A violent brawl erupted at the Epsom Derby as racegoers traded punches in a bloody clash that left one man covered in blood and six arrested.
Footage captured at Epsom Racecourse on Saturday shows two men exchanging blows in front of horrified spectators during the prestigious horse racing event.
The fight broke out during the final race of Derby Day, with witnesses claiming the pair continued battling for several minutes despite efforts from staff and bystanders to break them apart.
Video of the incident shows one of the men having his white shirt ripped from his body during the melee before he falls to the ground.
However, he quickly gets back to his feet and appears to rejoin the fight, throwing more punches as the confrontation escalates.
Response teams rushed to the scene and attempted to separate the men, but the struggle spilled onto the floor as both continued grappling while onlookers shouted around them.
The footage also appears to show another racegoer being knocked over amid the chaos.
One of the men is later seen with blood covering much of his face and shirt following the altercation.
The six were arrested on suspicion of grievous bodily harm and affray and released pending further investigation.
Footage captured at Epsom Racecourse on Saturday shows two men exchanging blows in front of horrified spectators during the prestigious horse racing event
A witness said: ‘The response team and a few people were trying to split them up but they were just going at it for four or five minutes before the police got there.’
He added that one of the men had ‘blood all over his shirt’ by the time officers arrived.
According to the witness, another person caught up in the disturbance was taken away by ambulance.
It was reported that arrests were made following the incident.
The witness said: ‘I definitely saw one in cuffs.’
The violence unfolded inside the main grandstand building, where large numbers of racegoers had gathered to shelter from wet weather conditions during Derby Day.
Epsom Derby Day is one of the highlights of the British sporting calendar and attracts tens of thousands of visitors every year.
Ahead of the weekend, the force described the event as ‘one of the biggest operations’ of the year.
Last year, police made four arrests across the two-day meeting, while 10 people were arrested during the event the previous year.
A spokesperson for Epsom Downs Racecourse said: ‘Our security teams and police on site responded quickly to an incident on Saturday.
‘This matter is now being dealt with by Surrey Police so it would not be appropriate to comment further, other than to say that this sort of behaviour has no place at our racecourse.’
A spokesperson for Surrey Police said: ‘At around 5:50pm on Saturday, 6 June, officers were called to reports of a fight within the racecourse at the Epsom Derby.
‘Six people were arrested in connection to the incident on suspicion of grievous bodily harm and affray. They have since been released on police conditional bail pending further investigation.’
