Pacific Classic shows sharp increases in handle, attendance
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The Pacific Classic program at Del Mar last Saturday showed considerable increases in attendance and all-sources betting handle compared to the corresponding day in 2025, according to statistics released by the racetrack.
The ontrack attendance was 15,187, the highest this decade and a 13 percent rise from a crowd of 13,432 in 2025. The all-source handle, including simulcasting and account wagering, was $29,338,340, the 10th highest in track history.
The attendance was the highest since 2019, when the crowd reached 20,686. The attendance record for the Pacific Classic of 44,181 was set in 1996, the year Dare and Go won the race in an upset, ending Cigar’s winning streak at 16 races.
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This year’s all-sources handle figure is second on the track’s all-time list for non-Breeders’ Cup programs. Del Mar has hosted the Breeders’ Cup four times, first in 2017 and most recently last year. The Friday and Saturday programs of those four years occupy the top eight positions on the track’s list of all-time single-day handle figures.
The 2021 Pacific Classic program handled $36.02 million. On that day, Del Mar had a mandatory payout in the 20-cent jackpot pick six, which drew a pool of more than $8.8 million in pursuit of a carryover of more than $1.87 million. By comparison, all-sources handle last Saturday showed an increase of 11.2 percent from the 2025 handle of more than $26.3 million on Pacific Classic day.
From a purse standpoint, the Pacific Classic program was the richest of the summer meeting, with four stakes worth $1.8 million. The season concludes on Sept. 7.