All-sources wagering at the Del Mar summer meeting that ended Sunday declined 10.9 percent compared to the corresponding meeting in 2022, a figure affected by the cancellation of a Sunday program last month.
The meeting was scheduled for 31 days, but 30 days of racing were held. The Aug. 20 program was lost because of rain from the remnants of Hurricane Hilary.
Mark Casse wasn’t at Kentucky Downs on Saturday, but of course he was watching closely as his longshot Get Smokin loaded into the gate, broke on top, and quickly took a lead in the $1.7 million Kentucky Turf Cup. Get Smokin was cruising in the clear, going easily.
“Watching the race, I said to myself, ‘Hmm, this is interesting,’ ” Casse said Monday morning.
Average daily handle at Monmouth Park for the track’s 51-day meet this year rose 11.4 percent, according to the track, bucking trends for the industry overall and at major summer racetracks.
The average daily handle this year was $4.03 million, compared to $3.62 million last year. Ontrack handle rose 15 percent, from $295,896 last year to $340,257 this year, the track said.
The figures were boosted by record handle on July 22, when the track ran the Grade 1 Haskell Stakes, which drew Kentucky Derby winner Mage. The 14-race program drew $21.36 million in bets.
Exaulted, the winner of the Grade 1 Shoemaker Mile in May but second in the Grade 2 Del Mar Mile on Sept. 2, will have his next start in the Breeders’ Cup Mile at Santa Anita on Nov. 4.
After the recent loss, trainer Peter Eurton said the Grade 2 City of Hope Mile at Santa Anita on Sept. 30 would be considered. Eurton said on Friday that is no longer the plan after conferring with owner Lee Searing.
Cowboys Gun Z emerged from his win in the $3 million All American Futurity on Monday at Ruidoso Downs in good order and will soon ship to Lone Star Park, said trainer Michael Joiner.
Joiner was at Lone Star on Thursday setting up his stable for the track's meet that opens Friday night. He said Cowboys Gun Z is currently stabled at Ruidoso Downs, but will arrive in the next few days at Lone Star.
“He came back really good, so we’re very fortunate there,” said Joiner.
Churchill Downs has modified the system that awards points to horses seeking a berth in the Kentucky Derby by increasing the amount of points for second-place finishes in the 37 races that are a part of the series in the U.S., the company announced on Friday.
The presence of the longshot Mary’s Boy Bolt in Sunday’s Grade 1 Del Mar Futurity could be a unique manner of keeping a top race in the family.
Mary’s Boy Bolt is by Bolt d’Oro, who won the race in 2017. Bolt d’Oro was trained by Mick Ruis, who recently returned to training after a four-year absence.
Ruis’s daughter Shelbe trained the family’s stable in recent years, but stepped away in the spring after the birth of a daughter. Shelbe’s husband, Antonio Garcia, trained the stable for several months until Mick Ruis resumed training last month.
Jockey Umberto Rispoli is set to return to riding at Del Mar on Friday, slightly more than a week after he was unseated when his mount clipped heels in early stretch of a race on Aug. 31.
Rispoli, who turned 35 on Aug. 31, is booked to ride six of the eight races on Friday’s program, and eight of the 11 races on Saturday, including all three stakes.
Rispoli escaped serious injury when he was unseated. He was briefly hospitalized that afternoon for tests, and did not ride through Labor Day weekend.
DEL MAR, Calif. — It’s never too early to start thinking about Christmas. Or, in the case of the undefeated colt, Dr. Venkman, a start in a major race on the day after Christmas.
Dr. Venkman won his second start in an allowance race at seven furlongs at Del Mar last Saturday at 2-5, closing from third before drawing away by an impressive 5 1/2 lengths.
Despite strong business on Pacific Classic day last Saturday, handle for the Del Mar summer meeting will show declines from 2022.
Mike Ernst, the track’s chief financial officer, said on Wednesday that all-sources handle for the season is down “a little more than 9 percent.” The eight-week summer meeting began on July 21 and concludes on Sunday.
This year, the season included 30 days of racing compared to 31 in 2022. Del Mar did not race on Sunday, Aug. 20 because of rain from the remnants of Hurricane Hilary.
