The $500,000 Virginia Derby held at 1 1/8 miles on grime March 15 throughout a particular four-day spring meet at Colonial Downs has been added to the Street to the Kentucky Derby Championship Sequence, the collection of choose races that may decide the desire checklist for the 151st Kentucky Derby Introduced by Woodford Reserve Might 3, 2025.
The Virginia Derby might be staged seven weeks upfront of the $5 million Kentucky Derby, a spot on the racing calendar that was beforehand void of any qualifying races. The race will award 105 factors to the highest 5 finishers, together with 50 factors to the winner.
The Street to the Kentucky Derby, which debuted in 2013, yearly awards a sliding scale of factors to the highest 5 ending positions in choose qualifying races. On the conclusion of the collection, the leaderboard will decide the desire checklist for entries into the 20-horse Kentucky Derby – the 1 ¼-mile traditional for 3-year-old Thoroughbreds yearly held on the primary Saturday in Might at Churchill Downs.
Not less than 20 horses have entered the Run for the Roses in 23 of the final 26 years.
The 1 1/16-mile Virginia Oaks might be run on the Virginia Derby undercard and turn into a qualifier on the 33-race Street to the Kentucky Oaks collection, which awards factors to 3-year-old fillies to qualify for the 151st Longines Kentucky Oaks at 1 1/8 miles Might 2, 2025.
The Street to the Kentucky Derby will start Sept. 14 on the residence of America’s biggest race as Churchill Downs phases the 43rd operating of the $300,000 Iroquois Stakes for 2-year-olds at one mile on opening weekend of its 14-day September Meet.
Along with the first 36-race Street to the Kentucky Derby collection, there are two separate collection that carve out potential spots for worldwide horses from Japan, Europe, and the United Arab of Emirates.
The European Street to the Kentucky Derby has been rebranded because the Euro/Mideast Street to the Kentucky Derby. The April 5 UAE Derby has been faraway from America’s main Street to the Kentucky Derby and can now conclude this newly rebranded stand-alone collection that may carve out two Kentucky Derby invites to the highest level earners. Moreover, the Cardinal Situation Stakes at Chelmsford Metropolis has been faraway from the collection and, as an alternative, the winner will obtain an automated berth within the beginning gate for the American Turf Stakes on the Kentucky Derby undercard.
No modifications have been made to the stand-alone Japan Street to the Kentucky Derby. Six horses based mostly in Japan have competed within the Derby because the collection debuted in 2017, together with this 12 months’s third-place finisher Without end Younger.
Two different rule modifications have been instituted. Within the occasion a Championship Sequence race on the Street to the Kentucky Derby or Kentucky Oaks is run with a five-horse area, solely 75% of the factors might be proportionally awarded. A Championship Sequence race area with 4 or fewer horses might be proportionally awarded 50% of the entire factors.
The complete schedule for the Street to the Kentucky Derby and Oaks may be considered on-line.
