Del Mar

All post-race test samples taken from contenders in the 2024 Breeders' Cup World Championships Nov. 1-2 at Del Mar Thoroughbred Club have been cleared by the Horseracing Integrity & Welfare Unit (HIWU), the Breeders' Cup announced Monday and purse distribution has begun accordingly. 2024 marked the second year the Breeders' Cup World Championships were run under the full jurisdiction of the Horseracing Integrity & Safety Authority (HISA), including the Anti-Doping and Medication Control (ADMC) Program, which took effect in May of 2023 and is implemented and enforced by HIWU. As...

In the first domestic graded race for juveniles since the Breeders' Cup a little more than two weeks ago, 'TDN Rising Star' Bullard (c, 2, Gun Runner--Reve d'Amour, by Warrior's Reward) stayed unbeaten to capture Del Mar's GIII Bob Hope Stakes Sunday. The $675,000 Keeneland September purchase had gone to the post favored over highly regarded GI Del Mar Futurity runner-up and GI American Pharoah Stakes third McKinzie Street (McKinzie), who would hit the board once again. Umberto Rispoli, who has been aboard in both of Bullard's two career starts,...

The field for Sunday's GIII Bob Hope Stakes, a seven-furlong event for 2-year-olds at Del Mar, features a small and somewhat eclectic group of six. Take, for example, MGISP McKinzie Street (McKinzie). The Tim Yakteen trainee impressed in his sprint debut earlier in the summer but has had the misfortune of running second and third in a pair of Grade I's including a last-out third to the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile winner Citizen Bull (Into Mischief) in the GI American Pharoah Stakes Oct. 5. He breaks from the rail and...

A 3-year-old filly bred by Spendthrift Farm and sired by one of the nursery's top stallions gutted out the victory in Friday's seventh race at Del Mar. That in itself was unremarkable and not unexpected, but the result was, as 21-5 third choice Sandy Bottom (Omaha Beach)--making her first start since running her record to two-for-two in the Anoakia Stakes some 390 days ago--was quickly into stride from the outside gate in a field of six and made every yard of the running to just hold an equally game effort...

   In this series, the TDN takes a look at notable successes of European-based sires in North America. This column is highlighted by the second victory of Rebel's Romance in the GI Breeders' Cup Turf. Another Turf Title For Rebel's Romance Godolphin's Rebel's Romance (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}) delivered his second GI Breeders' Cup Turf in three years at Del Mar for trainer Charlie Appleby on Nov. 2 (video). He also took out the 2022 renewal at Keeneland. A Group/Grade 1 winner in Hong Kong, the UAE, and Germany besides his...

7th-DMR, 61K, O/C, 3yo/up, f, 6f, 6:33 p.m. TAMARA (Bolt d'Oro), the daughter of four-time Eclipse winner Beholder, makes her long-awaited return to the races Friday after a year-long absence following last year's GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies. Named a 'TDN Rising Star' in her summer debut over course and near distance, the Richard Mandella trainee gave visions of her illustrious mother when romping by 6 3/4 lengths in the GI Del Mar Debutante. Heavily favored to complete the hat trick at the Breeders' Cup, Tamara came home eased after...

In the week leading up to this year's Breeders' Cup, observers who remained trackside at the conclusion of morning training would have spotted a young man with a short bristly moustache lug an unusual looking contraption around the two ovals at the heart of Del Mar. If these trackside observers hung around long enough, they would have spotted this two-legged interloper stop to place down and trigger what appeared to be a miniature guillotine, twiddle with a few buttons, then either jump back into his golf cart or set off...

4th-Del Mar, $54,500, Msw, 11-10, 3yo/up, 1m, 1:35.58, ft, 6 lengths. MAGNIFY (c, 3, Justify--Stellar Wind {Ch. 3-year-old Filly, MGISW, $2,903,200}, by Curlin) was never a factor in his May debut at Santa Anita but came back with an improved effort off a break to be second at Del Mar Aug. 22. Now in his third try over the distance and off another brief layoff, the 5-2 third choice flashed early speed to duel for the lead up the backstretch with Harry Houdini (Good Magic). The pair went head to...

Fan favorite The Chosen Vron (Vronsky), scratched from the GI Breeders' Cup Sprint last weekend, will be turned out for several months after an issue was detected in his ankle. "We'll take it one step at a time," trainer J. Eric Kruljac said. "We'll give him four months off and then bring him back. I feel pretty good that he'll come back the same horse." California's reigning Horse of the Year, the 6-year-old has won 19 of his 25 career trips to the post to date and, after finishing fifth...

Alex Cole, racing manager for owners Jim and Fitri Hay, has paid tribute to their "superstar" Starlust (GB), who has reportedly attracted plenty of interest from Australia with a view to a stallion career following his victory in Saturday's GI Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint at Del Mar. Trained by Ralph Beckett, Starlust is now the winner of six of his 18 career starts, having thrived on his racing in 2024, notably winning at the Breeders' Cup on his tenth run of a three-year-old campaign which began at Meydan back in...

Numbers have been released for the 2024 Breeders' Cup World Championships, with total all-sources, global common-pool handle for the two-day event at $179,218,631, marking a 1.7% bettering of the 2023 total handle. The 41st running of the Breeders' Cup was held Nov. 1-2 at Del Mar, while the 2023 event was held at Santa Anita. The 2024 handle of $179,218,631 marked the third-highest in Breeders' Cup history since the event went to two days in 2007. Only the 2022 event at Keeneland (with $189,060,373 in handle) and the 2021 event...

Edited Press Release Flavien Prat, who guided two horses to Breeders' Cup victories Nov. 1-2 at Del Mar Thoroughbred Club during the World Championships, won the 22nd Bill Shoemaker Award as the outstanding jockey of the event. The Shoemaker Award goes to the jockey who rides the most winners in the 14 Championship races with the tiebreaker being a 10-3-1 point system for second- through fourth-place finishes. Prat and Ryan Moore each won two races but thanks to a runner-up effort on Raging Sea (Curlin) in the GI Longines Breeders'...