In advance of the coronation of King Charles III on Saturday, May 6, harness racing celebrates the 25th birthday of its king of sires on Thursday, May 4.
Foaled 25 years ago today at Winbak Farm in Chesapeake City, Maryland, Bettors Delight has established himself as the top Standardbred stallion on the planet since retiring in 2001.
A $65,000 purchase for John Grant at the 1999 Harrisburg Sale, the son of Cams Card Shark - Classic Wish was a slow starter in his two-year-old season, but by late October he peaked with victories in the rich Breeders Crown and Governors Cup. His 1:51.3 victory in an elimination of the Breeders Crown set a Mohawk Racetrack track record, and he followed that up with a 1:52.4 clocking in the $871,475 final. Bettors Delight ended his rookie season with six wins and just over $804,000 in earnings en route to winning a Dan Patch Award as the Two-Year-Old Pacing Colt of the Year in the United States and an O’Brien Award as Canada’s Two-Year-Old Pacing Colt of the Year.
Under the guidance of trainer Scott McEneny, Bettors Delight blossomed during his sophomore season, winning nine of 16 and more than $1.77 million. After guiding him to a Breeders Crown win in his freshman season, driver Mike Lachance earned the mount as the colt’s regular driver for his three-year-old year and the pair made a dynamic team, scoring numerous stakes victories.
His sophomore season, which included wins in the North America Cup and Little Brown Jug, was rewarded with the Dan Patch Award for Three-Year-Old Pacing Colt of the Year and two O’Brien Awards as Canada’s Three-Year-Old Pacing Colt of the Year and as Canada’s Horse of the Year. He retired with a 15-6-1 summary from 26 starts with a mark of 1:49.4 and more than $2.5 million in earnings.
Blue Chip Farms added Bettors Delight to their stallion roster following his sophomore season, and the pacing powerhouse has since developed into the top Standardbred stallion in the world. After starting his stallion career stateside in New York, Bettors Delight shifted to Winbak Farm of Canada in 2012, spent two years in Pennsylvania, then returned north of border in 2015.
In addition to his North American progeny that include the likes of All Bets Off, Bettors Wish, Darlins Delight and Tall Dark Stranger, Bettors Delight has rocketed to the top of the charts downunder as well. There, he has sired horses to more than 35,000 starts with nearly 4,440 wins and earnings in excess of $75 million. Some of those performers, like Lazarus, Bit Of A Legend and recent Blue Chip Matchmaker winner Amazing Dream, are included in his North American statistics that boast more than 1,734 race winners, $328 million in earnings and an average of $169,087 per starter.
“He was really the first top stallion in the Standardbred game to shuttle to Australia,” Blue Chip Farms' Tom Grossman said in a recent interview. “Everyone said I was crazy. I knew from the Thoroughbreds it could work. He’s bred full books in both hemispheres every year for literally the last 20 years. He’s had many books of more than 400 mares in the Southern Hemisphere alone. The last 15 years, he’s averaged 500 mares a year globally.
“He’s obviously an unbelievably fertile stallion.”
(with files from the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame)