With California's equine industry reeling from the July 16 announcement from 1/ST Racing that it would close Golden Gate Fields later this year, the state's racing scene receives a much-needed source of optimism July 21 when Del Mar opens for its 31-day summer meet.
The popular seaside track 20 miles north of San Diego is a destination for horsemen and fans alike, with tickets for its Friday opener already sold out. Equine entries for Friday are also in abundance, with 113 entries and 11 also-eligibles in 10 races—an early continuation of the track's success last year when it averaged 9.14 runners per race, far above industry norms, particularly in California. Horseplayers responded by betting a daily average of $18.7 million.
With the exception of a few promotions—such as an opening-day $1-million guarantee for a single ticket Pick Six winner—few changes from last year are in store at the track "Where The Turf Meets The Surf." As in 2022, Del Mar is again staging 39 major stakes and record-equaling stakes purses of $8.275 million, beginning with the traditional opening-day feature, the restricted $100,000 Oceanside Stakes for 3-year-olds. The one-mile grass race is a prep for the $300,000 Del Mar Derby (G2T) at 1 1/8 miles Sept. 3.
Agency , Ah Jeez , Classical Cat , Conclude , Escape Artist , Game Time , Mr Fisk , and Panic Alarm are among the 14 entered.
"I think it's a lot better race this year than the last couple of years in terms of quality and depth. That should get us to a good start," Del Mar vice president and racing secretary David Jerkens said.
Game Time and Panic Alarm are both owned by Hronis Racing and trained by John Sadler, with the latter 3-year-old an import from Europe and the former a two-length winner of the Alcatraz Stakes at Golden Gate Fields May 28.
Game Time "fits the condition very well, a stakes winner in Northern California this year. He runs a good race every time," Sadler said. "Panic Alarm is a horse we bought as a yearling over there in Europe (with the ticket signed by BBA Ireland). He was up there in Ireland and ran at Royal Ascot, didn't run very well, but has got here and done pretty well."
Both Jerkens and Sadler spent the early portions of their careers in Northern California, with Sadler running some of his first horses in the late 1970s at defunct Bay Meadows, and Jerkens spending about 10 years at Golden Gate, becoming racing secretary there prior to accepting his current position at Del Mar.
"I hope everyone lands on their feet," Jerkens said of those impacted by Golden Gate's impending closure. "Been around a million racetracks, and the community there and people there are second to none. I hope it works out for them in the end."
A year ago, it was Sadler who trained the star of the Del Mar summer meet in Flightline , who took the track's signature race, the $1.05 million Pacific Classic (G1) by a record 19 1/4 lengths. A start later, he would roll in the Breeders' Cup Classic (G1) at Keeneland on his way to being honored as Horse of the Year.
A month and a half before this year's Pacific Classic, which will again be run the Saturday of Labor Day weekend, Sept. 2, there is no horse of his quality pointed for the 1 1/4-mile race. Hollywood Gold Cup (G1) winner Defunded , trained by Bob Baffert, is the West Coast's top prospect for the race, with more likely to join the mix after Del Mar stages the 1 1/16-mile San Diego Handicap (G2) July 29.
Flightline gave Sadler his fourth win in the Pacific Classic, all coming within the past five runnings. Hronis Racing owned all four, Flightline in partnership and solely with Tripoli (2021), Higher Power (2019), and Accelerate (2018). Accelerate also won the 2018 Breeders' Cup Classic and an Eclipse Award as champion older male that year.
"I have a horse called Missed The Cut that is going to run in the San Diego," Sadler said. "He really looks like a mile-and-a-quarter horse."
After making seven starts overseas, Missed The Cut, a son of Quality Road , was second in a June 11 allowance race at Santa Anita Park in his United States debut for owners Bee Zee, Lanes End Racing, St. Elias Stables, Edward Babington, Edward J. Hudson Jr., and Lynne Hudson.
The Pacific Classic is one of six races that Del Mar will run as part of the Breeders' Cup Challenge Series: Win and You're In—races that provide paid, automatic berths into designated Breeders' Cup races. The Pacific Classic winner earns a berth in the Nov. 4 Breeders' Cup Classic at Santa Anita.
"We think we're going to be there in some of those big races, just going to be more of a normal course than last year," said Sadler, a three-time training champion at Del Mar.
With 12 winners last year, Sadler tied for eighth in the summer standings, trailing Phil D'Amato and Baffert, who tied for first with 19 wins apiece.
Juan Hernandez ran away with the riding title, outpacing Umberto Rispoli, Ramon Vasquez, and Mike Smith. Hernandez also won the 2021 title during Del Mar's shorter fall meet.
Without gaming to supplement purses in California, Del Mar's overnight purses do not reach the levels seen by some tracks in other regions of the country, though they are competitive. Maiden purses at Del Mar will be contested for $82,000, the highest maiden purses in California history.
Working with Thoroughbred Owners of California, Del Mar is again offering overnight purse bonuses available via the track's lucrative "Ship & Win" incentive program and its maiden dirt bonus program.
"We have to do it the old-fashioned way out in California," Del Mar executive vice president of racing and industry relations Tom Robbins said of luring participants.
Outside of the older male dirt division, graded stakes winners Offlee Naughty , Twilight Gleaming , and Window Shopping were among the horses that breezed July 18 at Del Mar, likely indicative of upcoming starts at the meet.
According to Jerkens, eastern-based trainers Jonathan Thomas, Tom Proctor, Rowan Crichton, and Jerry O'Dwyer are sending horses to stable at Del Mar this summer, most for the first time and Proctor after an absence over the past few years. Robertino Diodoro, Patrick Biancone, Amador Sanchez, Todd Fincher, and Jeff Engler are also set to return after racing at Del Mar last summer, Jerkens added.
The track has other draws, with dry weather that rarely results in a race being moved off the grass, and with far cooler summer temperatures than other parts of Southern California.
"It's also not a bad thing to be only 100 yards from the Pacific Ocean," Robbins said.
Del Mar is a meet to which California horsemen regularly point their best horses after the May and June doldrums of the long Santa Anita Park season and lesser summer afternoon racing of the Los Angeles County Fair at Los Alamitos Race Course. Two-year-old racing also gets in full swing during summer at Del Mar, culminating with the Del Mar Futurity (G1) and Del Mar Debutante (G1) late in the meet.
"For me, personally, I've got lots of horses to run—a lot of different categories," Sadler said. "I'm excited to get them going."
Entries: Caesars Sportsbook Oceanside S.
Del Mar, Friday, July 21, 2023, Race 8
- STK
- 1m
- Turf
- $100,000
- 3 yo
- 5:30 PM (local)
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