It’s been 10 years since 21-year-old Jorge Delgado arrived in the U.S. from Venezuela and on Saturday at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Md., he scored his biggest career win when Lightening Larry, a Florida-bred colt by Uncaptured, took the Grade 3, $200,000 Chick Lang Stakes under Chantal Sutherland. It was Delgado’s first graded stakes success.
Lightening Larry prompted pacesetter Cogburn throughout, edging to the front approaching the eighth pole and holding sway to beat the 2-1 favorite by three-quarters of a length. Chasing Time, who like Cogburn is trained by five-time Chick Lang Stakes winner Steve Asmussen, finished another two lengths back in third, with Alottahope fourth and previously unbeaten Old Homestead, the second choice in the wagering, fifth in a field of eight 3-year-olds.
Lightening Larry sped six furlongs in 1:09.86 after Cogburn led the way through fractions of :21.87, :44.14, and 56.52. Ownec by Lea Farms LLC, he paid $26 for the win, his fourth in nine career starts.
“I still don’t know what happened,” said Delgado. “I’m just so happy the horse won. Everything went very fast, but I could tell the horse broke on his game. We’ve been training for this race specifically since February. We used the Tampa race as a prep, and he finished second and after that we shipped to Monmouth targeting this race. I just thank God everything worked out. I knew at the quarter-pole. He always has a strong finish so when he was close to the other horse, I knew he had a big chance, but I recognize Steve Asmussen is a great trainer, so you never know until the very end.”
“This is my first time in a big stakes race like this,” Delgado said, “my first graded stakes win, and I’m beyond grateful it happened this way. It’s a day I will never forget. I’m looking forward to tonight. I’ll have a nice dinner and watch the race many, many times.”
The 47th running of the Chick Lang was the fifth of 10 stakes, six graded, worth $2.75 million in purses on a blockbuster 14-race program headlined by the 147th Preakness Stakes (G1), middle jewel of the Triple Crown.
Sutherland, who like Delgado is based in South Florida, was recording her first graded stakes victory since 2014. After launching her career in Canada in 2000 and enjoying considerable success there, Sutherland had her best years in California a decade ago, riding the likes of multiple G1 winner Game On Dude. Her career was revived with her decision to ride year-round in South Florida and she showed in the Chick Lang she can still get the job done in big races. She was riding Lightening Larry for the first time in the afternoon.
“He’s the type of horse that likes to be in it and he gets more aggressive,” said Sutherland. “He’s a bit of pit bull that way, so we wanted him close. The track here is fast; the rail is good; and whenever [trainer Steve] Asmussen is nearby, he’s a really tough competitor; so I don’t want to leave [Jockey] Joel (Rosario) or Asmussen too far away from me on any horse.”
“I knew we were going a little quick,” she said, “but I knew I had to be there. The track is just playing to that style. There was a moment when he kind of pulled away for a second, I asked my horse and he still had stuff left in the engine. He kind of got out front and he pulled away. I was like, ‘Wow.’ It was even more impressive than I thought.”
Lightening Larry, produced from the Malibu Moon mare Moon and Sun, was bred in Florida by Michelle Redding. He was a $50,000 OBS March 2-Year-Old Sale purchase from Pick View consignment. His only stakes triumph prior to the Chick Lang came in the Limehouse Stakes at Gulfstream Park on Jan. 1 of this year.
The race honors the memory of Charles John “Chick” Lang, known throughout the racing world as “Mr. Preakness” for his relentless promotion of Maryland racing in general and the Triple Crown’s middle jewel in particular. Son of a Kentucky Derby-winning jockey, Lang spent his lifetime working at the track, retiring as Pimlico’s general manager in 1987, then continuing to promote the sport until his death in 2010, the year the race was renamed from the Hirsch Jacobs.
$200,000 Chick Lang (G3) Quotes
Winning trainer Jorge Delgado, Lightening Larry: “I still don’t know what happened. I’m just so happy the horse won. Everything went very fast, but I could tell the horse broke on his game. We’ve been training for this race specifically since February. We used the Tampa race as a prep, and he finished second and after that we shipped to Monmouth targeting this race. I just thank God everything worked out. I knew at the quarter-pole. He always has a strong finish so when he was close to the other horse, I knew he had a big chance, but I recognize Steve Asmussen is a great trainer, so you never know until the very end.”
“This is my first time in a big stakes race like this, my first graded-stakes win, and I’m beyond grateful it happened this way. It’s a day I will never forget. I’m looking forward to tonight. I’ll have a nice dinner and watch the race many, many times.”
Winning jockey Chantal Sutherland, Lightening Larry: “He’s the type of horse that likes to be in it and he gets more aggressive. He’s a bit of pit bull that way, so we wanted him close. The track here is fast; the rail is good; and whenever [trainer Steve] Asmussen is nearby, he’s a really tough competitor; so I don’t want to leave [Jockey] Joel (Rosario) or Asmussen too far away from me on any horse.”
“I knew we were going a little quick, but I knew I had to be there. The track is just playing to that style. There was a moment when he kind of pulled away for a second, I asked my horse and he still had stuff left in the engine. He kind of got out front and he pulled away. I was like, ‘Wow.’ It was even more impressive than I thought.”
Trainer Steve Asmussen, Cogburn, 2nd; Chasing Time, 3rd: “Cogburn was away from the gate well. The horse that went with him ended up winning the race. Chasing Time made a nice late run, a little wider than would have been ideal, but he had to go when he did.”
Jockey Joel Rosario, Cogburn, 2nd: “He broke well and went to the lead. He did everything right. He just couldn’t hold on at the end. The winner ran a big race. The pace was fast, and we were going easy. My horse ran a big race. That’s how it goes sometimes.”
Jockey Tyler Gaffalione, Chasing Time, 3rd: “My horse broke good. The speed went on and I just wanted to let him settle and make his run. Speed is holding pretty well today. They are not coming back like they normally would, but he put up a good run and finished up well.”
Trainer Brett Brinkman, Old Homestead, 5th: “It took him a little while to get up on his feet out of the gate. In this game, it’s about how you adjust with the defeats. He’s fast. We love him. I think he’s a nice little horse. He’s the kind of a horse, he has to power up through there, and power into the racetrack. [Jockey] Tommy [Pompell] said it was just getting away from him a little bit today. He just didn’t handle [the surface] as he has some of the others. I don’t think it’s a bad surface. I just think it was a little heavier than what we calculated for.”
