The West Virginia Derby is an American Thoroughbred horse race

Thoroughbred horse race

Thoroughbred horse racing is a worldwide 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 National Hunt racing...

 held annually at Mountaineer Race Track in Chester, West Virginia

Chester, West Virginia

Chester is a city in Hancock County, West Virginia, United States, along the Ohio River. It is part of the Weirton–Steubenville, WV-OH Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 2,592 at the 2000 census. Chester was established in 1896, but not incorporated until 1907. The city is...

. The race is open to three-year-old horses and is run over a distance of 1⅛ miles. A Grade II stakes race

Graded stakes race

A graded stakes race is a term applied since 1973 by the American Graded Stakes Committee of the Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association to thoroughbred horse races in the United States and Canada to describe races that derive their name from the stake, or entry fee, owners must pay...

 since 2009, it currently offers a purse of $750,000.

Inaugurated in 1923, the race has been run at three different West Virginia

West Virginia

West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian and Southeastern regions of the United States, bordered by Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Ohio to the northwest, Pennsylvania to the northeast and Maryland to the east...

 racetracks:

• Tri State Park Racetrack in Huntington, West Virginia
  Huntington, West Virginia
  Huntington is a city in Cabell and Wayne counties in the U.S. state of West Virginia, along the Ohio River. Most of the city is in Cabell County, for which it is the county seat. A small portion of the city, mainly the neighborhood of Westmoreland, is in Wayne County. Its population was 49,138 at...
  
   (1923, 1924, 1926)
• Wheeling Downs in Wheeling, West Virginia
  Wheeling, West Virginia
  Wheeling is a city in Ohio and Marshall counties in the U.S. state of West Virginia; it is the county seat of Ohio County. Wheeling is the principal city of the Wheeling Metropolitan Statistical Area...
  
   (1958, 1959, 1961)
• Mountaineer Park (1963–present)

There was no race in 1925, 1927, 1957, 1960, 1962, 1982–1987, and 1991-1997. In 1926 it was raced at a distance of 11/16 miles.

Records

Time record: (at current 1⅛ miles)

• 1:46:29 - Soto (2003) (Stakes and track record)

Most wins by a jockey

Jockey

A jockey is an athlete who rides horses in horse racing or steeplechase racing, primarily as a profession. The word also applies to camel riders in camel racing.-Etymology:...

:

• 4 - Floyd Green (1963, 1964, 1965, 1966)

Winners of the West Virginia Derby since 2000

Year	Winner	Jockey	Trainer	Owner	Time
2011	Prayer for Relief Prayer for relief A prayer for relief, in the law of civil procedure, is a portion of a complaint in which the plaintiff describes the remedies that the plaintiff seeks from the court. For example, the plaintiff may ask for an award of compensatory damages, punitive damages, attorney's fees, an injunction to make...	Rafael Bejarano	Bob Baffert Bob Baffert Robert A. "Bob" Baffert is an American horse owner and trainer, whose horses have won three Kentucky Derbies, five Preakness Stakes, one Belmont Stakes and two Kentucky Oaks. He graduated from the University of Arizona's with a Bachelor of Science degree. -Early career:Bob Baffert began his...	Gerry Aschinger	1:50.68
2010	Concord Point	Martin Garcia Martin Garcia (jockey) Martin Garcia is a jockey in American Thoroughbred horse racing who rides from a base in Southern California.He emigrated to the United States in 2003 and went to work at a delicatessen in Pleasanton, California...	Bob Baffert Bob Baffert Robert A. "Bob" Baffert is an American horse owner and trainer, whose horses have won three Kentucky Derbies, five Preakness Stakes, one Belmont Stakes and two Kentucky Oaks. He graduated from the University of Arizona's with a Bachelor of Science degree. -Early career:Bob Baffert began his...	Kaleem Shah Kaleem Shah Kaleem Shah was a popular Pashto film actor. He was born to a religious family called Kaka khel at Ziarat e Kaka Saheb, Nowshera District, in north west Pakistan....	1:51.12
2009	Soul Warrior	Dale Beckner	Steve Asmussen Steve Asmussen Steven Mark Asmussen is an American Thoroughbred racehorse trainer. Born into a horse racing family, his parents, Keith and Marilyn "Sis" Asmussen, are both trainers who operate El Primero Training Center off the Mines Road in Laredo, the seat of Webb County in south Texas...	Zayat Stables	1:51.46
2008	Ready Set	Julien Leparoux Julien Leparoux Julien R. Leparoux is a Champion jockey currently racing in the United States.Leparoux, grew up in a racing family, the son of a jockey turned assistant trainer. He worked at the Chantilly Racecourse as a stable hand and in January 2003 emigrated to California to work as an exercise rider for...	Michael Matz Michael Matz Michael Ray Matz is an American Olympic equestrian rider and horse trainer. He is perhaps most well known for having trained the ill-fated Barbaro to win the 132nd Kentucky Derby in 2006. The previously undefeated colt suffered a career and life ending injury after the start of the Preakness Stakes...	Lael Stables	1:52.03
2007	Zanjero	Shaun Bridgmohan Shaun Bridgmohan Shaun X. Bridgmohan is a jockey in American Thoroughbred horse racing.At age thirteen, Bridgmohan's family emigrated to the United States, settling in South Florida where he developed an interest in horse racing...	Steven M. Asmussen Steve Asmussen Steven Mark Asmussen is an American Thoroughbred racehorse trainer. Born into a horse racing family, his parents, Keith and Marilyn "Sis" Asmussen, are both trainers who operate El Primero Training Center off the Mines Road in Laredo, the seat of Webb County in south Texas...	Winchell Thoroughbreds LLC	1:53.04
2006	Bright One	Mark Guidry Mark Guidry Mark Guidry is a retired American jockey.He began his riding career in Thoroughbred horse racing in his native Louisiana in 1974 where he remained until 1986 when he went to race in Illinois. He was the leading jockey at Hawthorne Race Course seven times, Sportsman's Park nine times, and two...	Dale L. Romans Dale L. Romans Dale L. Romans is an American Thoroughbred racehorse trainer.The son of a trainer, Dale Romans is best known for training the winner of the 2011 Preakness, Shackleford....	C. S. Bruder & Delmar Daubs	1:50.08
2005	Real Dandy	Mark Guidry Mark Guidry Mark Guidry is a retired American jockey.He began his riding career in Thoroughbred horse racing in his native Louisiana in 1974 where he remained until 1986 when he went to race in Illinois. He was the leading jockey at Hawthorne Race Course seven times, Sportsman's Park nine times, and two...	Steven M. Asmussen Steve Asmussen Steven Mark Asmussen is an American Thoroughbred racehorse trainer. Born into a horse racing family, his parents, Keith and Marilyn "Sis" Asmussen, are both trainers who operate El Primero Training Center off the Mines Road in Laredo, the seat of Webb County in south Texas...	Cathy & Bob Zollars	1:50.29
2004	Sir Shackleton	Rafael Bejarano	Nick Zito Nick Zito Nicholas Philip "Nick" Zito is an American Thoroughbred horse trainer.Zito began his career as a hot walker and worked his way up to a groom, to an assistant trainer, and to a trainer...	Tracy Farmer	1:49.16
2003	Soto	Ramon Dominguez Ramon A. Dominguez Ramon A. Dominguez is an Eclipse Award-winning champion jockey in American Thoroughbred horse racing....	Michael W. Dickinson	Baron George Von Ullman	1:46.29
2002	Wisemans Ferry	Jorge Chavez Jorge Chávez Jorge Chávez Dartnell , also known as Géo Chávez, was a Franco – Peruvian aviator. At a young age, he achieved fame for his aeronautical feats...	Niall O'Callaghan	Morton Fink et al.	1:49.63
2001	Western Pride	Dana G. Whitney	Richard Estvanko	Theresa McArthur	1:47.20
2000	Mass Market	Rick Wilson	Benjamin W. Perkins, Jr. Benjamin W. Perkins, Jr. Benjamin W. Perkins, Jr. is an American trainer of Thoroughbred racehorses. A graduate of the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School of Business, he is the son of Ben Perkins, Sr. who conditioned racehorses for close to fifty years. In 1981, Perkins, Jr. won his first race with at Atlantic...	Lane's End Racing Lane's End Farm Lane's End Farm is a thoroughbred race horse breeding farm in Versailles, Kentucky established in 1979. The original land was part of Bosque Bonita Farm which means beautiful woods and was originally owned by Abraham Buford, a Confederate Army General. The land was later bought by leading... et al.	1:49.94

Earlier winners

• Captain Nash won the 1970 race but was disqualified and set back to second.
• Run in two divisions in 1972 and 1981.

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