News

~ High-profile trainers Bob Baffert, D. Wayne Lukas, and Ken McPeek all enter horses in historic Kentucky Derby qualifying race this Saturday, March 15 at Colonial Downs; Multiple Triple Crown race winning jockeys to ride this weekend ~ The race fields for the historic 2025 Virginia Derby and 2025 Virginia Oaks will feature a slate of promising young horses, including one born right here in Virginia, and legendary race teams, trainers, and jockeys with multiple Kentucky Derby and Triple Crown victories on their resumes. “Racing’s legends and rising stars will be continuing their journey on The Road to the Kentucky Derby right ...

Colonial Downs will offer an extensive wagering menu for Virginia Derbyweekend, highlighted by two daily 50-cent Pick 5 wagers each with a fan-friendly 12% takeout. Thursday and Friday’s eight-race cards will feature Pick 5s beginning in Races 1 and 4. Saturday’s Virginia Derby card will include two Pick 5s, starting in Races 1 and 6. If no winning tickets correctly select all five winners in the sequence, the pool will carryover to the next day’s late Pick 5 sequence. There will be a mandatory payout in all Pick 5 pools on Saturday. The wagering lineup also includes the $1 Old Dominion 6, ...

Exiting a second-place finish in the Rachel Alexandra (G2) at Fair Grounds RaceCourse & Slots, Fern Circle Stables’ Gowells Delight was made the 3-1 morning-line favorite for the $250,000 Virginia Oaks at Colonial Downs. The co-feature of a special three-day meet beginning Thursday, March 13, the 1 1/16-miles Virginia Oaks will be held on Saturday, March 15, together with the 1 1/8-miles $500,000 Virginia Derby. The winning horse in each race will receive 50 points toward the Longines Kentucky Oaks (G1) or Kentucky Derby, presented by Woodford Reserve (G1), respectively. The second- through fifth-place finishers will earn 25-15-10-5 points on ...

Sometimes love, in all its forms, creates a unique web of connections, bringing people together around their passions. Diana McClure (DMC Racing Stables) and Susan Cooney (Cooney Racing Stable) are long-time horsewomen in Northern Virginia who found domestic happiness through their love of horses. They both raise & train racehorses and have farms just eight miles apart. But they have something else in common. Each is married to one of the Cooney brothers, Pat and Michael, who came over from Ireland to the United States to ride steeplechase horses. Susan met Pat Cooney on a blind date at Fox’s Den in ...

Saturday March 15 may be Virginia Derby Day, but don’t pass on Friday’s (March 14) card at Colonial Downs which includes a pair of $150,000 Virginia-restricted handicaps — the Stellar Wind, for fillies/mares 4&up, and The Boston, for males 4&up. The Boston Handicap celebrates the Hall of Fame Virginia-bred who was bred/raised in Henrico County. The Boston’s 11-horse field includes a million-dollar earning Virginia-certified horse — Book’em Danno — and an almost million dollar earning Virginia-bred — Repo Rocks. The former won the G1 Woody Stephens Stakes at Saratoga last summer and prior to racing, spent his Virginia residency at ...

Final preparations are underway for Virginia Derby weekend at Colonial Downs, where a three-day meet from March 13-15 will feature Saturday’s stakes doubleheader, the $500,000 Virginia Derby and $250,000 Virginia Oaks. “It’s shaping up to be a great weekend of racing,” trainer Brad Cox said. “We plan to have several horses to run, including one in the Virginia Derby.” Among the expected contenders for the Virginia Derby is Mike Pegram, Karl Watson and Paul Weitman’s Grade 1 winner Gaming. Trained by Bob Baffert, Gaming won the Del Mar Futurity (G1) as a 2-year-old and went on to finish second to his stablemate ...

Posted on February 18, 2025 by Aidan Turnage-Barney Determined Stables and Kingdom Bloodstock’s Determined Kingdom has been named Virginia-Bred Horse of the Year and will be recognized — along with other 2024 award winners — during Virginia Derby Day festivities at Colonial Downs March 15. A series of award presentations will take place between various races from the paddock infield that day and broadcast over Colonial’s simulcast feed. After 21 editions of the Virginia Derby — on turf, held during the summer months since 1998 — the race switches to dirt this year and becomes an official qualifier race on the Road to the ...

The following was written by Leland Schwartz and appeared in FauquierNow January 22, 2025 The 100th running of the Virginia Gold Cup races will be held at Great Meadow, which is celebrating its 40th anniversary this year. The boards of Great Meadow Foundation and the Virginia Gold Cup Association have agreed on how best to keep the racecourse properly maintained, they announced Wednesday. Race day is May 3, a Saturday. The two groups said the agreement “follows a year of significant investments and enhancements to the Great Meadow racecourse, ensuring its readiness to host this prestigious event. These improvements include the installation of ...

The following appeared in The Racing Biz February 6, 2025 and was written by Frank Vespe R. Larry Johnson, who put his stamp on the Mid-Atlantic Thoroughbred industry on racetracks, in breeding sheds, and in boardrooms in Maryland and Virginia, passed away Feb. 4. He was 78. “He was successful in all parts of the horse business — standing stallions, selling yearlings and breeding good, competitive racehorses,” said Cricket Goodall, executive director of the Maryland Horse Breeders Association (MHBA), on whose board he sat. “He had strong opinions which often resulted in good ideas. He challenged us all to be better.”  “Larry Johnson was ...

~ Exclusive seating options and experiences unveiled for Virginia’s first-ever Kentucky Derby qualifying race including limited General Admission tickets at fan-friendly prices ~ NEW KENT, Va. (January 8, 2025)—Colonial Downs Racetrack today unveiled a series of special ticket and experience packages for the Virginia Derby on March 15 including a limited number of General Admission tickets now available at the fan-friendly price of just $5. Additional seating, ticket, and experience options have been created especially for this historic day of racing on the Road to the Kentucky Derby including special trackside seats and boxes, the Trackside Dining Pavilion and Lounge, the ...