Little Brown Jug Week Betting Guide: Hoosier Park And Mohawk Million Build Up
The harness racing calendar hits its busiest stretch of the fall this week. Harrah's Hoosier Park runs a Grade 1 doubleheader on Friday night, the Delaware County Fair throws its gates open on Saturday for a week that builds to the Little Brown Jug, and Woodbine Mohawk Park keeps setting the table for the Mohawk Million on September 26. Here is what to watch and bet across all three tracks.
Grade 1 Doubleheader Headlines Hoosier Park's Friday Card
Harrah's Hoosier Park hosts the Grade 1 Peter Haughton Memorial and the Grade 1 Jim Doherty Memorial on Friday, September 18. This is the marquee stop of the fall for this year's two year old trotting crop, coming right before Grand Circuit racing shifts to Mohawk Million weekend. The Haughton is for the trotting colts, the Doherty for the fillies, and both share the card with the Hoosier Cup, the Indiana Sired final for three year old pacing colts that wraps up a long summer of Indiana Sires Stakes racing at the Anderson oval.
Fields are out for Friday's card, and the Haughton draws a full field of ten. Swan Good Bi is the 8-5 morning line choice for trainer Henry Graber Jr and driver Jordan Ross, unbeaten in five starts this year and going in race 11 of a 15 race program. Between the two Grade 1s there is almost $1 million on offer, the Haughton worth roughly $475,000 and the Doherty roughly $483,000, with the Hoosier Cup final worth about $79,000 on the same card. First post is 5:30pm ET. The Haughton also carries Breeders Crown Win and You're In status this year, so its winner books an automatic spot in the Breeders Crown final at Scioto Downs on October 23.
Marcus Melander and Dexter Dunn arrive chasing a third straight Haughton, having won it with Maryland in 2024 and Apex in 2025, the standout form angle on a card that also sends this year's two year old crop toward Delaware and Mohawk later in the month.
Delaware County Fair Opens With Little Brown Jug Week
The Delaware County Fair opens Saturday, September 19, but live racing does not start until Sunday, September 20, and runs through Jug Day on September 24. The Jugette, the three year old filly pace, goes Wednesday, September 23, worth $325,000. The 81st Little Brown Jug itself, the third leg of the Pacing Triple Crown, goes Thursday, September 24, for a $700,000 purse over one mile. Entries are not closed either. Supplements cost $45,000 and are due Saturday, September 19 at 10am, with the full list of eligible horses due by Monday, September 21 at 10am, so the field is still not locked in at the time of writing.
The Jug is not decided in a single dash. Two or three preliminary heats whittle the field down first, and the top four finishers from each of those heats come back later the same day to contest a separate final for the $700,000 purse. Last year Louprint won his own $50,000 elimination heat before coming back to take the final itself, the template every horse in this year's field is chasing.
| Date | Track | Race | Purse |
|---|---|---|---|
| Friday, September 18 | Harrah's Hoosier Park | Peter Haughton Memorial (G1) / Jim Doherty Memorial (G1) / Hoosier Cup | ~$475,000 / ~$483,000 / ~$79,000 |
| Saturday, September 19 | Delaware County Fair | Fair gates open (no live racing yet) | N/A |
| Sunday, September 20 | Delaware County Fair | Live racing begins | N/A |
| Wednesday, September 23 | Delaware County Fair | Jugette | $325,000 |
| Thursday, September 24 | Delaware County Fair | 81st Little Brown Jug | $700,000 |
| Saturday, September 26 | Woodbine Mohawk Park | Mohawk Million / Metro Pace / Canadian Trotting Classic / Shes A Great Lady / Elegantimage | $1,000,000 / $1,000,000 / $615,000 / TBC / TBC |
Who's Pointing Toward Delaware
Brandon Blvd tops the Jug's Top Eligibles list, with a lifetime mark of 1:47.3 for trainer Andrew Harris and driver Dexter Dunn. The official ranking is not built strictly on earnings, which is how Beau Jangles, who has actually banked more at roughly $1.5 million against Brandon Blvd's $1.33 million, still sits below him on the list. Beau Jangles is the reigning Horse of the Year and the winner of the 2025 Metro Pace for trainer Dr. Ian Moore, arguably the biggest name in the race, and he now races for driver James MacDonald. Al Papi, trained by Ron Burke, sits around $1.08 million and arrives off a runner up finish behind Fragment in June's MGM Grand Messenger Stakes, the opening leg of the Pacing Triple Crown, and will be looking to turn that form around on Delaware's half mile oval. Fragment is a contender in his own right rather than just the horse who beat Al Papi that day, banking around $1.1 million for trainer Per Engblom. Melillo, now with a lifetime mark of 1:48.2f and about $1.03 million banked, and Sweet Lovin Lou at roughly $488,000 round out the group of horses with real Jug claims.
No horse has won the Pacing Triple Crown since No Pan Intended in 2003, 23 years ago, and that drought hangs over every Messenger and Cane Pace winner who lines up in Delaware. Whichever of this year's group breaks through, Delaware's tight half mile turns can flip form on its head compared with the mile tracks these pacers raced on all summer.
| Horse | Lifetime Record | Earnings (approx) | Trainer | Driver |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brandon Blvd | 1:47.3 | $1.33M | Andrew Harris | Dexter Dunn |
| Al Papi | 1:47.2f | $1.08M | Ron Burke | Yannick Gingras |
| Sweet Lovin Lou | 1:47.3 | $488K | Daniel Lagace | Scott Zeron / Tim Tetrick |
| Beau Jangles | 1:48.3s | $1.5M | Dr. Ian Moore | James MacDonald |
| Melillo | 1:48.2f | $1.03M | Ron Burke | Ronnie Wrenn Jr. |
| Fragment | TBC | $1.1M | Per Engblom | Jason Bartlett |
Mohawk Million Weekend Takes Shape At Woodbine
Two results from Saturday, August 29 at Woodbine Mohawk Park have already shaped the conversation heading into the Mohawk Million. Ocean Storm won the $570,000 William Wellwood Memorial in 1:52.4, equaling the stakes record, for driver Yannick Gingras and trainer Cameron Capone, holding off Access Now by three quarters of a length. In the $425,000 Peaceful Way final, Athenas Girl scored a lifetime best 1:53 for driver Dexter Dunn and trainer Marcus Melander, drawing off to beat Verily by three and a half lengths for owner Brad Grant.
The Mohawk Million itself does not work like a normal stakes race. Ten slots were sold at $60,000 CAD apiece back in March, drawn from 34 applicants, and each slot owner can declare any two year old trotter they like, including one they do not own outright, right up to the declaration deadline of Monday, September 21. That means Ocean Storm and Athenas Girl are logical spots for their own connections to fill if either is among the group holding a slot, but nothing is confirmed until declarations close, so treat any name mentioned before then as speculation rather than a lock.
The Mohawk Million anchors a card that carries five Grade 1s in total on Saturday, September 26: the $1 million Mohawk Million itself, the $1 million Metro Pace for two year old pacers, the $615,000 Canadian Trotting Classic, Shes A Great Lady and Elegantimage. Gates open at 5pm ET with admission and parking free, first race away at 6:30pm. Put together with Hoosier Park's Friday card and the build up to the Little Brown Jug in Delaware, this is as strong a three week run of harness racing as the calendar offers all year.
How To Bet This Week's Harness Racing
Fractional odds price up favorites and longshots alike across Hoosier Park, Delaware and Mohawk, and win, place and exacta wagering covers all three cards. With the Jug decided across heats and a final and the Mohawk Million card carrying five Grade 1s, straight win bets and exactas are the most straightforward way to get involved, while multi race bets like a Pick 3 across Friday's Hoosier Park stakes can string together the Haughton, where Swan Good Bi looks the one to beat, the Doherty and the Hoosier Cup for a bigger payout if you like more than one of the favorites.
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Frequently Asked Questions
The 81st Little Brown Jug runs Thursday, September 24, 2026, at the Delaware County Fair in Delaware, Ohio, for a $700,000 purse over one mile. The Jugette for three year old fillies runs the day before, Wednesday, September 23, for $325,000.
The Jug is not decided in a single dash. Two or three preliminary heats whittle the field down first, and the top four finishers from each heat come back later the same day to contest a separate final for the $700,000 purse. Last year Louprint won his own $50,000 elimination heat before coming back to take the final itself.
Friday, September 18 at Harrah's Hoosier Park features the Grade 1 Peter Haughton Memorial for two year old trotting colts, the Grade 1 Jim Doherty Memorial for two year old trotting fillies, and the Hoosier Cup final for Indiana Sired three year old pacing colts.
The $1 million Mohawk Million goes Saturday, September 26 at Woodbine Mohawk Park, on a card that carries five Grade 1s in total: the Mohawk Million, the $1 million Metro Pace for two year old pacers, the $615,000 Canadian Trotting Classic, Shes A Great Lady and Elegantimage. Gates open at 5pm ET with free admission and parking, first race at 6:30pm.
Ocean Storm won the William Wellwood Memorial on August 29 in a stakes record equaling 1:52.4 for driver Yannick Gingras and trainer Cameron Capone. Athenas Girl won the Peaceful Way final the same afternoon in a lifetime best 1:53 for driver Dexter Dunn and trainer Marcus Melander.
