Saturday’s Grade 1, $1 million Breeders’ Cup “Win and You’re In” Pacific Classic at Del Mar drew a field of eight, with three heavy hitters entered to compete for an automatic, fees-paid berth to the Classic which will also be at Del Mar on Nov. 1.

Fierceness, the 2023 Eclipse Award champion 2-year-old male, ships in from the East Coast, with Hall of Fame rider John Velazquez taking the trip out west to ride. Midnight Mammoth will be making his 38th career start on Saturday, coming off a second-place finish by just three-quarters of a length to Skippylongstocking in the G2 Hollywood Gold Cup Stakes at Santa Anita back in May. Ultimate Gamble is training in top form for Mark Glatt, posting a bullet work on Aug. 21at Del Mar going six furlongs in 1:11.20. Nysos, a 4-year-old colt by Nyquist out of a Bernardini mare, is coming off back-to-back graded stakes victories in the G3 Triple Bend at Santa Anita and the G2 San Diego Handicap last time out at Del Mar. Indispensable won his last start for the red-hot John Sadler barn, who is winning at a 31 percent clip over the last month with Paco Lopez (who is winning at 34 percent in the last 30 days) coming in to ride.

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Journalism is coming back to his roots at Del Mar, where he broke his maiden by 2 ½ lengths last November. Lure Him In is taking a big step up in class following a third-place finish in an allowance optional claimer at Del Mar last time out to Ultimate Gamble and Arrowthegreat, who went on to win the Longacres Mile at Emerald Downs in his next start. Tarantino rounds out the field for trainer Peter Eurton who is hitting at a 24% clip this meet.

Analysis and Main Contenders:
Nysos is coming into the Pacific Classic in top form following a dominating performance in the San Diego Handicap from a hand urging ride by Flavien Prat. The Nyquist colt took a 15-month layoff following three consecutive wins to start his career. Nysos came back in the G1 Churchill Downs Stakes in May and dead heated for second by a neck behind Mindframe, who went on to win the G1 Stephen Foster next time out. Nysos and Banishing both finished second and both went on to win G2 races following the Churchill Downs. Book’em Danno finished fourth in the same race and has gone on to win the G3 True North, G2 Alfred G. Vanderbilt and the G1 Forego Stakes. Nysos checks all the boxes, ranking first in early, middle and late pace rating as well as average class of a 113 and an average speed of a 111 Equibase Speed Figure (ESF). He earned a 117 ESF for his 5 ½-length win in the G3 Triple Bend Stakes in May, which ties the highest speed figure earned of any horse entered in the Pacific Classic. This colt can win on the front end or also come off the pace and looks to remain undefeated over the Del Mar dirt. He passed the two-turn test last time out in the San Diego and a three-sixteenths of a mile stretch-out in distance should be no problem for this ultra talented colt.

Journalism, arguably the second-best 3-year-old colt in the country, is back where it all began at Del Mar, breaking his maiden here last November by 2 ½ lengths. Following a grueling Triple Crown season, the Curlin colt came out in good form after finishing second to Sovereignty in the G1 Kentucky Derby, first in the G1 Preakness Stakes and another second in the G1 Belmont Stakes again to Sovereignty. Journalism won the G1 Haskell Stakes last time out for his first start since the Belmont, earning a109 ESF for trainer Michael McCarthy. This horse is incredibly talented and should not be off any tickets for this race.

Indispensable is a very intriguing Constitution colt for the John Sadler stable with Paco Lopez making the trip out, which is rare as he only has four mounts in the last five years at Del Mar. Lopez will also be aboard Indispensable for the first time as well, which makes his trip west for Sadler all the more interesting. The two only have one start together in the last five years, that being a seven-length victory with Irish-bred Hey Nay Nay at Monmouth in the Tyro Stakes in early August. Indispensable is 100 percent in the money at Del Mar, posting two wins, two seconds and a third. This colt could pay nice underneath with all eyes on the big three.

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The rest of the field, with their best Equibase Speed Figures in similar races, is Fierceness (117), Midnight Mammoth (108), Ultimate Gamble (112), Lure Him In (108), Tarantino (103)

Win Contenders In Preference Order:
Nysos
Journalism
Indispensable

Grade 1, $1 million Pacific Classic
Del Mar – Saturday, Aug. 30
Race 10 – Post Time 6:11 p.m. PT
3-Year-Olds and Up, 1 ¼ Miles

This story was originally reported by Paulick Report on Aug 28, 2025, where it first appeared in the News section. Add Paulick Report as a Preferred Source by clicking here.