Pennsylvania Derby: To Honor And Serve Looking for a Stakes Win

Following an easy win against optional claimers at Saratoga in late August, To Honor and Serve will attempt to win his first graded stakes race since last November in Saturday's $1 million Grade 2 Pennsylvania Derby at Parx (post time: 5:45 Eastern).  He'll face a field of eight rivals, including Belmont Stakes winner Ruler On Ice, Arthur's Tale (runner-up in the Wood Memorial), Rush Now (runner-up in the West Virginia Derby), along with the 2nd and 3rd place finishes in the Travers: J W Blue and Rattlesnake Bridge.

The racing career of To Honor and Serve began promisingly with wins in three of his first four races, including stylish wins in the Grade 2 Nashua and Remsen Stakes at Aqueduct last fall. His three-year-old campaign turned out to be less than successful, at least at the beginning.  A pair of 3^rd place finishes in the Fountain of Youth and the Florida Derby sent To Honor and Serve to the sidelines for an extended lay-off. The Bernardini colt returned on August 1^st where he was a well-beaten 6^th in the Grade 2 Amsterdam at Saratoga.