DEL MAR — After nearly 50 years in charge, Joe Harper will step down as the Del Mar Thoroughbred Club’s chief executive officer at the end of this year.
Harper, 83, made the announcement Friday morning.
Josh Rubinstein will succeed Harper as CEO starting in January while continuing in his present role as track president. Harper will become CEO emeritus of the DMTC and remain as a director on the DMTC board.
Harper came to Del Mar in 1977 as the track’s general manager. He became a member of the DMTC board in 1986 and was named CEO in 1990.
Harper oversaw the reconstruction of the Del Mar grandstand between 1990 and 1992, the birth of the Grade I Pacific Classic in 1991 and the track becoming a recurring site for the Breeders’ Cup starting in 2017.
“This job has been paradise because of the people who work here,” Harper said Friday. “I first came to Del Mar in the summer of 1967 as a cameraman for Los Angeles and San Diego television stations. I worked all three Southern California tracks. Santa Anita was majestic. Hollywood Park was a lot of work.
“The Del Mar atmosphere was different. People just enjoyed being here. Fans, bettors, workers. It was a universal feeling, one that I’ve tried to keep promoting over the years.”
Journalism retired to stud after suffering injury at Del Mar; horse ‘breathed a different air’
The grandson of famed Hollywood director Cecil B. DeMille and the nephew of actor Anthony Quinn, Harper was working in the mailroom of MGM Studios when he switched to his career in racing. Before becoming the general manager of Del Mar, Harper served six years as the executive vice president of the Oak Tree Racing Association, which operated the annual autumn meet at Santa Anita.
“But Del Mar was a special calling for me,” said Harper. “Rebuilding the grandstand was a very important achievement. But seeing the old grandstand come down was sad because it meant so much to how people connected with Del Mar. But we recaptured the look and feel.
“I am really proud to have been a part of the long and incredibly rich history of Del Mar. This is a special place that transcends horse racing; it’s a unique mix of sport, lifestyle and culture. I have so many great memories about the people I’ve met and worked with and the times I’ve spent here that Del Mar is a part of me.
“I will still be around. I can still walk around and shake hands with employees and tell them what a great job they do. I’m not being retired to stud.”
(Jon Clark)
“Joe has been an inspiration and a guiding light to me throughout my career,” said Rubinstein. “I am especially appreciative that he is staying on as CEO Emeritus and as a director where we can continue to benefit from his wisdom and leadership.
“I am honored to build upon the foundation Joe has created and to continue working alongside the best management team in the industry.”
“Joe Harper’s name and presence have been synonymous with Del Mar for nearly 50 years and his stewardship of this association and this facility has been invaluable to Thoroughbred racing in California and the U.S.,” said David Batchelder, chairman of the DMTC board. “Over the years, we witnessed Joe’s amazing ability to tackle the challenges associated with this business while fostering the respect and goodwill of the horsemen and women from around the globe, plus our state and local officials, and his colleagues in the racing industry.”
Under Harper’s leadership, Del Mar has become one of the industry’s premier destinations, combining world-class racing with innovative marketing, exceptional hospitality and an unmatched fan experience. During Harper’s tenure, Del Mar hosted Breeders’ Cup World Championships in 2017, 2021, 2024 and 2025.
Grade I Crosby
Del Mar will host three stakes races Saturday, topped by the first Grade I of the summer meeting — the $400,000 Bing Crosby.
Eight older sprinters are entered in the six-furlong dash on the dirt, with the winner landing an automatic berth in the $2 million Breeders’ Cup Sprint.
The other stakes on the card are a pair of ungraded, $100,000 turf tests for older fillies and mares — the 1-mile Osunitas Stakes (third race) and the five-furlong Daisycutter Stakes (ninth race).
Money plus the prospect of more Breeders’ Cup money has drawn a field of nine to the Crosby, with only one of the starters — the Phil D’Amato-trained Stronghold (Antonio Fresu) — having made his most recent start in Southern California.
The narrow, morning-line favorite is Cornucopian (Juan Hernandez). Trained by Bob Baffert, the 4-year-old son of Into Mischief is coming off a win in the Grade III Aristides on May 30 at Churchill Downs.
Joel Rosario will be aboard second-favorite Maximum Bourbon, a D’Amato trainee who won his most recent race on April 30 at Churchill Downs. Stronghold (Fresu) is looking for a third straight win as the third-favorite. Fresu is aboard the 3-1, morning-line favorites in both the Osunitas (Saqqara Sands) and Daisycutter (Amorita).
Mohaven caught
Hernandez rallied She’s No Quant ($10) from behind in the stretch, overtaking 4-to-5 frontrunner Mohaven to win Friday’s featured $150,000 Fleet Treat Stakes for Cal-bred 3-year-old fillies. It was the third straight win for the daughter of Pavel.
Mohaven had dominated the 7-furlong race on the dirt until She’s No Quant came flying down the middle of the track. Tapatia Mia (Tiago Pereira) was 10 1/4 lengths back in third.
Notable
After two days of no winning tickets and a $192,794 carry-over pool, the Pick Six paid $86,555.20.