Beholder Steals the Show: Del Mar 2015 Summer Meet in Review

The 2015 summer meeting at Del Mar Thoroughbred Club has come and gone, but what a thrilling season of racing it was at the San Diego venue.  After a tumultuous 2014, once again it was the racehorses and horsemen that dominated headlines as one of America’s most prestigious venues played host to several superstar equine athletes throughout the nearly two-month calendar. While many familiar faces and some new dominated the action, there is little doubt that a star mare is what this meet will be remembered by in years to come.

Beholder headed south to Del Mar with an unbelievable lifetime record of 12 wins in 17 career starts, but it was her dominating performance in the 2015 Pacific Classic that sits amongst her most massive lifetime achievements as we head towards the tail end of her five-year old campaign this fall.  After a powerful score in the Grade I Clement L. Hirsch on August 1^st, trainer Richard Mandella and Spendthrift Farms decided to “take on the boys” in the headline event of the Del Mar summer meeting.  Despite many doubters including yours truly, the daughter of Henny Hughes not only defeated her male counterparts, but beat them by eight and one quarter lengths without being asked by Hall of Famer Gary Stevens.

The win stamped Beholder as one of the top contenders for “Horse of the Year” and has racing fans hoping for a matchup between her and Triple Crown champion American Pharoah in the Breeders’ Cup Classic at Keeeneland this fall.  Her two Grade I scores made her the unanimous choice as “Horse of the Meet” in Del Mar’s press box and “stole the show” this summer.

While it was the classy Beholder that dominated the action in the afternoons, the first winner of the Triple Crown since Affirmed in 1978 also made headlines on a regular basis in San Diego this summer.  American Pharoah did not race at Del Mar in 2015, but he still made it his home. With workouts that dazzled the eye and consistent news coming from his connections, the Zayat Stables’ colt surely made his presence felt “Where the Turf Meets the Surf.”  A public parade on September 6^th rewarded the son of Pioneerof the Nile’s massive fan base with one final look at the “champ” before he begins to prepare for the Breeders’ Cup Classic in late October. Trainer Bob Baffert was excited to see such a large turnout for what he called “probably one of the last times you’ll get to see him in Southern California.” Pharoah will try to avenge his first defeat since last summer before likely retiring to stud after the nation’s richest race in Lexington on October 31^st.

Two of the games biggest stars dominated the newspaper headlines, but a few of Southern California’s most hardworking horsemen controlled the standings at Del Mar this summer. Trainer Jerry Hollendorfer won the coveted trainer title with 22 wins in 104 starts. The 69-year-old owner/conditioner won 21% of his starts and accumulated over $1.5 million dollars in total earnings. Peter Miller came on strong in the final days to finish second with 20 wins, while Doug O’Neill “completed the Trifecta” with 17 wins. Rafael Bejarano took yet another riding title winning 40 races, while up and coming Flavien Prat finished second with 30.

Despite illustrating the consistency this summer of Hollendorfer and Miller, O'Neill certainly had some massive accomplishments led by the five-victory day he obtained on July 29^th. When Lookin for Money crossed the wire first on that Wednesday afternoon, it broke the mark of four set a number of times throughout the venue’s rich history. In the winners’ circle following the record-breaking performance, the exuberant O’Neill declared, “Unbelieveable. We thought we might have a good day, but this…It’s hard to win a single race down here. But to do something like this, what can you say?”

While O’Neill’s biggest overall day took place in late July, the performances of his star two-year-old Nyquist were equally as memorable. First, the son of Uncle Mo drew off to win the Grade II Best Pal Stakes on August 8^th and then he followed that up with an easy victory in the closing day Grade I Del Mar Futurity. The $400,000 purchase at the Fasig-Tipton Florida 2015 selected 2-year-olds in training sale has hardly been asked in his first three starts and is one of the top contenders for the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile this fall. Combined with the progeny of Square Eddie, Mrazek and Ralis, the Reddam/O’Neill tandem are loaded with young talent and have lofty goals for their top juveniles moving forward.

The emergence of Songbird as one of the nation’s best two-year-old fillies also topped the list of memories this summer at Del Mar. The Jerry Hollendorfer trained daughter of Medaglia d’Oro broke her maiden under a gallop earlier in the meet and returned to the racetrack as the even-money favorite in the Grade I Del Mar Debutante.  Breaking from the outside, she shot out of the gate and dueled with undefeated Bob Baffert runner Pretty N Cool, before cantering home to another easy score. The big filly has yet to be challenged in two career starts and is one of the top contenders for the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies.

Several other equine athletes bolstered their resumes this summer and will be set for what their connections hope will be a massive future. Sharla Rae, Wild Dude, Appealing Tale, Big John B, Gabriel Charles, and Om are amongst the most notable, but one could go on and on. While, the talent at the Del Mar Thoroughbred Club was on display each and every day, the safety of the thoroughbred was of the utmost importance in 2015. After a 2014 season that saw races taken off the turf course in light of several breakdowns, the course remained in great condition throughout the summer calendar. While president and CEO of Del Mar, Joe Harper was by no means pleased with the 8 fatalities that took place at the meet, he recognized they are “a fact of life” in thoroughbred racing.  The significant decline of fatalities and the condition of both the turf and dirt courses were some of the highlights of the meeting. Harper said that he and his team will be taking a look at overall marketing strategies between now and the “Bing Crosby Meet” to determine what people found most and least appealing in an effort to resuscitate declining attendance numbers.

Del Mar reconvenes racing on Thursday October 29 and will be open during the Breeders’ Cup World Championships on October 30 and October 31.

Thank you all for following along and supporting me during my first summer covering Southern California Racing at Del Mar Thoroughbred Club. I look forward to continued coverage of the circuit in the coming weeks and returning to San Diego County in the fall.