The $500,000 Virginia Derby at Colonial Downs on Saturday more closely resembled a grand melee at the top of the stretch, with eight horses madly scrambling for racing room that didn’t exist. It was a field without order, a race without a true leader. Then all became clear. The clouds parted for Incredibolt, and the 3-year-old colt sprang forward and left the rabble far behind. In the space of a furlong, he sprinted clear to a four-length victory, earning 50 qualifying points to launch into Kentucky Derby contention. “We always knew he was capable of it,” trainer Riley Mott said. Incredibolt was the only graded stakes winner in the field of 10 Saturday, having won the Grade 3 Street Sense at Churchill Downs as a juvenile. He went overlooked in Virginia, however, as bettors weren’t sure what to make of the colt after a dreadful 25 1/4-length defeat in the Grade 3 Holy Bull at Gulfstream in January. Those who stuck with the colt, as Mott did, were rewarded when he paid $14.40 to win. “We were really hopeful going into the Holy Bull, which is why it was extra disappointing that he ran as poorly as he did,” Mott said. “Luckily, he came out of the race extremely well, no physical issues whatsoever. We were kind of just hanging our hat on him not liking the surface, and that was part of why we came here today. We anticipated him liking the surface, and he sure did.” :: Access the most trusted data and information in horse racing! DRF Past Performances and Picks are available now. In such a chaotic finish, Incredibolt might have been listless if not for an astounding ride from Jaime Torres. With his win in the Virginia Derby, he remains undefeated in four career stakes starts at Colonial, having won three on Old Dominion Derby Day last year. Stalking in fourth early on, Torres and Incredibolt chased close behind dueling front-runners Lockstocknpharoah, Work, and Clocker Special through an opening quarter-mile in 23.49 seconds. The field maintained similar formation through a half-mile in 47.15, but all 10 runners were so tightly compressed no one had been eliminated from contention. Buetane, the 3-2 favorite trained by Bob Baffert, had a nightmarish time on the rail, shuffling back on the far turn before getting blocked in one last desperate effort in the stretch. He was one of many compromised by racing luck. “He finished pretty well,” jockey Flavien Prat said of Buetane. “From where I was, it just didn’t work out the way we wanted. But he made a good run.” Lockstocknpharoah maintained his early lead into the stretch, stubborn while being hounded by several challengers. Incredibolt was directly behind him at the top of the stretch, and Ocelli made the first move to pass on his outside. Torres ducked his colt down toward the rail. “It was a great trip, man,” Torres said. “The best way was to be close. I sat right behind [Lockstocknpharoah]. "I think he’s a nice horse and and especially with [Edgar Morales aboard]. I knew he was making a good decision. I knew Edgar was going to have horse for the end because that's the kind of rider he is. So I just stuck behind him trying to find the spot.” While four challengers took it to Lockstocknpharoah down the center, Torres and Incredibolt were the only ones making their run inside. By the time the others made their bids, the Mott-trained colt was gone, well up the track and kicking away with authority. He completed the 1 1/8-mile distance around one turn in  1:47.76 and was given an 88 Beyer Speed Figure. In 2022, Seize the Grey gave Torres the season of a lifetime when he won the Preakness, Grade 1 Pennsylvania Derby, and Grade 2 Pat Day Mile. The one thing that colt did not give the jockey, however, was a trip to the Kentucky Derby. Despite all his success, a potential trip to Churchill Downs left the jockey breathless Saturday. “It feels great,” Torres said. “I think the longer the race, the better it will be for him.” Immediately after the race, Mott seemed more relieved than anything, validated in his assessment of Incredibolt after his poor effort in Florida to start the year. The path to the Triple Crown still remains somewhat obscure, but it is now real and sure to clarify soon. With his Street Sense victory last year, he now has 60 total points, tied for first on the leaderboard for the time being. “His gallop-out was very good, according to Jaime,” Mott said. “His gallop-outs in his works are very good, so we're hopeful [for more distance].” Grittiness, a 36-1 maiden trained by Todd Pletcher, flew from last to finish second by a neck and pick up 25 Derby points. He now has 36 total, having finished second in the $200,000 Withers last month. Between the Virginia Oaks and Virginia Derby, Pletcher sent out four runners who, by his admission, needed to improve to seriously contend. He finished in the money in both races. Confessional, who improved slightly from a disappointing fifth in the $250,000 Sam F. Davis, just missed behind Grittiness but weathered the chaos to take third for Brad Cox, picking up 15 points. Buetane, who was all but doomed on the far turn, rallied for fourth to earn 10 points, leaving Lockstocknpharoah in fifth with 5 points for Thomas Drury Jr. Colonial collected nearly $7.8 million in handle on Saturday, surpassing last year’s Virginia Derby Day total by more than $1.2 million. Bettors wagered $2.4 million on the Derby alone. The attendance was 9,772. :: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.