One of the highlights of racing at Del Mar each summer is the high-class program of juvenile races conducted at the seaside oval.

The Del Mar summer meet is where many of California’s best 2-year-old Thoroughbreds get started. During a five-year span from 2012 to 2016, four Grade 1 Kentucky Derby winners (I’ll Have Another, California Chrome, American Pharoah, and Nyquist) ran at Del Mar as juveniles. Three of them competed in the Grade 1 Del Mar Futurity, Del Mar’s most important race for 2-year-olds.

Keeping this rich recent history in mind, it’s entirely possible we saw a future classic winner (or two) debut at Del Mar this summer. So, with an eye on identifying contenders for the 2022 Grade 1 TVG Breeders’ Cup Juvenile and the 2023 Triple Crown series, here are five up-and-coming 2-year-olds to follow from the 2022 Del Mar summer meet:

Carmel Road

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Carmel Road showed promise in his Aug. 6 debut sprinting five-eighths of a mile at Del Mar. After breaking slowly, the Bob Baffert trainee rallied down the homestretch to finish third, beaten by only 1 1/2 lengths despite running into tight quarters close to home.

Unsurprisingly, Carmel Road ran much better when stretching out to one mile for an Aug. 26 maiden special weight at Del Mar. Breaking more alertly under Hall of Fame jockey Mike Smith, Carmel Road dashed to the lead through quarter-mile fractions of :21.97 and :45.90 and never looked back, gradually widening his advantage to dominate by 8 3/4 lengths in 1:37.53.

A son of four-time Grade 1 winner Quality Road out of the Unbridled’s Song mare Inspired, Carmel Road is owned by the extensive partnership of SF Racing, Starlight Racing, Madaket Stables, Robert E. Masterson, Stonestreet Stables, Jay A. Schoenfarber, Waves Edge Capital, and Catherine Donovan. With his obvious affinity for running long, Carmel Road has to be viewed as a potential Breeders’ Cup Juvenile contender.

Cave Rock

The most accomplished juvenile to race at Del Mar this summer was Cave Rock. The son of Grade 1 2016 Breeders’ Cup Classic winner Arrogate is bred to improve with maturity and thrive running long, so it’s been surprising (and exciting) to see how much talent Cave Rock has shown sprinting at an early age.

Cave Rock winning the 2022 Del Mar Futurity. (Alex Evers/Eclipse Sportswire)

Cave Rock was terrific in his debut dashing 6 1/2 furlongs on Aug. 13 at Del Mar, leading all the way to trounce his pursuers by six easy lengths in the fast time of 1:15.81. This flashy victory stamped Cave Rock as a heavy favorite to win the Sept. 11 Grade 1 Del Mar Futurity, and he delivered with another terrific performance, setting blazing fractions of :21.56 and :43.65 before kicking away down the homestretch to win by 5 1/4 lengths in 1:20.99.

Having gone unbeaten and unchallenged in two starts, Cave Rock has emerged as the early favorite to win the 2022 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile. He may be on his way to earning champion 2-year-old male honors for trainer Bob Baffert and owners Michael E. Pegram, Karl Watson, and Paul Weitman.

Kangaroo Court

Kangaroo Court was beaten in his July 23 debut at Del Mar, finishing second in a maiden special weight for California-bred juveniles sprinting five-eighths of a mile. But it wasn’t a bad defeat by any means: Kangaroo Court led by daylight for most of the race and was only caught close to home by future stakes winner The Big Wam.

Kangaroo Court subsequently ran out of his skin in an Aug. 20 maiden special weight for California-breds at Del Mar. Dashing 5 1/2 furlongs, Kangaroo Court set quarter-mile fractions of :21.88 and :44.54 on his way to winning by a staggering 14 1/4 lengths in 1:03.33.

Only time will tell if Kangaroo Court can step up his game against open competition, but the Tim Yakteen trainee clearly has talent and potential. The gelded son of Grade 1-winning sprinter Dads Caps was produced by the Hard Spun mare Bonus Spin, so Kangaroo Court is bred to be fast and looks like something special for owner George A. Sharp.

National Treasure

National Treasure leads the pack at Del Mar. (Alex Evers/Eclipse Sportswire)

Purchased for half a million dollars as a yearling, National Treasure turned in an impressive series of fast workouts prior to his Sept. 3 debut at Del Mar, then delivered on his promising morning exercises with a sharp victory.

Under the guidance of Hall of Fame jockey John Velazquez, National Treasure flashed speed from the start, gaining the early lead through fast quarter-mile fractions of :21.89 and :44.37. A lesser horse might have tired from those early exertions, but National Treasure kept going and held off a late runner to prevail by 1 1/2 lengths.

National Treasure completed 6 1/2 furlongs in 1:16.62. Owned by the partnership of SF Racing, Starlight Racing, Madaket Stables, Robert E. Masterson, Stonestreet Stables, Jay A. Schoenfarber, Waves Edge Capital, and Catherine Donovan, National Treasure is a son of Quality Road out of the Medaglia d’Oro mare Treasure. This is a promising pedigree for the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile and Triple Crown, stamping National Treasure as a potential stakes star for trainer Bob Baffert.

Speed Boat Beach

Baffert’s success with juveniles at Del Mar continued on Sept. 10 with Speed Boat Beach in a maiden special weight over 5 1/2 furlongs. Of all the horses we’ve highlighted, Speed Boat Beach might have the best raw speed and talent.

A son of Baffert’s 2014 Breeders’ Cup Classic winner Bayern, Speed Boat Beach flashed his sire’s trademark speed on debut. After outdueling his pace rivals through intense quarter-mile fractions of :21.34 and :44.17, Speed Boat Beach somehow ran the fifth eighth-mile in :11.79 and the final sixteenth-mile in :05.90 (both terrific fractions for a juvenile) to win by 1 1/4 lengths in the track-record time of 1:01.86.

Speed Boat Beach’s dam is Sophia Mia, a daughter of Baffert’s 2009 Kentucky Derby runner-up Pioneerof the Nile, who is best known for siring Baffert’s 2015 Triple Crown winner American Pharoah. It’s safe to say Baffert is familiar with Speed Boat Beach’s family, and the Florida-bred colt looks like a star in the making for the partnership of Michael E. Pegram, Karl Watson, and Paul Weitman.