Battle of Hastings comes from behind to win Virginia Derby

NEW KENT — There was no Nicanor, no hype, and no national TV. All Colonial Downs had to offer yesterday was fancy hats and horse racing.

And both turned out very well.

On a Virginia Derby day where nearly every race was tight, including a dead heat to end the day, it was Battle of Hastings thrilling the crowd with a come-from-behind victory to claim the top prize.

With 50 yards to go, it looked like Straight Story would avenge his Colonial Turf Cup loss, but once again Battle of Hastings proved the better horse.

“Today was about patience,“ jockey Tyler Baze said. “I didn’t let him out, because I knew he was going to give me that big punch he has.“

Aboard Straight Story, jockey Charles Lopez felt his heart drop as the noise rose from the grandstands, where more than twice as many people were betting on Battle of Hastings.

“Oh, I knew he was coming,“ Lopez said. “There were 35,000 people screaming. I don’t have to look back to know he’s coming.“

It may have felt like that to Lopez, but that’s an attendance number the Colonial Downs brass could only dream of.

In truth, 7,618 fans packed the grandstands on the track’s biggest day, off from last year’s 9,061. Betting also was off, coming in at $569,665 total at the track.

Battle of Hastings, under Tyler Baze, edged Straight Story in a photo finish to win the $750,000 Virginia Derby at Colonial Downs.