While Dan Patch Award winner Pure Country and her extremely accomplished rival Darlinonthebeach are dominating the headlines for the 46th edition of the Jugette, Canadian L A Delight is not only a force to be reckoned with, but if she secures the victory, she will not only redeem her dam’s loss in this very event, but will secure her pilot and her breeder/owner/trainer a place in Jugette history.
“I think she is not receiving much attention because she has only raced twice outside of Canada,” said John Campbell, who will be guiding the filly over the Delaware County Fair oval on Wednesday (September 21) in the $239,400 Jugette. “The first time she raced in the U.S. she made that break on me at the Meadowlands (on July 16 in the Mistletoe Shalee) for some reason we have never determined, but in the Nadia Lobell, her second start here (August 27) she beat some quality fillies at the Meadows with Dave Palone driving her in a personal best 1:49.1 and just missed setting a track record. She certainly has a very good chance to win this race.”
A daughter of Bettors Delight-West Of L A, L A Delight was the 2015 O’Brien Award winner as the sport’s best two-year-old pacing filly in Canada. In last year’s campaign, she finished third in her first start and continued her season with 11 consecutive trips to the winner’s circle. Trained by Bob McIntosh, who captured this very contest in 1994 with Electric Slide and in 1992 with So Fresh, she competes as a homebred for her trainer in conjunction with C S X Stables and Al McIntosh Holdings.
L A Delight will start from Post 3 in rein to the most prolific driver in the race’s history, as Campbell has captured the Jugette on four occasions. Rated as the fourth selection on the morning line, behind Pure Country (5-2, PP9), Darlinonthebeach (7-2, PP7) and Call Me Queen Be (9-2, PP5), the filly merits serious consideration after a sophomore season that has netted $381,250 with a resume of 11-6-1-1.
If she hits the finish line ahead of her eight rivals, the victory will indeed be sweet for her connections, as it will place McIntosh in a tie with Bill Haughton for the most wins by a trainer in this race and will reverse the sting of her mother’s seventh-place finish to Showherthemoney in 2009.
McIntosh also trained, owned and bred West Of L A with the same parties and always takes great pride when a product of his breeding program gets their picture taken.
“Winning any race is always special,” he said last fall. “But there is something extra special when it’s a horse you bred and raised from a baby and were responsible for generations of the family. There is a sense of great pride that comes when one of your very own horses wins a big race.”
It certainly increases the filly’s chances to become a Jugette winner when a pilot with Campbell’s expertise is satisfied with how the draw unfolded for the duo’s journey at Delaware.
“It is very important to have an inside post draw over this specific track,” he said. “I am pleased with our post position as we can get our nose right on the gate, which is key in races at Delaware. When you are six or seven lengths off the pace, it is extremely difficult to make that up in any races there, even with a very nice horse. When you have a post position like this it definitely helps and allows you to put your horse right in the race off the starting gate.”
When asked if an unrivaled fifth Jugette win would hold especially high esteem within the context of his storied career, Campbell, as usual, was exceptionally humble and blatantly honest.
“I have been fortunate with the opportunities I have been offered to drive horses of this calibre in races like this,” he said. “Of course winning this race is always enjoyable, but being in the winner’s circle for any race at Delaware is special. It does not matter what race it is. You have such a big audience that is so close to the track and they are so involved and supportive. There is also the history there and it holds a unique place within the industry. Any win there is one you will always remember.”
Wednesday's Jugette will be raced in two heats. All the first heat finishers will advance to the second heat. The winner of the second heat will be declared the Jugette champion. The first heat will be raced for $95,760 and the second heat will carry a purse of $143,640.
The complete Jugette field appears below.
PP-Horse-(Driver/Trainer)-Morning Line Odds
1. Yankee Moonshine (Yannick Gingras/Ron Burke)-8/1
2. Marty Party Two (Ronnie Wrenn Jr./Ron Steck)-15/1
3. L A Delight (John Campbell/Robert McIntosh)-6/1
4. Hug A Dragoness (Matt Kakaley/Ron Burke)-10/1
5. Call Me Queen B (Scott Zeron/Ross Croghan)-9/2
6. I Said Diamonds (Tim Tetrick/Matias Ruiz)-12/1
7. Darlinonthebeach (David Miller/Nancy Johansson)-7/2
8. Blue Moon Stride (Andrew McCarthy-Mark Harder)-12/1
9. Pure Country (Brett Miller/Jimmy Takter)-5/2
(USTA)