Del Mar Approved to Add Racing Day July 27

During a July 16 conference call with the Thoroughbred Owners of California, Del Mar president and COO Josh Rubinstein said the track made a request to the California Horse Racing Board for an extra day of racing July 27. The move comes after the track canceled racing July 17-19 after numerous jockeys tested positive for COVID-19.

The track had largely planned to run on a three-day-a-week schedule this summer, Fridays through Sundays.

"So as soon as we get approval from the CHRB—they are wrapping up a closed session of their meeting—we will put out a press release. We don't think it will be an issue to get approval," Rubinstein said around 2 p.m. PT Thursday. "We want to let folks know, folks on this call and other horsemen and women out there, that we intend to do our best to make up for the races that were lost this weekend. So that means extra race days or an extra race here or there on a Friday or Sunday when we're running nine or 10 (races). We're ready to do that."

Late Thursday, CHRB spokesman Mike Marten notified BloodHorse that the board had approved racing July 27.

Executive vice president for racing Tom Robbins said Del Mar is looking at making up races from the two other lost days during the balance of the season, which continues until Labor Day, Sept. 7.

The track's stakes races that were planned this weekend have been moved to the following week. That includes the $150,000 San Diego Handicap (G2), a race that was to feature the return of Maximum Security, the champion 3-year-old male last year. That race is now July 25.

Other stakes moving to next weekend include the Daisycutter Handicap (July 24), the Smiling Tiger Stakes (July 25), and Eddie Read Stakes (G2T) (July 26). 

Other races lost as a result of this week's cancellation could be added as "extra" races to supplement those offered in the track's condition book.

Racing secretary David Jerkens said entries for the July 27 card would be drawn July 24.

Rubinstein said Del Mar met with its health department for 3 1/2 hours Thursday, and they were complimentary of their procedures. One of those new protocols calls for utilizing an auxiliary jockeys' room when racing is scheduled to resume July 24, constructed of walled tented areas on the horse path from the customary jockeys' quarters.

Del Mar has tested all jockeys' room personnel and will test assistant starters and pony people July 17, officials said.

The track will close its riding colony to California riders upon their resumption of racing as a COVID-19 safety measure, and Mike Smith, a California-based jockey riding at Monmouth Park in New Jersey on July 18, will be tested upon his return from California prior to riding at Del Mar, Rubinstein said.

Del Mar officials still desire to have horse owners eventually be able to attend racing, which is closed to fans amid COVID-19. Currently, owners are only permitted to watch morning training from a location in the grandstand. 

"We're averaging 40 or so owners that are coming out in the morning to watch horses training, and we're also not giving up on owners coming out for the races," Rubinstein said. "Obviously, you guys (owners) are extremely essential—without you, there is no industry. We were hopeful to have it as early as this weekend. Obviously, canceling racing made that challenging, but once we get back on our feet, we are going to continue to make efforts for owners to come out and be able to watch their horses compete at Del Mar."