The Old Dominion Derby is a Grade III American

Thoroughbred horse race Thoroughbred racing is a sport and industry involving the racing of Thoroughbred horses. It is governed by different national bodies. There are two forms of the sport – flat racing and jump racing, the latter known as National Hunt racing in ...

for three-year-olds over a distance of one and one-eighth miles on the turf held annually in September at

Colonial Downs Colonial Downs is a Race track, racetrack located in New Kent County, Virginia adjacent to Interstate 64, halfway between Richmond, Virginia, Richmond and Williamsburg, Virginia, Williamsburg. The track conducted Thoroughbred flat racing and Stand ...

New Kent County, Virginia New Kent County is a county in the southeastern part of the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2020 United States census, its population was 22,945. Its county seat is New Kent. New Kent County is located east of the Greater Richmond Region ...

. The event currently carries a purse of $500,000.

History

The inaugural running of the event as the Virginia Derby took place on October 3, 1998 as part of the newly opened racetrack in Virginia known as

at a distance of miles on the outer turf course. The quality of the event consistently improved and in 2004 the

American Graded Stakes Committee The Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association (TOBA) is an American trade organization for Thoroughbred racehorse owners and breeders, which is based in Lexington, Kentucky. Founded in 1961, TOBA's stated mission is to "improve the economics, in ...

upgraded the classification to Grade III status. That year the winner was

Kenneth and Sarah Ramsey Kenneth L. "Ken" Ramsey (born 1935) and Sarah Kathern "Kitten" Ramsey (February 5, 1939 – May 29, 2022) are horse breeders and owners of Thoroughbred race horses. They have multiple graded stakes race, graded stakes winners, three Breeders' Cup ...

Kitten's Joy Kitten's Joy (May 8, 2001 – July 15, 2022) was a Thoroughbred racehorse who was a multiple graded stakes winner and the American Champion Turf Horse of 2004. Since retiring to stud, he became one of the leading sires in North America and has ...

who later in the year captured the crown of U.S. Champion Male Turf Horse. The 2005 winner

English Channel The English Channel, also known as the Channel, is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates Southern England from northern France. It links to the southern part of the North Sea by the Strait of Dover at its northeastern end. It is the busi ...

later in his career won the

Breeders' Cup Turf The Breeders' Cup Turf is a Weight for Age Thoroughbred horse race on turf for three-year-olds and up. It is held annually at a different racetrack in the United States or Canada as part of the Breeders' Cup World Championships. The race's current ...

and in 2007 was also crowned U.S. Champion Male Turf Horse. In 2006 the event was upgraded to Grade II which attracted the finest three-year-old turf horses with a massive US$1 million purse. However the track ran into a dispute between track management and horsemen's organizations and the track closed after the 2013 meeting. The event was not held in 2014. In 2015 the event was moved to Laurel Park in

Laurel, Maryland Laurel is a city in Maryland, United States, located midway between Washington, D.C., and Baltimore on the banks of the Patuxent River, in northern Prince George's County. Its population was 30,060 at the 2020 census. Founded as a mill town i ...

and was renamed to the Commonwealth Derby and the distance was decreased to miles. The event was down graded to Grade III in 2017. In 2018 the event was not held, but Virginia laws were amended with regard to funding horse racing and the Colonial Downs reopened in 2019 and the event was scheduled as the New Kent County Virginia Derby. In 2020 due to the

COVID-19 pandemic in the United States On December 31, 2019, China announced the discovery of a cluster of pneumonia cases in Wuhan. The first American case was reported on January 20, and United States Department of Health and Human Services, Health and Human Services Secreta ...

, the track canceled the meeting prior to the running of the event. In 2025, Colonial Downs created a new event named the

Virginia Derby The Virginia Derby is an American Thoroughbred horse race for three-year-olds over a distance of one and one-eighth miles on the dirt held annually in March at Colonial Downs in New Kent County, Virginia. The event currently carries a purse of ...

that was run on the dirt track and scheduled in the spring as a

Road to the Kentucky Derby The Road to the Kentucky Derby is a points system by which horses qualify for a position in the starting gate for the Kentucky Derby. It features dozens of stakes races for 2 and 3-year-old Thoroughbreds – the number and specific races have chang ...

prep race. Colonial Downs retained the turf event and renamed it to the Old Dominion Derby.

Records

Speed: * miles: 1:59.62 -

Red Giant A red giant is a luminous giant star of low or intermediate mass (roughly 0.3–8 solar masses ()) in a late phase of stellar evolution. The stellar atmosphere, outer atmosphere is inflated and tenuous, making the radius large and the surface t ...

(2007) * miles: 1:45.81 - Just Howard (2017) Margins: * lengths –

(2005) Most wins by an owner: * 3 - Peter Vegso (2002, 2003, 2006) Most wins by a

jockey A jockey is someone who rides horses in horse racing or steeplechase (horse racing), steeplechase racing, primarily as a profession. The word also applies to camel riders in camel racing. The word "jockey" originated from England and was used ...

: * 3 - Edgar S. Prado (2002, 2003, 2004) Most wins by a Trainer: * 3 -

Todd Pletcher Todd Pletcher (born June 26, 1967, in Dallas, Texas) is an American thoroughbred horse trainer. He won the Eclipse Award eight times as Trainer of the Year, four of these in consecutive years. His horses Super Saver (2010) and Always Dreaming ( ...

(2005, 2007, 2022) * 3 -

William I. Mott William I. "Bill" Mott (born July 29, 1953, in Mobridge, South Dakota) is an American horse trainer, most notable for his work with Cigar (horse), Cigar. Mott earned the Eclipse Award for Outstanding Trainer in 1995, 1996, 2011, 2013. He was ind ...

(2002, 2003, 2006) * 3 - Dale L. Romans (2004, 2010, 2012) * 3 - H. Graham Motion (2017, 2019, 2021)

Winners

References

{{reflist, 2 Graded stakes races in the United States Turf races in the United States Flat horse races for three-year-olds Horse races in Virginia Horse races established in 1998 1998 establishments in Virginia Grade 3 stakes races in the United States

History

Records

Winners

See also

References