Salute with Honor finds easy victory in Durham Cup

ETOBICOKE, Ontario — The favored Salute With Honor ran them off their feet in Sunday’s Grade 3 Durham Cup at Woodbine, scoring by a length over another Mark Casse trainee, Skywire.

Salute With Honor ($6) made the lead entering the first turn after Inventing Blame broke on top, and then proceeded to set quick fractions without being pressured in the 1 1/16-mile event.

Salute With Honor opened up a 3 1/2-length cushion at the eighth pole, and then coasted home on top in a time of 1:42.35 under Patrick Husbands.

Skywire saved ground in sixth before closing wide in the stretch to finish a clear second over the supplement Timeskip. Pioneer Man, Roaring Forties, Armistice Day, and Inventing Blame completed the order of finish.

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The win gave Casse and Husbands a sweep of the weekend Woodbine stakes after Master Spy took Saturday’s $250,400 Cup and Saucer.

“He’s a horse who likes to be forwardly placed when they leave the gates,” Husbands said. “I don’t touch him. He knows what he has to do, and I’m just the pilot. I relax on his back and when I ask him, he gives me all he could give me.”

A 6-year-old son of To Honor and Serve, Salute With Honor banked $75,000 of the $132,750 purse in his first stakes victory for Live Oak Plantation.