What a Saturday to be a king. In London King Charles III gets his crown, and the sport of kings takes center stage on this side of the Pond with the 149th running of the Kentucky Derby. Instead of a crown, the winner at Churchill Downs gets a blanket of roses, and horse racing immortality.
Kentucky Derby Post Positions and Odds
1. Hit Show (30-1)
2. Verifying (15-1)
3. Two Phil’s (12-1)
4. Confidence Game (20-1)
5. Tapit Trice (5-1)
6. Kingsbarns (12-1)
7. Reincarnate (50-1)
8. Mage (15-1)
9. Skinner (20-1)
10. Practical Move (10-1)
11. Disarm (30-1)
12. Jace’s Road (15-1)
13. Sun Thunder (50-1)
14. Angel of Empire (8-1)
15. Forte (3-1)
16. Raise Cain (50-1)
17. Derma Sotogake (8-1)
18. Rocket Can (30-1)
19. Lord Miles (30-1)
20. Continuar (50-1)
Trainer Todd Pletcher has three horses at this year’s Kentucky Derby. Two of them are running alongside each other, with Tapit Trice and Kingsbarns breaking from the fifth and sixth starting gates. His highest-rated horse, and the highest-rated in the field, is Forte at 3-1 and out the 15th gate.
Brad Cox has four horses in this year’s Derby. Breaking next to Forte is Angel of Empire at 8-1. Jace’s Road is 15-1 out of the 12th gate, Hit Show is on the rail and running at 30-1, with Verifying next to him at 15-1.
Brad Cox won at Churchill Downs in the controversial 2021 race. That was when Bob Baffert’s Medina Spirit crossed the line first, but was later disqualified, making the Cox-trained Mandaloun the winning horse. Todd Pletcher won the Kentucky Derby in 2017 with Always Dreaming and in 2010 with Super Saver.
Other top horses for this Saturday include Derma Sotogake, where Hidetaka Otonashi looks to become the first Japanese trainer to win the Kentucky Derby. Continuar is also a Japanese horse that has been running in the UAE, trained by Yoshito Yahagi. But he is a much longer shot than Derma Sotogake and Otonashi.
Also keep your eye on Practical Move, the winner at the Santa Anita Derby and trained by Tim Yakteen. As an assistant to Baffert, Yakteen was a part of three Derby winners – Silver Charm, Real Quiet, and War Emblem. Last year and this year, with Baffert on suspension, Yakteen has been minding the barn and running at Churchill Downs on his own.
Of course, remember what happened last year without Baffert in the field. Rich Strike, at 80-1, became the second biggest underdog winner in Derby history. Perhaps one of the longshots in this race can also make it to the wire in first place.
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Another horse to keep an eye on is Highly Motivated. At 15-1, he is in the long shot territory, but he’s running much better than that. On April 3 at the Blue Grass Stakes, he ran stride-for-stride with Essential Quality before getting beaten at the wire. He also has a victory at the Nyquist Stakes and a third-place at the Gotham Stakes.
