Benoit Photo
Handle and Field Size Increase at Del Mar’s Fall Meet
Hernandez Strikes Again, Wins Riders Title; Glatt Top Trainer
Del Mar Press
DEL MAR, Calif.—Del Mar concluded its 11th Bing Crosby fall race meet Sunday with gains in all-sources handle and field size. The highlight of the fall session was the Breeders’ Cup World Championships held on November 1 and 2.
Total wagering for the recently concluded 14-day fall meet rose to $165.10 million as compared to $153.29 for the 13-day 2023 fall season. Field size increased to 7.72 runners per race versus 7.43 in 2023. 2024 handle and field size results excluded races conducted over the two Breeders’ Cup cards.
The 2024 Breeders’ Cup, the third time Del Mar has hosted the World Championships, was a rousing success with domestic and international runners delivering some of the year’s top performances.
The nation’s premier fall season turf racing was conducted over Del Mar’s highly respected Jimmy Durante Turf Course and featured the popular Autumn Turf Festival – eight graded stakes races during the final two weekends of the meet.
Del Mar proudly continued its precedent-setting equine safety protocols – now followed by many other racing venues nationally – which once again produced one of the safest race meets in the country. Additionally, the Del Mar area’s reputation for fine weather again played to its best and racing was presented daily on “fast and firm” surfaces.”
“Our fall meet has grown into a marquee presence on the national racing calendar with the Autumn Turf Festival and of course the Breeders’ Cup this year and in 2025,” said Del Mar President Josh Rubinstein. “We are very appreciative of the continued support we receive from owners, trainers and horse players throughout the country.”
The track’s unique program to feed the backstretch community continued through the Bing Crosby Season. With support from the California Thoroughbred Horsemen’s Foundation and the Oak Tree Racing Association, Del Mar provided free meals in a communal setting to the backstretch community each race day during the fall meet.
“In 2014 the Bing Crosby Meet stepped into the void left by Hollywood Park and quickly proved to be a game-changer for California racing,” said Gary Fenton, Chairman of the Thoroughbred Owners of California. “This meet boasts the second-highest average daily handle in the state, surpassed only by Del Mar’s summer meet. We appreciate the entire DMTC team for their unwavering contributions to California’s horsemen and horsewomen.”
Del Mar has again been awarded the Breeders’ Cup in 2025. The World Championships will be conducted on October 31 and November 1 during the fall season, set to run from October 30 through November 30.
Hernandez Strikes Again, Wins Riders Title; Glatt Top Trainer
For the second year in a row, jockey Juan Hernandez has won both the summer and fall riding titles at Del Mar. Unlike past title runs, Hernandez had to rally from behind late in the season to win the Bing Crosby Season title with 21 wins.
Hernandez trailed Antonio Fresu and Umberto Rispoli through much of the fall. But he got hot in the second-to-last week, winning five races and grabbing the lead. He then secured the title with another eight victories in the final week, five on closing day.
“I’m very grateful to everybody,” Hernandez says. “I want to thank the owners the trainers and the grooms. My agent (Craig O’Bryan); he’s the one who picks the right horses.
“I just enjoy riding my horses,” Hernandez continues. “I try to do my best in every race. This is for my family here and in Mexico. I’m just excited and looking forward to the next meet.”
Hernandez has now won six jockey titles at Del Mar. Rispoli finished with 15 wins, Fresu with 14.
Trainer Mark Glatt notched his first Del Mar trainers title this fall, winning 14 races, five better than runner-up and defending champion Phil D’Amato. Glatt ran horses in 32 races, about half of what D’Amato came with, and posted a 44% win rate.
Glatt’s title at Del Mar follows his first training title at Santa Anita at the Autumn meet. He’s been training in Southern California since 2000.
Augustin Stables won the owners title with five wins. Hronis Racing and Nick Alexander were next with four. Godolphin, by way of their Breeders’ Cup success, won the earnings title with over $4.5 million.
| Jockey | Mounts | 1st | Purses |
| Juan Hernandez | 72 | 21 | $1,058,470 |
| Umberto Rispoli | 83 | 15 | $1,827,720 |
| Antonio Fresu | 95 | 14 | $1,225,932 |
| Hector Berrios | 50 | 10 | $665,220 |
| Kazushi Kimura | 79 | 10 | $630,960 |
| Tiago Pereira | 53 | 9 | $398,710 |
| Kyle Frey | 52 | 5 | $587,880 |
| Armando Ayuso | 36 | 5 | $306,906 |
| Diego Herrera | 53 | 5 | $271,840 |
| Flavien Prat | 36 | 4 | $5,700,420 |
| Lanfranco Dettori | 19 | 4 | $949,440 |
| Vincent Cheminaud | 15 | 4 | $280,380 |
| Trainer | Starts | 1st | Purses |
| Mark Glatt | 32 | 14 | $600,632 |
| Philip D’Amato | 69 | 9 | $1,709,390 |
| Doug F. O’Neill | 54 | 8 | $601,330 |
| Peter Miller | 54 | 8 | $316,690 |
| Michael W. McCarthy | 32 | 7 | $582,990 |
| Bob Baffert | 29 | 6 | $2,344,560 |
| Peter Eurton | 21 | 6 | $208,620 |
| Jonathan Thomas | 13 | 5 | $309,000 |
| George Papaprodromou | 47 | 5 | $224,886 |
| John Sadler | 20 | 4 | $708,940 |
| Tim Yakteen | 25 | 4 | $568,400 |
| Richard Baltas | 33 | 4 | $338,600 |
| Steven Miyadi | 14 | 4 | $125,760 |
| Owner | Starts | 1st | Purses |
| Augustin Stables | 10 | 5 | $297,200 |
| Hronis Racing | 10 | 4 | $645,420 |
| Nicholas B. Alexander | 8 | 4 | $208,430 |
| Seahawk Racing | 4 | 3 | $169,700 |
| C R K Stable | 10 | 3 | $161,660 |
| Gary Barber | 11 | 3 | $99,230 |
| Jaime Roberto Renella | 3 | 3 | $89,400 |
| Giddyup JR | 7 | 3 | $74,100 |
