Due to unsafe track conditions caused by the inclement weather, Delaware Park cancelled the Opening Day live racing card scheduled for Wednesday. Now the 2025 live racing will begin on Saturday. May 17th. The eight-race card has a first race post time of 12:35 p.m.
Live racing at Delaware Park will be conducted on a Wednesday, Thursday, and Saturday weekly format for most of the 2025 meet. Ten cards will be presented on the following Fridays: May 30th, June 6th, June 13th, July 4th, July 11th, July 18th, July 25th, August 1st, August 8th and August 15th. Live racing is not scheduled on Thursday, May 15th, Wednesday, September 17th and Wednesday, September 24th. Daily first race post time is set for 12:45 p.m.
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Additionally, a pair of special Sunday cards will be presented in September as part of weekends featuring multiple stakes.
Delaware Certified Thoroughbred Program
On September 14th, the Delaware Certified Thoroughbred Program (DCTP) will be showcased with four six furlong $100,000 races restricted to Delaware Bred or Certified horses with the First State Stakes for 2-year-olds, the Small Wonder Stakes for 2-year-old fillies, the Tax-Free Distaff for fillies and mares 3-year-olds and up and the New Castle for 3-year-olds and up. The 33rd annual Owners’ Day will be on Saturday, September 13th.
The Del Cap is Sept. 28
The Delaware Handicap, which had traditionally been run in early July and was recently downgraded from a Grade II to a Grade III by the American Graded Stakes Committee, will be run on September 28th. The filly and mare classic will be run at a mile and an eighth for only the second time in race history and have a purse of $400,000. The supporting features of the Delaware Handicap card will be the mile and an eighth $200,000 Battery Park for 3-year-olds and up and the six furlong $100,000 Wilmington for 3-year-olds and up. On Saturday, September 27th, the features races are: the mile and an eighth $150,000 Kent Stakes on the turf for 3-year-olds, the mile and an eighth $150,000 Christiana Stakes on the turf for 3-year-old fillies and the six furlong $150,000 Endine Stakes for fillies and mares.
The Delaware Derby Debuts
For the first time in the history of the track, the Delaware Derby will be run. The mile and a sixteenth test with a purse of $200,000 will be run on the same card as the mile and a sixteenth Grade III $300,000 Delaware Oaks on Saturday, June 14th. The supporting features on the Delaware Derby/Oaks card are the mile and a sixteenth $150,000 Obeah Stakes for fillies and mares 3-year-olds and upward and the six furlong $100,000 Alapocas Run for 3-year-olds and upward.
Eighteen stakes worth a total of $2.925 million, including the mile and three-eighths Grade III $250,000 Robert G. Dick Memorial on the turf for fillies and mares 3-year-olds and up to be run on Saturday, July 5th, are scheduled.
