2026 Pacific Classic Stakes Preview at Del Mar Thoroughbred Club

Key Takeaways:

• The Pacific Classic is a loaded Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Classic qualifier, with an automatic berth and a $1 million purse drawing proven winners such as Hit Show, Full Serrano, British Isles, and Forged Steel alongside emerging contenders.
• Pace could be the key at 1 ¼ miles, with several horses wanting to be forward, including Finger, Forged Steel, Navajo Warrior, Full Serrano, and Knightsbridge, potentially setting the race up for a horse with tactical versatility or a strong closing kick.
• Knightsbridge has answered the biggest question about his distance ability with a dominant Monmouth Cup win, and his outside draw should give him options to either control the pace or stalk it without getting caught in the early scramble.
• Hit Show could benefit from the expected pace battle, and while his inconsistency makes the win a question, his reliable closing style gives him a legitimate chance to make an impact underneath at a potentially appealing price.
• Navajo Warrior is riding a three-race winning streak and has already shown he can win from different positions, making his proven versatility and current form particularly interesting as he takes another step up the class ladder.

A field of 11 lines up for the Grade 1, $1 million Pacific Classic on Saturday, August 22 at Del Mar. The 1 ¼-mile dirt race is the signature race of the Del Mar meet, and it offers not only a seven-figure purse but an automatic bid to the Breeders’ Cup Classic to its winner.

The horse to beat is Knightsbridge, for trainer Bill Mott. Though the race will be his first top-level try at two turns, he has shown a lot of class already at the one-turn mile, and his first true two-turn try in the Monmouth Cup (G3) on July 18 was the fastest race of the year.

However, it won’t be an easy procession to that first Grade 1 victory. His 10 foes include Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile winner Full Serrano, Dubai World Cup (G1) winner Hit Show, Santa Anita Handicap (G1) winner British Isles, Santa Anita Gold Cup (G2) winner Forged Steel, and the west coast’s best dirt filly, Om N Joy. There’s even international intrigue, as Japan-based Finger makes his first start in the United States.

This prestigious race is part of the Breeders’ Cup Challenge series, and it often defines top contenders for the end-of-season race. Two horses have swept the Pacific Classic and the Breeders’ Cup Classic in the same year: Flightline (2022) and Accelerate (2018). Pleasantly Perfect also won both, but not in the same year: he won the Breeders’ Cup Classic in 2003 and the Pacific Classic the next year.

Pacific Classic Stakes Information

• Race Date: Saturday, August 22
• Track: Del Mar Thoroughbred Club
• Post Time: 6:30 p.m. Pacific Daylight Time
• Distance: 1 ¼ miles on the dirt
• Age/Sex: three-year-olds and upward
• Where to Watch: FanDuel TV, Fox Sports 1
• Where to Bet: FanDuel Racing

2026 Pacific Classic Draw and Odds

This is the field for the Pacific Classic, including post positions, trainers, jockeys, and official morning-line odds for each runner.

Pacific Classic Prep Race Results

With this being a 1 ¼-mile race, it’s hardly a surprise that so many horses come out of 1 ¼-mile races.

Three horses came out of the Gold Cup (G2) at Santa Anita last out, a 1 ¼-mile race on May 25. Malarchuk was second by 9 ½ lengths, British Isles was fourth by 10 lengths, and Subsanador was eased to fifth and last. They’ll all have to turn the tables on 9 ½-length winner Forged Steel – who does turn up here, but raced to a fifth-place finish behind Phileas Fogg in the Suburban (G2) in his next start after the Gold Cup.

Two horses other than Forged Steel also come out of the Suburban. Hit Show makes his first start since chasing on for second behind runaway winner Phileas Fogg. Original Sin will have to bounce back from a flat ninth in that race.

The other five horses come out of different stakes races, including three last-out winners. Knightsbridge took the lead and kept going like a freight train, winning the Monmouth Cup (G3) in impressive fashion on July 18. Navajo Warrior rides a three-win streak into the Pacific Classic, with his latest score coming in the Cornhusker (G3) on July 11 at Prairie Meadows, in wire-to-wire fashion. Finger beat fellow three-year-olds in the Tokyo Derby at Oi on June 10 and faces older foes for the first time in the Pacific Classic.

Om N Joy was most recently second in the Clement Hirsch (G1) at Del Mar on August 1, just missing catching the more forwardly placed Eunomia. Full Serrano has been on the bench since March 28, when he finished fourth behind Nu What’s New in the Oaklawn Mile (G3) after stumbling hard out of the gate.

Pacific Classic Contenders

Here is a closer look at the 2026 Pacific Classic contenders, in order from the rail out.

1. Om N Joy: This 4-year-old daughter of Om has emerged as the best filly in the West Coast, but just missed behind a much more forwardly placed horse in the Clement Hirsch. She ran the race of her life two back when stretching to 1 ⅛ miles for the Santa Margarita (G2), lending some credence to the idea that she wants to go longer. This’ll be a tougher test from the rail than it was two back in a four-horse field, but there’s enough pace in this field, and she has enough Del Mar form to suggest she could spice up the exotics on her best.
2. Forged Steel: He was the shock winner of the Gold Cup at Santa Anita two back but did not make the lead after a poor start and came up empty in the Suburban last out. The big question for him is pace: though he has been able to battle on the pace against lesser horses before, his best game is the front end, and there are others like Finger, Malarchuk, Navajo Warrior, Full Serrano, and Knightsbridge who are liable to show pace.
3. Finger: Making his first start outside of Japan, Finger is the wild card here for trainer Hiroyasu Tanaka, who may be best known stateside for training 2024 Breeders’ Cup Turf runner-up Rousham Park. He is a winner at 1 ¼ miles, a distance he handled in the Tokyo Derby last out. He likes to show pace and his connections are already clear that speed is going to be the plan in the Pacific Classic. The question is, of course, how he is going to hold up against this field – a field with a lot of speed, drawn both inside him and out. He also faces older horses for the first time.
4. Subsanador: He won the 1 ⅛-mile California Crown (G1) at Santa Anita in 2024, was off for a year and a half, and hasn’t quite reached the same form he was showing as a 5-year-old in three starts this year. He came close to winning the 1 ¼-mile Santa Anita Handicap in 2024 on the front end, though at least he was able to come from a few lengths off of it in his two wins later that year, and with all the speed entered, that’s the running style he’ll probably need to show here. The fact that trainer Richard Mandella keeps him in training is a plus … but other than that, there isn’t really much pointing to the idea that he’ll suddenly reverse his recent form.
5. Malarchuk: An allowance horse for Chad Brown last year, he’s now with Michael McCarthy and holding his own in stakes company out west. He has yet to break through at the stakes level, but the lightly-raced son of Nyquist prompted the pace in the Gold Cup last out and was able to salvage the place despite not being able to go with Forged Steel. Del Mar is a question, as he has never raced there 1 ¼ miles is also a question – but if he can show tactical speed and tap back into his form against allowance horses last year at Saratoga, perhaps he can find the frame, given that he has distance pedigree top and bottom.
6. Original Sin: He came up totally empty in the Suburban last out, but was looking promising through the spring, winning a second-level allowance and then defeating a field that included Hit Show in the Blame (G3) on May 30. This will be a class test for this son of Curlin, but he has some distance pedigree through sire Curlin and damsire Unbridled’s Song, and judging from his wins two and three back, he has enough tactical versatility to give high-percentage local rider Juan Hernandez options for where to place him.
7. Hit Show: He isn’t the most consistent horse – his highs are exciting, but he doesn’t always get there. However, especially if he’s racing stateside, he is a closer who reliably fires, meaning with all the speed drawn in the race there is reason to think he will have at least a decent day. Whether he gets all the way there is a question – you don’t have to be right on the front at Del Mar, but some level of tactical placement helps. But, he’s a reliable type to ship around and run his race, meaning a piece of the exotics is likely.
8. British Isles: He won the Santa Anita Handicap (G1) three back in stalk-and-pounce fashion – meaning he’s a Grade 1 winner at the 1 ¼-mile distance, albeit against a smaller and less accomplished field than he faces in the Pacific Classic. The fact that he can run a winning race without making the lead could keep him well positioned behind a competitive front end. The main concern is if British Isles is good enough. For the most part, his races are not quite fast enough to contend here … but some horses just love Del Mar, and he ran an anomalously good effort when second last November in the Native Diver going 1 ⅛ miles over the course. It may be enough to decide to take a shot here – but reproducing that effort in a field almost three times as big, and far more accomplished, still raises questions.
9. Navajo Warrior: He has never even tried graded-stakes company until stepping from a second-level allowance win into the Pimlico Special (G3) two back – and that turned out to be a good move. He won that race gate to wire, and then won the Cornhusker (G3) last out, also in frontrunning fashion. The good news is, he has some back victories where he came from various places off the pace – stalking, midpack, closing; this 10-time winner has done it all. However, those all came in lower class levels, meaning he still has something to prove at this level. But, he is the hot horse in the best form of his career, so he can’t be counted out, especially at a square price.
10. Full Serrano: He won the Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile almost two years ago, but in five starts since he has won just once, a return allowance in September of last year. He appears to have lost a step: he needs to be right on the pace, or at least prompting it, to run a winning effort, but he hasn’t quite been fast enough in recent outings. Even with a good form line at Del Mar, with so much other pace in the race, he is difficult to endorse.
11. Knightsbridge: Knightsbridge answered the two-turn question in the affirmative in the Monmouth Cup (G3) on July 18, setting the pace and rolling to a dominant victory that came back fast no matter what speed figure system you prefer to use when you handicap. Though running them off their feet on the front end is his most iconic running style, he has been able to win from a stalking spot as well, giving him necessary options given all the pace drawn inside of him. He should be able to get a clean go early from the outside draw, and if he can take his race with him as he usually does, he shapes as the horse to beat.

Pacific Classic FAQ

Q: When is the Pacific Classic?

A: The Pacific Classic happens on Saturday, August 22, at 6:30 p.m. Pacific Standard Time. The million-dollar race will run as the featured 10th of 11 races on the card.

Q: Where is the Pacific Classic?

A: It takes place at Del Mar Thoroughbred Club in Del Mar, California.

Q: Which trainer has the most wins in the Pacific Classic?

A: Bob Baffert has won a record seven editions of the Pacific Classic, most recently in 2023 with Arabian Knight. With the abrupt retirement of Nysos, he does not have a starter in this year’s edition. Among the trainers with horses entered in the race, Richard Mandella and John Sadler lead with four apiece. Mandella can win his fifth with Subsanador; Sadler has a chance for his fifth with Full Serrano.

Q: Who is the favorite for the Pacific Classic?

A: Knightsbridge is the 5-2 morning-line favorite for the Pacific Classic. He is likely to hold as the betting choice: he ships west off of an impressively fast victory in the Monmouth Cup, and though this is a rise in grade, a run back to any of his recent races will require his foes to be on their absolute best form to compete.

Q: Who is the best Pacific Classic jockey?

A: Garrett Gomez and Mike Smith are tied for the most wins with four. Smith, who last won the Pacific Classic in 2014 with the great Shared Belief, can take the record for himself if Subsanador springs the upset.

Q: Who won the Pacific Classic in 2025?

A: Fierceness won the 2025 Pacific Classic for trainer Todd Pletcher and jockey John Velazquez. Neither returns for the 2026 edition.

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