Photo:

Alex Evers / Eclipse Sportswire

With the latest chapter of the Breeders’ Cup on the agenda, Del Mar will host its fall meet starting on Thursday, Oct. 31, and running until Sunday, Dec. 1.

This will be the third Breeders’ Cup held at the seaside oval after sessions in 2017 and 2021. It will be presented on Friday and Saturday, Nov. 1 and 2 and, because of it, Del Mar picks up an additional six stakes to go with its own 14.

The gross value of the local stakes program is $3,150,000 and includes a pair of Grade 1, $300,000 offerings in the Hollywood Derby on Nov. 30 and the Matriarch Stakes on Dec. 1.

The six special stakes tied to the Breeders’ Cup will be run on the two Breeders’ Cup cards, with four of them on November 1 and the other two on the following afternoon. The quartet on the Friday card are all for 2-year-olds, the Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance for juveniles at a mile on the turf; the Golden State Juvenile Fillies for California-breds at seven furlongs; the Ken Maddy Stakes for fillies and mares age 2 and up at five panels on the green, and the Golden State Juvenile for California-breds at seven furlongs.

Then Saturday there will be a pair of Grade 3 stakes for fillies and mares age 3 and up in the $200,000 Bayakoa Stakes at a mile on the main track and the $300,000 Goldikova Stakes for fillies and mares age 3 and up at a mile on the turf course.

Of the 20 overall events, 12 of them will be run on the turf course, including eight of them in the closing two weeks of the stand as part of the track’s turf festival, which in the past has attracted marquee horses from across the country.

Previously, Del Mar had run four weeks during its fall meet, but this year that will stretch to five. After the opening weekend, which will have Del Mar cards on Thursday and Sunday around the two Breeders’ Cup dates, the track will have four straight weekends with Friday, Saturday and Sunday programs. There will be no racing on Thanksgiving Thursday  this year. First post for all Del Mar cards will be 3:30 p.m. EDT. First posts for the two Breeders’ Cup days are 2:35 p.m. EDT on Nov. 1 and 1:05 p.m. on Nov. 2.

Closing weekend will feature stakes triple headers on the lawn on Saturday consisting of the Seabiscuit Handicap (G2), the $100,000, Jimmy Durante Stakes (G3) and the rich Hollywood Derby. Then on Sunday the trio of grass stakes will be made up of the Stormy Liberal Stakes, the Cecil B. DeMille Stakes (G3) and then the Matriarch for fillies and mares.