Epsom Derby Epsom Derby The Derby Stakes, officially the Investec Derby, popularly known as the Derby, is a Group 1 flat horse race in England open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at Epsom Downs Racecourse in Surrey over a distance of one mile, four furlongs and 6 yards (2,420 metres), on the first Saturday of June each year. It is Britain's richest horse race, and the most prestigious of the five Classics. It is sometimes referred to as the "Blue Riband" of the turf. The race serves as the middle leg of the Triple Crown, preceded by the
English Channel (horse) three lengths, and his third overall victory. In June 2005, Pletcher pointed the horse to the inaugural Colonial Turf Cup at Colonial Downs to try for the first leg of the Grand Slam of Grass. Currently a Grade II event, the race was a listed stakes in its first year. Running on the outside in third during the opening portions of the race, English Channel took the lead and pulled away from his competitors to score his third straight victory. English Channel then attempted the second leg of the Grand Slam, running in the Virginia Derby, once again at Colonial