The sunny season kicks off California’s most awaited period of equestrian competition, commencing Thursday, July 18, with the grand opening of Del Mar’s summer gathering. The 86th Del Mar summer period will be composed of 31 days of races, largely conducted four days a week, specifically from Thursdays through Sundays, in addition to Labor Day, concluding on Sunday, Sept. 7.
The Del Mar gathering will host six Grade 1 stakes races, highlighted by the meet’s premier race, the $1 million Pacific Classic Stakes on Aug. 30. The Pacific Classic will function as a preparatory race over the same track and distance for the Longines Breeders’ Cup Classic, which is scheduled to be held at Del Mar on Nov. 1.
However, for those who enjoy betting on horse races, Del Mar offers more than just significant stakes. The meet will provide bettors with competitive daily races and wagering opportunities, featuring large fields, promising 2-year-olds, and the return of turf racing, which has been absent from Southern California since Santa Anita Park’s meet concluded in mid-June.
Continue reading for some betting advice and pointers to assist you in winning “Where the Turf Meets the Surf” at the historic Del Mar track.
Del Mar Top Jockeys
The Del Mar jockey lineup is strong at the highest tier and is steered by Juan Hernandez, who defended his title as the leading rider at the Del Mar summer meet in 2024. He secured 46 victories out of 165 rides, achieving a 28% winning rate. Last year witnessed a surge in Hernandez’s performance, even exceeding his 2023 performance when he led all Del Mar jockeys with 39 victories out of 174 rides, achieving a 22% winning rate. Hernandez often rides first for trainer Bob Baffert and will be given many of his top rides during the season for the impressive stable.
Second in the 2024 jockey win standings for the second consecutive year was Antonio Fresu, who achieved 38 wins out of 214 rides, an 18% success rate. Fresu’s win count rose in the past year compared to his 2023 meet, in which he scored 31 wins out of 173 rides for an equal 18% win percentage. The rest of the top 5 consisted of Umberto Rispoli, who secured 31 wins out of 143 rides for a 22% win percentage; Hectos Isaac Berrios, who had 22 victories from 110 rides, resulting in a 20% win percentage, and Kyle Frey, who won 20 times but also had 178 rides, resulting in an 11% win percentage.
Other jockeys to keep an eye on are led by Kazushi Kimura, who continues to establish himself on the SoCal circuit after notching 18 victories from 173 rides (10%) at Del Mar’s summer meet last year. Edwin Maldonado concluded in the top 5 two years prior at Del Mar’s summer meet with 20 wins out of 162 rides (12%) and followed that up last year with a 12-for-114 record (11%). Veteran Mike Smith continues to ride selectively and went 9-for-63 at the 2024 summer meet for a 14% clip. He won 20% of his mounts in 2023.
Del Mar Leading Trainers
Phil D’Amato and Bob Baffert have been in a close competition for the top spot in the Del Mar trainer standings for the past two years. Baffert emerged as the winner of the 2024 Del Mar summer trainers title with 23 wins, surpassing D’Amato, who finished with 21 wins. Baffert flipped the outcome on D’Amato, who had slightly outperformed Baffert by one winner to seize the 2023 summer training title.
While these two trainers are anticipated to maintain their success at Del Mar and the 2025 meet title could go either way, their win percentages cannot be directly compared, with Baffert holding the advantage in that specific metric. Baffert achieved his 23 wins last summer with just 77 starters, resulting in a significant 30% winning percentage. D’Amato’s wins were derived from 147 starters, resulting in a more modest 14% winning percentage. Both Baffert’s win percentage and D’Amato’s were similar to their numbers from the 2023 season when Baffert won 32% and D’Amato won 16% of their races.
The other trainer very likely in the running to contend for the Del Mar summer training title is Doug O’Neill, who missed the title by just two wins at the 2023 summer meet when he won 19 times and then missed the 2024 title by just three wins when he won 20 times. O’Neill’s record was 20-for-129 in 2024 for 16% after he won at a 13% clip in 2023.
In terms of win percentage, it will be a tough challenge for any trainer to compete with Baffert at the meet, but for bettors, Baffert’s horses typically offer minimal returns. Some other trainers you might consider relying on for better profits this season, based on their performances at the 2024 summer meet, include John Sadler (17-for-69, 25%), Michael McCarthy (13-for-70, 19%), Jeff Mullins, (11-for-46, 24%), Craig Dollase (5-for-21, 24%), and Ron Ellis (4-for-17, 24%).
Finally, Mark Glatt is preparing for what could be the most significant Del Mar summer meet of his career. Glatt secured the Santa Anita training title at the Dec. 26-April 6 meet by achieving 31 wins out of 122 starters for 25%, after recording 16 wins out of 100 starts for 16% and concluding in fifth place in the trainer standings at the 2024 Del Mar summer meet.
Del Mar Main Track Trends
Del Mar’s main track winning profile can sometimes favor speed, and this was especially evident during Del Mar’s two meets in 2024, which exhibited a notably stronger inclination towards speed compared to 2023.
In dirt sprints, horses that ran fast from the start, described in this article as either leading the race or staying within a length of the lead, secured wins in 64% of the 145 dirt sprints in 2024 (93 wins). Horses that stalked the leaders, running 1-4 lengths behind the pace, won 28% of the races (40 wins), and horses that closed from four or more lengths off the pace only won 8% of the dirt sprints (12 wins). In 2023, the dirt sprint stats were 47% for speed horses (71 wins in 152 dirt sprints) and stalkers won almost an equal number of races (68 wins in 152 dirt sprints for 45%). Horses that closed performed about the same way poorly in 2023 as they did in 2024, with late runners securing just 13 of the 152 dirt sprints in 2023 for 9%. This disadvantage for closers was consistent across all the different sprint distances.
The vast majority of dirt route races run at Del Mar are run at a distance of one mile and it is very rare to see a non-stakes race carded at a dirt route distance longer than a mile. Del Mar ran a total of 77 dirt routes in 2024, with 65 of those races being at one mile. The stats for the longer routes were very similar to the races at one mile, so let’s group them all together for the analysis.
In Del Mar dirt routes in 2024, the running style advantage went to front-runners, who had the best performance with 43 wins in the 77 races, accounting for 56% of the winners. Stalkers won 26 times, accounting for 34% of the race wins, while closers only won eight times, or 10%.
Post positions were also a significant factor in Del Mar dirt routes in 2024. With an average field size of 7.3 runners per route race, horses starting from the three inside posts won 55% of the races (42 wins in 77 routes). Furthermore, having early speed and starting from one of the three inside posts was a potent combination in Del Mar routes in 2024. Inside speed horses alone won 30% of the 77 dirt routes.
Del Mar Turf Route Tips
On the turf, Del Mar features some of the best summer grass racing in the country. Since the new turf course was installed prior to hosting the Breeders’ Cup in the fall of 2017, the vast majority of Del Mar’s turf routes have been run at distances of one mile or 1 1/16 miles. Each summer, a few races are also run at 1 1/8 miles and 1 3/8 miles on the turf. The Longines Breeders’ Cup Turf will be run at 1 1/2 miles. Turf routes at Del Mar in 2024 had an excellent average field size of 9.38 runners.
In terms of preferences for running style in turf routes, the Del Mar course was remarkably fair in 2024. Horses racing on or near the pace won 42 of the 137 total turf routes, accounting for 31% of the winners, while stalkers won 48 times (35% of the races) and closers won 47 times (34% of the races). These stats represented a significant turnaround from 2023, when stalkers and closers performed best, and horses racing on or near the pace were at a disadvantage (speed horses won only 23 of the 122 total turf routes run at Del Mar in 2023, accounting for only 19% of the wins). Monitor this trend as the 2025 season unfolds to see if front-runners are struggling as they did in 2023, or if they are holding their own as they did in 2024.
Del Mar’s turf course generally plays fair in terms of post positions in one-mile races, which is by far the most common turf route distance (89 races in 2024). The outside posts tend to be more problematic at 1 1/16 miles on turf, based on the 30 races run in 2024, and at 1 1/8 miles on turf (9 races in 2024), with horses starting from post positions #7 and outward in those races winning at lower percentages.
Del Mar Turf Sprint Trends
Del Mar’s turf sprint races are all run at a distance of five furlongs, and Del Mar ran 76 turf sprints in 2024, which is the most the track has ever run (by comparison, there were 62 turf sprints run at Del Mar in 2023).
Expect many unexpected results in these races. Turf sprint form from Santa Anita, which includes races on the downhill course and mainly consists of longer turf sprints, may not translate well to Del Mar.
For Del Mar turf sprint handicappers, trends in running style are more significant than post position trends when it comes to identifying the horses with the greatest chances of winning. Del Mar’s turf sprints in 2024 had an average field size of 8.78 runners, and just as in 2023, horses from inside, middle, and outside posts won at virtually the same rates.
Given that these Del Mar turf sprints are run at a distance of five furlongs, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that having early speed is advantageous in these races. While speed can be beneficial, it is not essential for success, and many winners come from off the pace. In 2024, 31 of the 76 turf sprints (41%) were won by horses on or near the pace, while stalkers won 26 times (34% of the races), and closers managed to win 19 times (25% of the races). Closers performed significantly better in 2024 than they did in 2023, when they won only 11 of the 62 turf sprints, accounting for 18% of the wins.
Enjoy the 2025 SoCal summer racing season where the turf meets the surf at Del Mar. Wishing you the best of luck!
