Kosta Hronis, Jim Rome join Del Mar board

DEL MAR, Calif. – Prominent horse owner Kosta Hronis and top radio personality Jim Rome are the newest members of Del Mar’s board of directors, the track announced on Thursday.

Hronis, 59, and his brother Pete own a major produce business in central California and have a high-class racing stable based in Southern California, headed by Breeders’ Cup Classic winner Accelerate, the overwhelming favorite to be named champion older dirt male of 2018 and a top contender for Horse of the Year.

Earlier this year, Accelerate won Del Mar’s biggest race, the Pacific Classic. The Hronises most-accomplished previous runner was the Eclipse Award-winning filly Stellar Wind. The Hronis horses are trained by John Sadler.

Rome, 54, numbers as his top runners two-time Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint winner Mizdirection, as well as Eclipse Award winner Shared Belief, who also won the Pacific Classic. Rome also is a racing ambassador for the Breeders’ Cup, which was held at Del Mar in 2017 and is scheduled to return in 2021.

“We hit not one, but two home runs when we got these fine gentlemen to join us at Del Mar,” Del Mar chief executive Joe Harper said in a press release. “Kosta and Jim come from different worlds, but they share a mutual love of our game and a desire to see it flourish. We could not be more pleased to add a pair of sharp minds like theirs to our leadership ranks.”

The Del Mar board now numbers 11, nine men and two women.

◗ Roy H and Stormy Liberal, who repeated in Breeders’ Cup races a month ago, both worked three furlongs on Wednesday at Del Mar for trainer Peter Miller. Roy H, the two-time Sprint winner, went three furlongs in 36 seconds, while two-time Turf Sprint winner Stormy Liberal was timed in 37.20 seconds for a drill designated as breezing.

◗ At Santa Anita on Wednesday, Breeders’ Cup Classic also-rans Axelrod (48 seconds) and McKinzie (49 seconds) both turned in easy half-mile drills.

◗ A storm that hit Del Mar on Thursday caused the four grass races slated for that card to be moved to the main track. The course is being protected for the closing weekend Grade 1 races, the Hollywood Derby on Saturday and the Matriarch on Sunday.