It was quite the competitive race, but in the end it was Bernardini's To Honor And Serve who was much the best in the $1 million Pennsylvania Derby September 24 at Parx. It was the third Graded Stakes victory for the highly regarded three-year-old, who won the G2 Remsen Stakes and G2 Nashua Stakes at two.
In the one and one-eighth mile event To Honor And Serve settled in second. He made his move around the turn to take the lead and opened up in the stretch in route to a noteworthy victory.
To Honor And Serve is out of the Stakes winning Deputy Minister mare Pilfer, who is a half-sister to Graded Stakes winner India. He has a two-year-old half-brother by Hard Spun, named Common Bond, who has yet to start. The colt was bred by Twin Creeks Farm, Larry Byer, and Rancho San Miguel.
Bernardini is the leading second-crop sire in the US and the sire of three G1 winners from his first crop. In August Stay Thirsty followed in his sire's footsteps with a score in the G1 Travers Stakes after his G2 Jim Dandy Stakes success, both at Saratoga. His other G1 winners are A Z Warrior and Biondetti. He is the sire of six Graded/Group winners total. Bernardini is standing the current breeding season at Darley Kelvinside for a fee of $38,500 (inc GST).
