Defending winner Seismic Beauty, shown at Del Mar, returns to face Om N Joy and seven others in Saturday’s Grade 1 Clement L. Hirsch. (Benoit Photo)
Del Mar Press
Nine highline fillies and mares will match up Saturday at Del Mar in the 56th running of the Clement L. Hirsch Stakes, an event that honors one of the founding members of the Del Mar Thoroughbred Club.
The Grade I offering, which carries a $400,000 purse and is contested at a mile and one-sixteenth, goes as Race 10 on an 11-race card that has a first post of 2 p.m. The Hirsch is expected to go off at approximately 6:30 p.m.
Among the featured runners in the Hirsch are last year’s winner – Boyd Racing’s Seismic Beauty – and the Cal-bred filly Om N Joy, who is owned by Baker Stables, Golovko or Scanlan.
In their most recent go-round, “Joy” got the best of her rival with a handy score in the Grade II Santa Margarita at Santa Anita on May 30. It was the daughter of Om’s sixth overall tally and fifth stakes score, the two most recent coming against “open” company. She is trained by Aggie Ordonez and will be handled by her regular guy, Hall of Fame rider Kent Desormeaux.
Seismic Beauty finished third to Om N Joy in the Santa Margarita in what was her first start of 2026. The Uncle Mo mare won both the Santa Margarita and the Hirsch last year, then was eased up in her November try in the Breeders’ Cup Distaff. She races out of the barn of Hall of Fame conditioner Bob Baffert and will be handled once again by Juan Hernandez.
Also on the Saturday card is the 21st edition of the California Dreamin’ Stakes, also at a mile and one sixteenth on the main track but limited to California-breds. The race carries a purse of $150,000 and will be presented as Race 5 on the program.
Saturday is being called Oak Tree Racing Association Day at Del Mar in honor of the group that ran fall racing at Santa Anita for 40 years from 1969 to 2009. Subsequently, the group has contributed nearly $25 million to support racing-related activities, research and charities. They also have worked with the Del Mar Thoroughbred Club with their unique program to help feed stable workers for the past several years.
Saturday’s card features an Oak Tree $100,000 contribution to the Hirsch purse and a $500 prize to the groom of the “best turned out” horse in all 11 races.
The day will also feature a tribute to the late John Shirreffs, a master horseman who guided – among others – the Hall of Fame racemare Zenyatta, who among her 19 consecutive wins included three editions of the Hirsch. On hand will be Dottie Ingordo, Shirreffs’ widow, who’ll also represent him at Saratoga on August 7 when he is posthumously inducted into racing’s Hall of Fame.
