DMTC News – From the Wire

Stable Notes July 24, 2026
By Jim Charvat —-

TOP SPRINTERS BATTLE IN “WIN & YOU’RE IN” G1 BING CROSBY

A stakes tripleheader is on tap Saturday, highlighted by the first of six Grade I races at Del Mar this summer. The Bing Crosby has attracted nine speedballs for the six-furlong sprint, a “Win and You’re In” for the $2 million Breeders’ Cup Sprint this fall at Keeneland.

It features a former Santa Anita Derby winner, last year’s G2 Pat O’Brien winner and a horse from the Bob Baffert barn who beat Knightsbridge in a Grade I at Churchill Downs on Derby Day. Knightsbridge just posted the highest Beyer speed figure of the year (122) in last weekend’s G3 Monmouth Cup at Monmouth Park.

Cornucopian finished fifth in the Churchill Downs Stakes but came back four weeks later and won the G3 Aristides.

“He’s doing great,” Baffert says. “It’s a tough race. There are some nice horses in there. The ‘Bing’ is always a tough race to win.“

Cornucopian burst on the scene with a five-length maiden score at Oaklawn Park last year. It generated a lot of Kentucky Derby talk for the son of Into Mischief. But he followed with a fourth-place finish, beaten 8 ½ lengths in the G1 Arkansas Derby and that was the end of his Derby aspirations. Cornucopian has won three of his last four races, including the G3 San Carlos at Santa Anita in March.

Stronghold made it to the 2024 Kentucky Derby and will forever be remembered as trainer Philip D’Amato’s first Derby horse. He would finish seventh in the Run for the Roses and later posted runner-up finishes in the G3 Indiana Derby and G1 Pennsylvania Derby.

“I think he’s a versatile horse,” D’Amato claims. “We’re trying to win some grade ones with him and hopefully he can be a nice stallion in Kentucky.”

After the son of Ghostzapper ran second in a couple of prestigious sprints, the 2024 G1 Malibu and last year’s G2 Pat O’Brien, D’Amato realized he had a pretty good sprinter on his hands. Stronghold won the seven furlong G3 Triple Bend last out.

“I thought that was a powerful performance,” D’Amato notes. “He continues to train well. We just decided after that last race to keep him short and, hopefully, we’ll get a similar performance.”

D’Amato’s other entry in the race, Maximum Bourbon, deserves a long look. The son of Maximum Security is coming off a 5 ¾ length victory in the $200,000 St. Matthews Stakes at Churchill Downs.

“He’s a horse on the improve,” D’Amato says. “That was his introduction into stakes company last time and it was a nice performance. Ever since that race, the Bing has been our goal.”

The horse that beat Stronghold in the Pat O’Brien last summer is back in the Bing Crosby. Dr. Venkman returns from Kentucky where he ran last in the mud in the G3 Bango at Churchill Downs. It was his 2026 / 6-year-old debut and his first race in eight months.

“He never really looked all that comfortable at any point with the muddy track,” trainer Mark Glatt states. “It was his first race in a while, so I just think you throw the race out. Hopefully he regroups here on Saturday.”

Dr. Venkman has won four times at Del Mar, including the 2024 G2 San Diego Handicap back when Glatt was looking to see if he could route. After a fourth in the 2024 G1 Pacific Classic, Glatt gave Dr. Venkman a 10-month layoff and since he returned last summer the son of Ghostzapper has been sprinting.

“There needs to be some speed,” Glatt contends. “On paper there looks to be a ton of speed in there to set it up for him. Hopefully we get the pace it looks like we may get.”

The 81st running of the G1, $400,000 Bing Crosby is Race 10 on the 11-race card Saturday. The race is named after one of the founders of the Del Mar Thoroughbred Club and the racetrack we all love and enjoy, not to mention a pretty popular singer and actor of his time. Probable post time is 6:30 p.m.

Here’s the field from the rail with the jockeys and morning line odds: Maximum Bourbon (Joel Rosario, 7/2); Listenupshance (Emisael Jaramillo, 8-1); Dr. Venkman (Umberto Rispoli, 4-1); For All Mankind (Armando Ayuso, 12-1); Stronghold (Antonio Fresu, 4-1); Cornucopian (Juan Hernandez, 3-1); Gold Sweep (Mike Smith, 15-1); Mad House (Sonny Leon, 12-1), and Moonlight (Victor Espinoza, 20-1).

ENGLISH INVADER MAKES U.S DEBUT IN SATURDAY’S OSUNITAS STAKES

They’ve been running the Osunitas Stakes for 70 years at Del Mar and this year’s edition kicks off a stakes tripleheader at the seaside oval on Saturday. Eight fillies and mares will line up for the one-mile turf test.

One of those fillies is Saqqara Sands, the morning line favorite in the Osunitas who is racing in the U.S. for the first time. She’s an English-bred who ran at several of the big tracks in Britain over the past two years before switching to trainer Simon Callaghan’s barn last January.

“We like the way she’s trained,” Callaghan points out. “We’ve taken our time with her. She of course brings a good resume with her. I think she’ll do better when she goes farther but we want to get a race in California and this is a good place to start.”

Saqqara Sands won the Group 3 Oak Tree Stakes and followed up with a near miss in the Group 2 Celebration Mile both at Goodwood last summer. The last race of her 2025 campaign was the Group I Sun Chariot at Newmarket where she finished a non-threatening ninth.

She’ll be surrounded by contenders in the Osunitas. May Day Ready is looking to rebound from a seventh-place finish in her last outing, the G1 Gamely at Santa Anita. The daughter of Tapit ran a close second to Take A Breath in the G3 Royal Heroine prior to the Gamely.

“She’s a little temperamental,” trainer Richard Mandella says. “We’re hoping we’ve got her smoothed back. She likes the mile.”

May Day Ready is a Grade 2 winner, capturing the Lake Placid at Saratoga in 2025.

Certitude is stretching back out to a mile after running well in sprints this year. In her last race she finished third to Queen Maxima in the $100,000 Mizdirection.

“We think five (furlongs) is a little short for her down here so the mile is a good distance for her,” trainer John Sadler contends. “She’s a reliable runner. I think she ran into a better horse that day. Queen Maxima is really good. She put in a good effort but just couldn’t beat the winner. She’s doing good and is ready to go.”

Public Assembly has been knocking heads with graded stakes company and is taking a class drop into the Osunitas. She ran second in the G2 Yellow Ribbon at Del Mar last summer and was runner-up, missing by just a neck, in the G3 Red Carpet on the Jimmy Durante turf course last fall.

The 71st running of the Osunitas is Race 3 on the 11-race program on Saturday. Probable post time is 3 p.m.

Here’s the field from the rail with the jockeys and morning line odds: May Day Ready (Kazushi Kimura, 7-2); Saqqara Sands (Antonio Fresu, 3-1); Certitude (Joel Rosario, 9/2); Public Assembly (Umberto Rispoli, 5-1); Raw Ability (Julien Leparoux, 12-1); Surf Song (Armando Ayuso, 20-1); Resolve (Juan Hernandez, 5-1), and Baltic Fire (Kyle Frey, 6-1).

SPEEDSTERS LINE UP IN $100,000 DAISYCUTTER AT DEL MAR SATURDAY

It’s a true ‘dash for cash’ in the middle leg of Del Mar’s stakes tripleheader Saturday. Ten fillies and mares hook-up in the $100,000 Daisycutter Handicap, a 5-furlong sprint on the Jimmy Durante turf course.

Amorita is the morning line favorite. The daughter of Liam’s Map has run three times this year, finishing second in the G3 Monrovia at Santa Anita in April. She followed that with a fading fourth-place finish in the $100,000 Mizdirection. Both races were on Santa Anita’s hillside turf course so the Daisycutter will be a furlong and a half shorter.

“She’s always there trying,” trainer Richard Mandella says. “She’s as good as ever and I think this could be her best race.”

Amorita’s 2026 / 4-year-old debut was the $100,000 Wishing Well in February where she finished fourth.

One of her foes on Saturday is Saratoga Special, who also ran in the Wishing Well and finished second by a head to the very talented Gratefully. The connections were so encouraged by the performance they shipped her back to Kentucky and ran her in the G2 Giants Causeway at Keeneland. She was a non-threatening 10th that day. About a month later they stretched her out to a mile in a second level allowance race at Churchill Downs and she ran fifth.

“I thought she could stretch out and that was a mistake,” trainer Richard Baltas admits. “It didn’t work out. She’s strictly a sprinter. That being said she came out of it with a little foot issue. She’s coming into this race the right way.”

The Daisycutter is a rematch between a couple of mares that hooked up in a second level allowance race at Santa Anita the last time out. Tahini won that day, wiring the field and holding off Can’t Sleep throughout the entire six-furlong turf sprint.

“She ran a huge race last time out,” trainer George Papaprodromou recalls. “Hopefully she’ll repeat herself.”

Tahini beat Can’t Sleep by 2 ½ lengths in last month’s race at Santa Anita but trainer Carla Gaines feels with a better set up they can turn the tables on Saturday.

“That filly got a lead by herself,” Gaines says. “She just went to the lead and never turned back. That course was very speed favoring. I feel this time his horse will have to contend with more pace and maybe it will soften her up. Maybe not.”

The 24th running of the Daisycutter Handicap will be Race 9 and precede the G1 Bing Crosby on the Saturday card. Probable post time is 6 p.m.

Here’s the field from the rail with the jockeys and morning line odds: Saratoga Special (Joel Rosario, 7/2); Bit’s Tiger Magic (Juan Hernandez, 4-1); Can’t Sleep (Emisael Jaramillo, 8-1); Tahini (Umberto Rispoli, 8-1); Princesa Moche (Joe Bravo, 8-1); Amorita (Antonio Fresu, 3-1); Lee’s Baby Girl (SCRATCHED); Ripassare (Ricky Gonzalez, 15-1); Imaboutago (Armando Ayuso, 12-1), and Kuwaitya (Hector I. Berrios, 10-1).

WEEKEND HANDICAPPING SEMINARS BACK AT DEL MAR

Racing fans can once again take part in Del Mar’s Free Weekend Handicapping Seminars, held each Saturday and Sunday starting at 1 p.m. on the Kona Stage in the Plaza de Mexico.

The seminars, which run for approximately a half hour prior to the first race post at 2 p.m., offer insights on the day’s racing card from expert handicappers.

Del Mar veteran Dan Smith is the host for the Saturday cards and his guest this week is Steve Andersen, the longtime columnist and reporter for Daily Racing Form.

Sunday programs will be overseen by handicapping ace Frank Scatoni and he’ll have as his guest this week Larry Dannemiller, a member of the Adelphi Racing Club and a serious horse player.

COOLING OUT: Kentucky Derby winning jockey Sonny Leon will ride at Del Mar this weekend. The veteran rider guided longshot ($163.60) Rich Strike up the rail to win the 2022 Derby. He’ll ride Mad House for trainer David Van Winkle in the G1 Bing Crosby on Saturday…Trainer Mark Glatt scored three times on Thursday. He won with Unbinding in Race 4 and then captured both ends of the late daily double with Stolen Treasure in Race 7 and Motet in Race 8…There will be a substantial two-day carryover of $192,793.94 in the Pick Six Friday. The $2 Pick Six begins with Race 3 at around 3 p.m…Here’s a number to chew on: Del Mar work crews moved 5,000 tons of dirt in the days between closing day at the San Diego Fair and Opening Day at the races. Much of that dirt was used in Barns Y and Z on the east end of the Fairgrounds, which were used as exhibit halls with concrete floors during the fair…Notable works on Friday: Dirt – Man O Rose (4f, :48.00) and Nevada Beach (5f, :59.80). 167 horses put in official works on the main track at Del Mar Friday.

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