Dr. Venkman © Benoit Photo
Del Mar is serving up a graded stakes doubleheader that could have Breeders’ Cup implications later this year at Keeneland. First up is the G2 Pat O’Brien, seven furlongs on the main track with an all expenses paid ticket to this year’s $1-million Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile on the line. Win and you’re in.
Ten horses have signed up for the test, one of which won the race last year, another ran in the Kentucky Derby two year’s ago, another was a runner-up in a Breeders’ Cup race and there’s an entry who was recently claimed for $100,000.
The returning champion is Dr. Venkman, a 6-year-old gelding by Ghostzapper. He won the race last summer and went on to finish third in the Breeders’ Cup Sprint.
Dr. Venkman outlasted Stronghold in last year’s edition of the Pat O’Brien and the two will meet again Saturday. Stronghold, the 2024 Santa Anita Derby winner who went on to run seventh in the Kentucky Derby, missed by just half a length in last year’s Pat O’Brien. He also ran in the Bing Crosby, finishing sixth.
“Six furlongs is probably a little too short for him,” trainer Phil D’Amato says of the Bing Crosby. “He just got too far out of touch and he’s not that kind of horse. He has to be involved. Seven eights is a better distance for him. He’s won at it and he’s run well in the Pat O’Brien in the past.”
D’Amato also has Iron Man Cal in the O'Brien. The son of Collected nearly won the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf at Del Mar in 2024, missing by a neck to Henri Matisse. He ran his first race on the dirt last time out and finished a respectable third to Journalism in the G2 San Diego on opening weekend.
“I thought it was a decent effort,” D’Amato says. “He got caught up in the middle of a three-horse speed duel. He’s a bigger, stronger horse. He’s trained so well on the dirt that we had to give him a try in the San Diego. I think a cutback to seven eighths should be right up his alley.”
Big City Lights is two-for-two in 2026, winning the $100,000 Thor’s Echo last out at Santa Anita in May.
“He’s always tough,” trainer Richard Mandella notes. “He’s just a class horse.”
March of Time is a lightly raced 5-year-old by Justify who comes into the race off a runner-up finish in an allowance race at Del Mar last month.
“He ran well, just came up short,” trainer Bob Baffert notes. “He was just getting going. It’s a tough race but he drew well. Doesn’t matter who they’re by if they’re nice horses.”
Vodka Vodka is back from a short layoff, triggered by a mishap in his last race, the $250,000 Sunland Park Handicap. It was a nice win made even more impressive by the circumstances that developed during the race.
“When he came out of the gate at Sunland he stumbled and he pulled off his left front shoe,” trainer Aggie Ordonez states. “He ran the whole race barefoot on the left front. It was incredible that he was able to win but wound up paying the price. For the next six weeks he blew-out one abscess after another. It was nasty. We’ve gone through four different stages of shoeing to support the foot but now we’re able to shoe him full with no repercussions.”
The Cal-bred son of Stay Thirsty ran second to British Isles in the G1 Santa Anita Handicap in March.
Another horse to watch is Moonlight, who was a strong finishing third in the Bing Crosby.
“It’s a tough race but on his best day I think he can win,” trainer Peter Miller says. “There’s probably less pace than in the Bing Crosby so he’ll probably be a little closer. He’s a smart, old horse who knows where to put himself. Victor (Espinoza) is a smart old rider and he knows where to put himself so between the two of them they’ll figure it out.”
Bartholdy will race for the first time for trainer Jose D’Angelo and owners David Bernsen and TCC Stables. He was claimed out of his last race for $100,000, the second highest claim in Del Mar history.
The 41st running of the G2 Pat O’Brien is Race 9 on the 10 race Saturday card. It’s named after Bing Crosby’s lifelong friend and co-founder of Del Mar. Probable post time is 6 p.m.
Here’s the field from the rail with the jockeys and the morning line odds: Stronghold (Antonio Fresu, 6-1); Dr. Venkman (Umberto Rispoli, 6-1); Vodka Vodka (Kent Desormeaux, 6-1); Gold Sweep (Ricky Gonzalez, 20-1); Bartholdy (Tyler Baze, 6-1); Iron Man Cal (Joel Rosario, 8-1); Moonlight (Victor Espinoza, 10-1); Big City Lights (Kazushi Kimura, 7/2); March of Time (Juan Hernandez, 5-1) and Jimmy’s Dailys (Emisael Jaramillo, 20-1).