Dan Illman

How good was TO HONOR AND SERVE's win in the Pennsylvania Derby? While To Honor and Serve ran very well in the Pennsylvania Derby (one-fifth of a second off the nine-furlong track record, 103 Beyer Speed Figure), I thought there were some holes in his race.  He didn't face the strongest field in the world, had some trouble with his lead changes in the stretch and raced up close over a speed-favoring track.  His connections have options. 

Let's take a peek at some of this weekend's stakes races. Gallant Bloom Handicap - Belmont - Race 9 We've had a ton of rain in the New York area over the past couple of days so expect "Big Sandy" to be "Big Muddy."  An interesting aspect of this race is that many of the top contenders have excellent records over wet tracks. 

Thursday's HandiGambling 251 exercise is the eighth race from Belmont, a $25,000/N2X optional claimer for New York-breds at six furlongs on the dirt.  Remember that you have a mythical $100 with which to wager on the race, and the entrant with the highest money total will receive a "Monthly Enhanced 60-Card Past Performance Plan." Anyone going over the $100 limit will be disqualified. Please post your plays and analysis to the blog.

*The Woodbine Mile was a tale of two trips.  The winner, TURALLURE, benefited from a wonderfully patient ride from Julien Leparoux.  Last on the inside turning into the expansive Woodbine stretch, Leparoux didn't panic.  He allowed Turallure to find his stride along the inside before altering course to the center of the track in midstretch.  Turallure split horses, saw daylight and rallied stoutly to get up in the nick of time. 

Although the Woodbine Mile is the featured race of the weekend, I'm a bit more interested in the two other graded stakes on Sunday's card. Canadian Stakes - Woodbine (Sunday) - Race 5: