Joe Harper

Joe Harper, the chief executive officer of the Del Mar Thoroughbred Club (DMTC) who will be retiring from his position at the end of the year, has been named the 22nd winner of the Laffit Pincay Jr. Award, the track announced Saturday. Named for and presented by the Hall of Fame rider, the award recognizes those who have served the sport of racing "with integrity, extraordinary dedication, determination and distinction." Harper, 83, recently announced his impending retirement from his full-time position, and his transition to the title CEO Emeritus at...

Edited Press Release  Joe Harper, Chief Executive Officer of the Del Mar Thoroughbred Club (DMTC), will transition from his day-to-day role and will assume the title of CEO Emeritus at the end of this year, Del Mar officials announced today. Harper, 83, who originally joined Del Mar in 1977, also will remain as a director on the DMTC board. "Joe Harper's name and presence have been synonymous with Del Mar for nearly 50 years and his stewardship of this association and this facility has been invaluable to Thoroughbred racing in...

Trevor Denman will be honored with the Special Eclipse Award for Career Excellence, according to a release by the National Thoroughbred Racing Association, Daily Racing Form, and the National Turf Writers and Broadcasters on Monday. Denman's award will be celebrated at the 55th annual Resolute Racing Eclipse Awards at the Breakers Palm Beach in Florida on Jan. 22. "What a wonderful way to end a 53 year career," said Denman "I am so honored to receive this award and will treasure it forever. I wish to thank Alan Balch of...

71-year-old jockey Perry Ouzts--who just this summer surpassed Russell Baze for the most rides by a jockey in North American racing history--will be honored with the Mr. Fitz Award along with track executive Joe Harper, turf writer Steve Andersen and broadcaster Nick Luck during the National Turf Writers and Broadcasters' 65th Annual Awards Dinner on Wednesday, Oct. 29 in Del Mar, Calif., the NTWAB announced. The 2025 NTWAB Awards Dinner, which is the organization's only fundraiser, will be held at The Brigantine Del Mar, overlooking nearby Del Mar Racetrack. Harper...

Bill Strauss and Bret Jones have both been named to the Board of Directors of the Del Mar Thoroughbred Club. The two, who are the first new members added to the board since three members were added in 2018, bring the total number of current board members to 11. "We've made ourselves better and stronger with the addition of these two fine gentlemen," said board member and Del Mar CEO Joe Harper. "When you can pick up a pair of individuals who love racing and have rich histories in the...

The Del Mar summer meet, always a hot attraction in Southern California, could not have gone much better this year. The stand set records for average daily handle and average field size, and crucially, recorded zero racing or training fatalities, the fourth stakes Del Mar meet with no racing breakdowns. Tuesday, Del Mar CEO Joe Harper joined the TDN Writers' Room presented by Keeneland as the Green Group Guest of the Week to talk about how the track has become the gold standard for racehorse safety, what the future looks...

Joe Harper joins this week's TDN Writers' Room to discuss the close of a Del Mar meet marked by a perfect safety record and record handle.

Highlighted by the buzz around Flightline (Tapit)'s stellar GI TVG Pacific Classic performance in the track's signature event, Del Mar had record wagering and field size for the 31-day summer meet that ended Sunday, as well as a continued excellent safety record for the fourth consecutive year. There were no catastrophic injuries among 2,688 starters in the meet's 294 races. The 83rd summer meet at Del Mar Thoroughbred Club (DMTC) set new records for average daily handle with $18.69 million a day, an increase of 1.5% from last year's $18.41...

Craig Dado, a member of the Del Mar Thoroughbred Club's executive staff for the past 20 years, is leaving the organization to pursue other opportunities. Dado, 54, a Northern California native, has been a Del Mar executive vice president and its chief marketing officer since 2013. He joined the company in 2001 as vice president of marketing, then in 2010 was named senior vice president before assuming his current role. Prior to coming on board at Del Mar, Dado had begun his racing career at Santa Anita Park in 1991...

Del Mar rounded out its 2021 racing calendar Dec. 5 with the conclusion of its eighth Bing Crosby Season following its successful fall and summer meets. Between them, the pair totaled a combined final wagering mark of $943.49 million, a record for the seaside oval. Among highlights this season, the oval saw the return of racing fans, healthy purses in addition to hosting another record-setting Breeders' Cup. Also in 2021, a single horse was injured catastrophically in the 426 races and 3,552 starters that performed during the two meets. Total...

Edited Press Release Total all-sources common-pool handle for the two-day Breeders' Cup World Championships at Del Mar Thoroughbred Club was $182,908,409, a new record for the two-day event. The total represents a 4.7% increase over the prior record of $174,628,986 set when the event was held at Santa Anita Park in 2019 and a 14% increase from the total handle of $160,472,893 at the 2020 event held at Keeneland Race Course in Lexington, KY. Total common-pool handle on Saturday's 12-race Breeders' Cup card was a record $121,562,392. All sources common-pool...

Del Mar has cancelled its weekend racing--scheduled to run Friday through Sunday--because of multiple jockeys testing positive for COVID-19, as first reported in Daily Racing Form. In a subsequent press release Wednesday afternoon, Del Mar explained that all of the track's jockeys and jockey room personnel were tested on Tuesday by San Diego County Health and Human Services Agency staff, with 15 jockeys showing up positive for COVID-19. All were reportedly asymptomatic. "Assuming these individuals continue to show no symptoms, they will be isolated for a total of 10 days...