Del Mar opener is triple play

With the 43-day meet opening today, Del Mar’s new all-weather track will be getting considerable attention.

And so will some of the horses running on it. But most of the featured action will be taking place on the Jimmy Durante turf course.

The $75,000 Oceanside Stakes, being run in three divisions for the first time, will take place on the turf. The three-way stakes will consist of the first race, with nine horses entered, and the fourth and seventh, with 10 each.

There will be five races run on the new track, but none farther than 6 1/2 furlongs.

The Oceanside, which features 3-year-olds going a mile, has had two divisions the past 18 years. The only other time a stakes race has been run at Del Mar in three divisions was the 1969 Osunitas Handicap.

A third division was added for the Oceanside after it drew 29 entries and a $16,000 claiming race did not fill.

The first division features Karazi, a French import who has won three of seven races. T’Aint War Sir, ridden by Victor Espinoza and trained by Ron McAnally, highlights the second division. In the third division, Vauquelin and the Irish-bred colt’s 67-year-old trainer, Kathy Walsh, may end up in the spotlight.

Owned by Mark Dedomenico, Vauquelin has won two of nine starts and $107,506. He was a convincing winner on the turf at Hollywood Park on June 10.

The non-turf race getting the most attention was the third, a 5 1/2 -furlong sprint for 2-year-olds.

It was supposed to feature Maimonides, a $4.6-million yearling, squaring off against Coast Guard, a son of Stormy Atlantic. But Maimonides, named after a 12th-century philosopher, developed a fever Monday and trainer Bob Baffert said the horse will be scratched.

Another large crowd is expected today. The 42,005 who jammed the San Diego County track on opening day last year was the second largest in track history.

One of the highlights on this weekend’s cards will be Saturday’s $300,000 San Diego Handicap, which is expected to attract top older horse Buzzards Bay in a warmup for Del Mar’s $1-million Pacific Classic. Lava Man, last year’s Pacific Classic winner, is expected back for the 1 1/4 -mile race to be run Aug. 19.

The Del Mar Futurity, which has been returned to Grade I status this year, will be run Sept. 5, closing day.

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larry.stewart@latimes.com