DEL MAR, Calif. – August has been a unique month for Southern California-based trainer Mark Glatt, with a remote chance to squeeze in a career milestone next weekend. On Aug. 17, Glatt was inducted into the Washington state racing hall of fame. Glatt, 52, began his training career in the 1990s in Washington, his home state. On Saturday at Del Mar, the Glatt-trained Dr. Venkman won for the first time in nearly 13 months in the Grade 2 Pat O’Brien Stakes at seven furlongs, earning a fees-paid berth to the Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile at Del Mar on Nov. 1. Next Saturday, Glatt has another potential career landmark, and one that would be much more of a surprise. The stable plans to run Ultimate Gamble in the Grade 1 Pacific Classic, a $1 million race at 1 1/4 miles that will have a stellar field. :: Play to Win at Del Mar! Get DRF Past Performances, Clocker Reports, Picks, and Betting Strategies all in one place.  Glatt has never won the Pacific Classic. The expected lineup for the track’s richest annual race includes Fierceness, a multiple Grade 1 winner based in New York with Todd Pletcher; Journalism, the star 3-year-old who was second as the 3-1 favorite in the Kentucky Derby in May; and the highly-regarded Nysos, who has won four graded stakes and will race for the first time at 1 1/4 miles. Ultimate Gamble will have his stakes debut in the Pacific Classic. A 5-year-old horse, Ultimate Gamble finished second in an allowance race at a mile at Del Mar on July 27, and was promoted to first when race winner Arrowthegreat was disqualified and placed second for drifting to the outside and bumping Ultimate Gamble in the stretch. The Pacific Classic will be the first start beyond 1 1/16 miles for Ultimate Gamble, who races for Red Baron’s Barn and Rancho Temescal. “I think he’ll like a mile and a quarter,” Glatt said on Sunday. “He’s rounding into form. “The competition will be tough. On paper, he’s up against it. We’ll see if everyone shows up.” Dr. Venkman certainly showed up in the $250,500 Pat O’Brien Stakes at seven furlongs. Ridden by Umberto Rispoli, Dr. Venkman stayed on the inside throughout and won by a half-length over Stronghold, the winner of the Grade 1 Santa Anita Derby in 2024. The Pat O’Brien was Dr. Venkman’s fourth start this year, all since May 31. He may not race again until the BC Dirt Mile. “My initial thought is he’s had four hard races after a layoff in a short period of time,” Glatt said. “I don’t think I’ll run back until the Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile. I like a race 30 days out for the Breeders’ Cup. I don’t think that sets up for him. “He’s a horse that’s easily kept fit, once fit. We can freshen him up and have him ready.” The Pat O’Brien Stakes was Dr. Venkman’s first win since the Grade 2 San Diego Handicap at 1 1/16 miles at Del Mar in July 2024. He was later fourth by three lengths as the 11-10 favorite in the Grade 1 Pacific Classic at 1 1/4 miles at Del Mar last August, in what turned out to be his last start of the year. Earlier this year, Dr. Venkman finished a well-beaten second to Nysos in the Grade 3 Triple Bend Stakes at seven furlongs on May 31, finished second by three-quarters of a length in the Grade 3 Kelly’s Landing Stakes at Churchill Downs on June 28, and fourth of nine in the Grade 1 Bing Crosby Stakes at six furlongs at Del Mar on July 26. “He ran into Nysos and that was a good comeback effort,” Glatt said. “He absolutely should have won in Kentucky. In the Bing, it was probably a little short for him.” Glatt has yet to win a Breeders’ Cup race with eight starters, including a nose loss by Dr. Schivel in the 2021 Sprint at Del Mar. In this year’s Dirt Mile, Dr. Venkman will have something of a home track advantage. “He likes this track,” Glatt said. “All four of his wins have come here.” Stronghold is not expected to race again until the Dirt Mile, trainer Phil D’Amato said on Sunday. Stronghold closed from fourth to be closest to the front at the finish of the Pat O’Brien Stakes. “It’s bittersweet,” D’Amato said. “I think he ran too good to lose. “We could wait for the Dirt Mile.” The Pat O’Brien Stakes was the first start for Stronghold since a 10th-place finish of 11 in the Grade 1 Pegasus World Cup Invitational at Gulfstream Park in January. Stronghold has finished in the first two in 10 of his 12 career starts. He was seventh in the 2024 Kentucky Derby. The Pat O’Brien Stakes was marred by a sesamoid injury sustained by Spirit of Makena, a two-time graded stakes winner in 2023. Spirit of Makena broke through the gate before the start and was reloaded after a brief veterinary exam behind the gate. Spirit of Makena was stricken about three furlongs into the race, unseating jockey Mirco Demuro. Spirit of Makena was taken to a backstretch hospital for X-rays. Demuro took off his two mounts on Sunday. Trainer George Papaprodromou said on Sunday that Spirit of Makena will have surgery on Monday to stabilize the injury. :: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.