California Derby

The California Derby is held in early March at Golden Gate Fields. An ungraded stakes, it's open to three-year-olds and is ran at one and one-sixteenth miles on the newly installed Tapeta surface. The Derby offers a purse of $150,000.

This race was formerly known as the Golden Gate Derby. Mollie McCarty won the 1876 edition and in 1909, African-American jockey James Lee won the race aboard High Private.

Past winners

• 2008 - Yankee Bravo
• 2007 - Bwana Bull
• 2006 - Cause to Believe
• 2005 - Buzzards Bay
• 2004 - Skipaslew
• 2003 - Standard Setter
• 2002 - Tracemark
• 2001 - Takin It Deep
• 2000 - Bet on Red