DEL MAR : Oceanside Stakes Opens Season as a Race Divided

The racing scene in Southern California shifts south Wednesday to Del Mar, and the first of the meet’s 28 stakes--the Oceanside--drew an overflow cast of 23 sophomores and had to be divided in two.

The grass tests will be presented as the fifth and eighth events on the first of 43 programs running through Sept. 12.

High weight in the first division (fifth race) of the Oceanside is Robyn Dancer at 118 pounds.

The second division also has an 118-pound high weight in Single Dawn. With the split the first division will be worth $67,875 and a winner’s prize of $41,475 for its 11 runners.

Patrick Valenzuela has the call on Robyn Dancer, and Alex Solis will ride Single Dawn.

Robyn Dancer and Single Dawn were both stakes winners as 2-year-olds, though neither has been able to win a race thus far this year.

Robyn Dancer, a Kentucky-bred by Crafty Prospector, won five races during his juvenile season, including Atlantic City’s World Playground and Pimlico’s Jet Pilot and Vanlandingham stakes.

Single Dawn captured the Hoist The Flag Stakes at Hollywood last fall and also was placed in two juvenile Grade I events--the Del Mar Futurity and the Norfolk Stakes at Oak Tree.

This will be Del Mar’s 51st season, and races will be conducted, as usual, Wednesdays through Mondays with first post daily at 2 p.m.

Last year the scenic seaside oval led the nation in parimutuel handle with a daily average of $7,320,623 and was second in daily attendance with an average crowd of 34,680. Those figures have swollen over the last two years with the advent of the Southern California Inter Track wagering network, which this year has grown to 13 satellite outlets.

Wednesday’s 44th edition of the Oceanside will mark the 10th time that the conditioned 3-year-old stake has been divided.

Here are the full fields for the turf tests from the rail out:

First Division: Officer Hawk, 116 pounds, Solis the rider; Interco, 114, Corey Black; Old Alliance, 116, Laffit Pincay Jr.; In Excess, 116, Gary Stevens; Tizzy, 114, Eddie Delahoussaye; Robyn Dancer; Greens Leader, 114, Robbie Davis; Senegalaise, 116, Russell Baze; Predecessor, 114, Kent Desormeaux; Mehmetori, 114, Julio Garcia, and Shapiro’s Hero, 116, Martin Pedroza.

Second Divison: Bel Air Paster, 114, Baze; Single Dawn; Balla Cove, 116, Desormeaux; Hawaiian Pass, 116, Davis; Pass The Blame, 116, David Flores; El Toreo, 114, Black; Big Bass, 116, Delahoussaye; Pro For Sure, 114, Pincay; Kept His Cool, 116, Garcia; Forest Glow, 116, Stevens; Cove Way, 116, Valenzuela, and Due To The King, 116, Corey Nakatani.

Last year the Oceanside was also split and was captured by Exemplary Leader and Hawkster.