Stars rule in New York, and at Saratoga Race Course, the greatest Thoroughbred meet anywhere, they seem to get brighter.

But every wonderful once in a while, an unknown with dues fully paid gets a chance to glow alone.

It happened here when Upset beat Man o’War.

It happened here when Jim Dandy beat Gallant Fox.

It happened here when Onion beat Secretariat.

It happed here again on Saturday afternoon.

Before a crowd of 33,906, jockey Calvin Borel punched English-bred Grand Couturier thorough a gaping hole on the fence and pulled off a three-length, 15-1 upset of favored English Channel in the 33rd running of the Grade 1 Sword Dancer Invitational – the meet’s biggest turf race.

As big a win as it was for Borel, who won the Kentucky Derby and Saratoga’s Jim Dandy with Street Sense, it was gigantic for Grand Couturier’s trainer, Bobby Ribaudo. The 56-year-old Brooklyn native, a former assistant to Hall of Fame trainers Eddie Neloy and H. Allen Jerkens, saddled his first winner at Aqueduct in 1976 and who has fought everything from a shortage of horses to a fire that destroyed his home.

Saturday, he finally grabbed the brass ring.

“Couldn’t have come at a better time,” Ribaudo said. “My wife, my daughter, my son-in-law and my new grandson are all here.”

The race set up perfectly for Grand Couturier, a 4-year-old Grand Lodge colt who was third in this race last year and who joined Ribaudo last fall. With the portable rail set at nine feet on the firm inner turf course, Longshot Fri Guy set an impossible pace for the 1 ½-mile inner, going in :22.66; :46.49; 1:11.37 and 1:37.12.

English Channel’s stablemate, Ramazutti, applied pressure on the leader and appeared to be setting up the race for the favorite.

The field began to bunch nearing the quarter-pole, however, and when they swung for him, the rail opened for Borel, or “Bo-Rail,” whose forte is saving ground.

When he asked, Grand Couturier delivered the victory in 2:02.64.

“He’s a typical European-style horse,” said Ribaudo, as the colt returned $33.20 for his fifth win in 10 career starts. “He’s had some issues; nothing serious, but we had to deal with them and he didn’t adjust to our ways right away."

“Grass horses can stay around forever; hopefully, this horse can have a long career. The day we got here, he trained great. He had a real good work the other day on the grass. Everything set up perfectly today. Calvin (Borel) on the fence . . . could this be possible? It opened up – usually, with us, it doesn’t open up. But this time, he came right through. We reached out to Calvin. We thought (Grand Couterier’s) last couple of races wouldn’t attract a top rider. I know he is going to be trying, and his style of riding fits this horse.”

Borel, who has become extremely popular with Saratoga’s fans, was more than happy to pick up this mount after Grand Couturier ran third in April in Aqueduct’s Grade 3 Fort Marcy Handicap and sixth in the one-mile Bob Harding at Monmouth Park on July 14.

“Around the first turn, I knew they were going pretty good, so I know I had a little shot,” Borel said. “That went well in our favor. When I called on him, he went by them like they were standing still. It looked like I had a lot of horse. He kept the momentum going. He did well here last year, and the trainer said he had been doing good. He told me to save every inch I could and don’t get off the fence.”

Seth Benzel, assistant to trainer Todd Pletcher, said the ride was the difference.

“The winner got a jump on us down inside,” Benzel said. “I’m not sure what the real fractions were, but they looked decent. Our horse made a couple of big moves, but we just got beat to the punch.”

Trippi’s Storm was third, followed by Crown Point, Always First, Embossed, Fri Guy and Ramazutti.

Better Talk Now was to have vied English Channel for the favorite’s role here, but trainer H. Graham Motion announced on Friday that the 8-year-old gelding and 2004 Sword Dancer winner had sustained an injury and would not race.