Mountaineer cancels West Virginia Derby card

Mountaineer racetrack in West Virginia has canceled the track’s richest race, the $500,000 West Virginia Derby, citing “the health and welfare of all involved,” according to a letter the general manager sent to staff and the media.

The West Virginia Derby is typically Mountaineer’s most high-profile race, and it was scheduled this year for Aug. 1, along with the West Virginia Governor’s Stakes, a $200,000 race. The letter signed by general manager Jason Pugh stated that the Derby “as well as the entire race card” on Aug. 1 would be canceled.

Mountaineer is currently running on a Sunday-Wednesday live schedule, with a first post of 7 p.m. Eastern. The Aug. 1 card would have been a special Saturday afternoon card, with a first post of 2 p.m.

Coronavirus cases are spiking in many states in the United States, and in the racing industry many racetracks are reviewing their coronavirus protocols due to a recent spate of positives in the U.S. jockey community. The new protocols are limiting the abilities of riders to ship in and out of racetracks.

Most of the horses that were expected to run in the Derby and the Governor’s Cup would have been ship-ins.

Mountaineer returned to live racing on June 22. It was originally scheduled to open April 26. The track’s purses are heavily subsidized by revenues from a casino at the racetrack. The casino re-opened on May 31 with some limitations on capacity.