DELAWARE, Ohio — When Jug Day comes to the Delaware County Fairgrounds in September, race organizers expect the headline race to have its highest-ever purse.
The record Little Brown Jug purse was $677,000, won by Wiggle It Jiggleit in 2015. This year, race officials say the purse for the 78th edition of the pacing classic to be a record and may approach $1 Million.
At the time the 2023 race schedule was published, the purse was estimated at a record $800,000.
“It has been our goal and mission to bring the purse to the $1 million mark,” noted Tom Wright, president of the Little Brown Jug Society. “Thanks to the support of our sponsors, industry partners and the Delaware County Agricultural Society, we are close to realizing that dream.”
One of the biggest events in harness racing, the Little Brown Jug features three-year-old pacing standardbred horses. The race has been hosted by the Delaware County Agricultural Society since 1946.
The race happens each year on the third Thursday after Labor Day. Jug Day 2023 begins at noon on Thursday, September 21 at the Delaware County Fairgrounds, on the north side of the city. Jug Day is the culmination of an entire week of racing at the Delaware Grand Circuit meet.
The 2023 Jugette or three-year-old pacing fillies takes place on Wednesday, September 20. The estimated purse for that event is $300,000.
