The Del Mar racing office recently canceled the Bob Hope Stakes (G3), a 7-furlong race for 2-year-olds, after two unsuccessful attempts to hold it, highlighting a troubling decline in California’s 2-year-old racing division. Despite the race’s history of producing top-tier horses and maintaining graded status, interest has waned, with fields shrinking and dominance by a single trainer, Bob Baffert, discouraging broader participation. Other trainers have withheld entries, citing the lack of competitive opportunities and the unhealthy concentration of talent and resources, which has led to a limited pool of 2-year-old winners and diminished the race’s viability.

This situation underscores a broader problem in California racing, where innovation and adaptation are needed to revive the 2-year-old division. Trainers like Peter Miller advocate for restructuring the racing program to include more auction-restricted races, which have shown promise in developing young horses without forcing them to leave the state. While world-class juveniles can still emerge in California, the lack of depth and new investment threatens the sport’s future, emphasizing the need to return to basics and restore the simple but essential elements of the racing calendar, such as maintaining key stakes races like the Bob Hope.