Officials of the Little Brown Jug confirmed on Tuesday, July 18 that the purse for the 2023 Little Brown Jug, to be raced on Thursday, Sept. 21, will be $1 million.

“We are extremely excited to announce this purse increase,” said Tom Wright, president of the Little Brown Jug Society. “We have had tremendous support from our industry partners, the State of Ohio and have significantly increased our sponsorships that have allowed us to do this. We would like to especially thank the Ohio Harness Horseman’s Association and the State of Ohio Legislature for helping us reach this milestone.”

The 78th edition of the pacing classic headlines the Delaware, Ohio Grand Circuit week with five days of racing from Sunday, Sept. 17 through Thursday, Sept. 21.

“It has been our goal and mission to bring the purse to the $1 million mark,” noted Wright. “We have always felt that the Jug deserves to be the richest pacing event in North America. Our fans are the greatest in the sport and we wanted to reward their support with this historic event.”

The Jug eliminations will be raced for $50,000 each and the balance will be handed out in the second heat.

The previous record Jug purse was $677,000 won by Wiggle It Jiggleit in 2015.

Three-year-old pacers not eligible after the Feb. 15, 2023 sustaining deadline may, with a payment of $45,000, supplement to the 78th edition of the Little Brown Jug. The stakes conditions and supplement information are available at ustrotting.com.

Fans wanting to be part of this historic Little Brown Jug are encouraged to visit littlebrownjug.com to explore admission, seating and hospitality options.

Those who can’t attend in person will have the option to watch the Little Brown Jug and some of its undercard on Fox Sports’ “A Day at the Races.”

(With files from Little Brown Jug)