Comparisons to Ladies In Red shouldn’t be made lightly, but Major Delight is tracking along a similar path to the one her great stablemate paved in the early part of her career.
And in many ways, the freakish daughter of Bettors Delight has a better record than the one Ladies In Red possessed ahead of her victory in the Breeders Crown three-year-old fillies’ final in 2021.
At that stage, “Willow”, as she’s affectionately known, had won two Group 1s and $389,500 from her 16 career starts, which included just three defeats. Ahead of tonight’s three-year-old fillies’ showdown, Major Delight has won 15 of 18 starts, including three Group 1 races and $519,378 in prizemoney.
Whether she reaches the heights of the millionaire mare remains to be seen, but any early comparisons to Ladies In Red sit comfortably with Major Delight’s owner-breeder Peter Lewis.
“She’s sort of the alpha horse among the fillies and then you have the next rung, I suppose, the Sweet Bellas and Joyfuls,” Lewis said.
“You could liken it a bit to Ladies In Red and Tough Tilly. Ladies In Red being the alpha and Tough Tilly being sort of the underdog, but she has beaten her a couple of times.
“It’s hard to line up horses from different years as to the competition they’re racing – whether Tough Tilly was a little bit better than the other fillies (Major Delight is) racing now – but you can only beat what’s there, can’t you?”
Major Delight is the product of Lewis’s breed, which has really stepped up following the emergence of Lady Euthenia in 2006. On the racetrack, she won 21 races and five Group 1s before embarking on a brilliant career in the breeding barn.
It’s success stories like these that have both filled the trophy cabinet and made life a lot easier for the NSW-based glazier.
“Lady Euthenia, when she was racing, I had just bought a house, had a big loan on it and was able to wipe half of it off with her,” he said.
“We built a house a couple of years ago and just moved into it, so I had another loan and Major Delight has been timely.”
After being crowned Victorian 2YO Pacing Filly of the Year in 2022, Major Delight was struck down by a mystery illness on the eve of the APG Gold Bullion heats in April and only returned to racing in September. But she has rebounded from her health scare and looks in great form as she heads towards another elite-level feature for regular driver Mark Pitt.
After taking out the second semi-final last weekend, Major Delight is $2 favourite for tonight’s Breeders Crown final from gate six, with Emma Stewart-trained stablemates Joyful ($2.20) and Sweet Bella ($4.80) well fancied from barriers four and five respectively.
TUNE IN at MELTON on Saturday night
First Race: 5.52pm Last Race: 11.05pm
Racecaller: Dan Mielicki, Kirsten Graham, Bronte Nieuwenburg and Ryan Phelan
TrotsVision: WATCH LIVE
SEN Track: LISTEN LIVE
RSN 927: LISTEN LIVE
Winner of the Week
BETWEEN TWO THORNS, by Downbytheseaside out of Kiwi Rose, at Gloucester Park on November 17.
Breed your next winner with Woodlands Stud, supporter of Trots Centre
