In 1991, Patrick Valenzuela was on top of the racing world. Two years removed from victories in the Kentucky Derby and Preakness, his future in the saddle seemed limitless.
But he spiraled into an abyss of drugs and alcohol in the decade that followed, repeatedly halting and nearly wrecking his career. Still, Valenzuela's talent aboard horses and his charisma was undeniable, earning him forgiveness and multiple second chances.
So when trainer Don Warren needed a rider for Acclamation in the $1 million Pacific Classic he turned to the rider known as P-Val.
It was the right move.
Acclamation led all the way to win by a head at Del Mar, holding off Twirling Candy in a furious stretch drive Sunday and earning Valenzuela the victory 20 years after he won the first Classic with Best Pal.
''We were looking for a speed-type rider and he's always been one of the best in the world at putting a horse on the lead, so it was kind of a natural fit,'' Warren said. ''He nursed the horse along just like we wanted him to, a length or two in front and was able to save enough to hold off any horse that made a run at him.''
Acclamation ran 1-1/4 miles in 2 minutes, 0.61 seconds, the fastest time since the synthetic Polytrack surface was installed in 2007. A win bet returned $10.80.
The 5-year-old bay was winless in six previous starts on synthetic surfaces.
It was Acclamation's third consecutive Grade 1 win. He took the Eddie Read last month at Del Mar and the Charles Whittingham Memorial Handicap at Hollywood Park in June.
Watching in the stands with his wife, Judy, co-owner Bud Johnston saw the fractions and was confident no one would catch his horse. Having survived two heart attacks and a four-way bypass, Johnston had his cardiologist on hand.
''She said, `I don't know why I put you through those tests. Nothing compares with the excitement of a horse race,'' ' he said, smiling.
Stately Victor finished four lengths back of Twirling Candy in third. Game On Dude, the 3-2 second choice saddled by Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert and co-owned by retired Los Angeles Dodgers manager Joe Torre, was fourth in front of 29,267 fans.
''We were in the right spot but he wasn't up to it,'' Game On Dude's jockey, Chantal Sutherland, said. ''I have no doubt he's a nice horse, and you are going to hear from him again.''
Game On Dude dueled Acclamation for much of the way before falling back at the top of the stretch, when Twirling Candy came up quickly on the outside and battled Acclamation through the final furlongs.
''He ran a very good race,'' said Joel Rosario, aboard Twirling Candy. ''He gave me everything he had. The distance was not an issue. But the other horse was too tough.''
Valenzuela waved his right-handed whip in his horse's eyes until the finish line, then pumped his right arm in the air as they galloped down the track.
''I can't even say the words,'' he said when asked what the win meant to him. ''I'm so thankful, so grateful.''
The 48-year-old jockey ended a 2-1/2-year absence from California last August at Del Mar, after regaining his license from the California Horse Racing Board, which Valenzuela singled out for thanks.
His substance abuse issues have caused him no fewer than a dozen suspensions or license revocations.
Valenzuela has won 12 races worth $1 million, including the 1991 Pacific Classic on Best Pal, a 3-year-old colt who beat a solid field of older horses. Best Pal went on to earn more than $5 million and became one of the best California-breds in history.
Acclamation earned an automatic berth in the Breeders' Cup Classic at Churchill Downs in November, but Johnston isn't sure how his horse would handle that track's dirt.
''We're not ruling anything out, but I wouldn't say it's our first choice at this point,'' he said, adding that the horse could possibly run in one of the BC grass races.
The Factor made a winning return to the races after a 4-1/4-month layoff, taking the $250,000 Pat O'Brien Stakes by 1-3/4 lengths for Baffert, who won the race for the third straight year.
The Factor dueled 7-5 favorite Smiling Tiger much of the way before prevailing under Martin Garcia, who dug into the whip deep in the stretch. The colt ran seven furlongs in 1:21.56 and paid $5.40.
The Factor had been idle since finishing seventh as the favorite in the Arkansas Derby on April 16, a poor result that kept him out of the Triple Crown races. Baffert chose the Pat O'Brien over the King's Bishop at Saratoga for his speedy colt, the lone 3-year-old in the race.
''The track at Saratoga is really deep and demanding. It's pretty tough off a layoff,'' he said. ''I'm glad he stayed here. When Smiling Tiger hooked us early, I thought, `Oh boy.' When this horse is really on his game, he's such a superstar. He's really matured a lot.''
Baffert said The Factor could run in either the Breeders' Cup Sprint or Dirt Mile.
In the $200,000 Del Mar Handicap, Celtic New Year edged 3-5 favorite Bourbon Bay to win by a head and earn an automatic berth in the BC Turf. Ridden by Victor Espinoza, Celtic New Year ran 1-3/8 miles on the turf in 2:14.92 and paid $11 to win.
