked out great.”

Run Away and Hide went right to the Grade III Kentucky Breeders’ Cup Stakes on May 1 after breaking his maiden in April, but hadn’t run since. He had breezed well, including a bullet five furlongs at Saratoga on Aug. 1, but gave Werner pause with his last work.

“We worked him in company, and he was actually a little bit chargy on the inside,” he said. “The thing about him is he’s pretty push-button. He makes my job easier, because it’s something I don’t have to put in him. That’s his demeanor.”

Albarado kept Run Away and Hide tucked along the rail behind a sizzling pace of :21.66 and :44.80 set by Join in the Dance, with 39-1 long shot Unsung Song right alongside.

As they faded on the turn for home, Albarado shook up Run Away and Hide, and he responded with a surge down the stretch, with Break Water Edison in close pursuit.

“Robby said when those horses got by him, he just kind of shut it off,” Werner said. “That’s what you need. It’s very important to be able to do that, and use it when you need it. He had something left to punch with, so that was great.”

Albarado, who has been aboard for all three starts, praised Werner’s handling of Run Away and Hide, particularly off the layoff.

“Ronny has done a remarkable job of taking his time with him,” he said. “This colt hasn’t run since [May 2], and that’s a pretty long time to be coming into this race against some talented 2-year-olds.

“He has been a laid-back horse and he has done everything we’ve asked me to do. He has shown a lot of professionalism since day one. We had a lot of expectations for him, and he exceeded them by winning this race.”

In his first start since breaking his maiden last month at Churchill Downs, Reynaldothewizard had a rough trip. He lunged in the gate at the start, had to check behind horses at the half-mile pole and swing five-wide around the far turn before shifting inside in the stretch.

“When they opened the gate, he just broke in the air,” jockey Julien Leparoux said. “He was very difficult, too, and you had to make your way around everybody else.”