steal a march upon (someone or something)

To gain an unexpected or surreptitious advantage over someone or something, as by accomplishing something before, or better than, someone else. The retail business managed to steal a march upon its competitors by signing an exclusive export agreement with Europe. John and I were both trying to win Courtney's heart, but he stole a march upon me when he managed to get tickets to see Courtney's favorite band.

Common Names:

Name	Pronounced	Usage
Dolores	[də'ləuris]
Missy	MIS-ee	English
Matxin	-	Basque
Sharmila	-	Tamil, Indian, Marathi
Arti	-	Indian, Hindi, Marathi
Miku	mee-koo	Japanese