The rumors have been floating around for months: Churchill Downs Inc. will divide up the property on which the Hollywood Park racetrack stands and sell it, ending racing at the Inglewood track.

Churchill Downs officials last week finally confirmed they are considering such action.

Reports of a new track in El Toro have surfaced in the past, and don't forget Fairplex Park in Pomona has talked about adding a turf course. But last week Los Alamitos, where quarterhorses run year-round, fired the first shot in what is expected to be quite a tussle for Hollywood Park's dates.

Mike Pegram of Real Quiet fame, who owns a house above the Del Mar racetrack, came to an agreement with Los Alamitos owner Ed Allred to finance a $40 million renovation of the Orange County track. It would include expansion of the main track from five furlongs to one mile and installation of a seven-furlong turf course, which could be expanded to 1 1/4 miles. The thoroughbreds would run during the day, and the quarterhorses would continue to run at night.

The news of the renovation was felt statewide and brings up the natural question: If 18 weeks of racing are available, where does the Del Mar Thoroughbred Club stand?

You can bet many influential local horse owners would love to stay home instead of driving Southern California's busy freeways to see their charges run. Del Mar's meet currently has only 43 racing days.

"Naturally, it would be an easy assumption that if Del Mar does twice the business of the other tracks (Santa Anita and Hollywood Park), it would be best to have twice the amount of dates," said Joe Harper, president of the DMTC. "But we have to temper that with the fact that we don't have a lot of dates. We have an ideal niche.

"I'm not saying we wouldn't want to expand to some degree, but the bigger question is how do we make Southern California racing the best? Del Mar could pick up dates and still retain that vacation atmosphere. Do we add dates at the beginning of the meet or at the end, or do we go to a five-day week?

"My main concern is how can we put more horses in these races instead of having five-horse fields. We have to look at the bigger picture. We need to get from an average of eight-plus horses per race to 10-plus."

Del Mar's biggest problem with the expansion of dates is the San Diego County Fair, which runs annually for approximately 17 days around the Fourth of July holiday. That would mean Del Mar could apply for some of Hollywood Park's spring days from late April until the middle of June, then take time off before the summer meet. The seaside oval could ask for Hollywood's winter meet, but many feel that is a dead part of the schedule in November and December as trainers gear up for Santa Anita.

"I never say never to anything," said Harper. "If there is a major shift, we have to look at all of the possibilities, whether that be split meets or an extended meet. That might even mean running fewer dates, too. Just because you can make money on five-horse fields doesn't mean you need to do it.

"The fair is here. We have some flexibility with the fair dates. It's whatever makes the most sense."

Del Mar getting more dates makes too much sense, especially to a state that reaps the rewards because Del Mar is a nonprofit entity and the state receives millions every summer.

What also makes sense is that less maybe is more. Southern California racing could revert to the old days, when there was a week of non-racing in between each meet.

"No. 1, the health of Del Mar is connected to a strong Southern California year-round program," said Harper. "We have to keep the circuit as healthy as it can be. If Hollywood Park or Churchill Downs Inc. are serious about selling, it would be nice to give the dates to someone who is passionate about the sport.

"This is premature, but the best thing Del Mar can do is see how things unfold. We will work together with whoever becomes involved and whoever is best for the horsemen.

"I don't know if the existing calendar is best or if we should move the dates around that we are all comfortable with. If you make an investment, you want to get what is the best return for you. We all understand that is better to add horses to the program."

The next two years should be interesting, to say the least.

Finishing lines

The $6 million Dubai World Cup will be held Saturday with U.S.-based horses Roses in May, Congrats, Lundy's Liability and Choctaw Nation among the contenders. You also can scratch those horses from doing anything significant in America the rest of the year. … Oceanside resident Jeff Bloom was named executive vice president of West Coast operations for West Point Thoroughbreds. Bloom has worked for many years in the Del Mar media relations office and co-hosted "The Thoroughbred Connection" radio show with John Hernandez. … This week's top race on the Kentucky Derby trail will be the Lane's End Stakes at Turfway Park in Florence, Ky. Actor David Cassidy of "The Partridge Family" fame will have Mayan King in the race.

Staff writer Jeff Nahill covers horse racing for the North County Times. He can be reached at (760) 740-3550 or jnahill@nctimes.com.