Thursday Thoughts with Jason Beem Sept. 5, 2024

Jason discusses the unique history of the Virginia Derby (G3) as well as its future. 

A good Thursday morning to you all! On today’s podcast I spent the whole show looking ahead to Saturday’s big Virginia Derby (G3) card at Colonial. I’ve said it a few times, but I don’t recall a card this good here since I’ve been calling and that’s saying something because most days our field size is strong and very competitive.  

The Virginia Derby will be run as race 10 and is a $500,000 Grade 3 event on our turf course. Like many horse races, the Virginia Derby has experienced changes over the years. Next year will be one of the biggest ones as the Virginia Derby will be moved to a short meet in the spring and contested on dirt as a Kentucky Derby (G1) prep. The Grade 3 grass race will still hold its place next summer, only it will receive a new name.

Colonial Downs opened in 1997, but the Virginia Derby began in 1998. Colonial actually didn’t have a turf course that first year, which is kind of funny given we’re known for running about 80% of our races on the lush green here. It was run at 1 1/4 miles that first year, and Crowd Pleaser won with Jean-Luc Samyn on board (Samyn on the Green is still an all-time nickname). 

The race got its Grade 3 status for the 2004 edition and was won by one of the best grass horses of that era, Kitten's Joy. A who’s who of grass runners won the Derby over the next several years, including Gio Ponti, English Channel, and Paddy O’Prado, and it became a Grade 2 event after all those monsters won. But in 2013, Colonial Downs shut its door and the Virginia Derby was not run in 2014.  

In 2015, the race got a new name and a new location, Laurel Park. Since racing wasn’t happening in Virginia but the race stayed in its region, the grade and race were moved to Laurel Park and it was run as the Commonwealth Derby (that’s what I would call the race going forward, but I don’t make those decisions). After three runnings at Laurel Park, the Virginia Derby was downgraded to a Grade 3 in 2017.

Graham Motion won with Just Howard in 2017. Fun fact: Motion won every edition of this race from 2017 through 2021! The Virginia Derby wasn’t held in 2018 (I’m assuming because by then they knew Colonial was reopening), and he won the following year with English Bee under the lights. In 2020, the meet got canceled halfway through because the jocks room all got COVID, resulting in another one-year hiatus, But Motion won it again in 2021 with Wooten Asset. 

Last year’s winner, Integration, has gone on to become a top-flight turf horse for Shug McGaughey and was recently second in the Arlington Million (G1) here. So we’ll add another little piece of Virginia Derby history Saturday and hope you’ll join us as we wrap up another season of racing in Virginia.