The 144th running of the Kentucky Derby will take place on May 5th at venerable Churchill Downs. The 20-horse field of three-year-old thoroughbreds is starting to take shape. Here is a look at the odds with a month to go. Which horse will follow Always Dreaming, 2017’s champion, into the winner’s circle?
Bolt d’Oro is the early favorite at +300 at BetDSI Sportsbook. With four wins in five starts, he should be the horse to watch heading into the Santa Anita Derby this weekend, which one of the top Kentucky Derby prep races. A victory at Santa Anita would keep Bolt d’Oro at the top of the list. He is trained by Mick Ruis.
Justify is next at +400 and the Santa Anita Derby, if he enters, could be bigger for him than for Bolt d’Oro. It would be his graded-stakes debut after breaking his maiden and then winning a one-mile race in March a month later. If he manages to finish in the top three at Santa Anita, that would be a very good result for Justify. Also, he is trained by Bob Baffert, who has won four Kentucky Derbies.
McKinzie at +500 is another Baffert horse, and he finished second to Bolt d’Oro at the San Felipe Stakes in March. It was his first non-win in four starts, which is a very good record. He was pulled out of the Santa Anita Derby, so keep an eye on whether or not McKinzie runs again before the Kentucky Derby.
Good Magic comes in at +600 as he won the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile, then finished third at the Fountain of Youth Stakes. He is trained by Chad Brown, who is still looking for his first Kentucky Derby win. However, Brown won his first Triple Crown race last year at the Preakness Stakes with Cloud Computing.
Magnum Moon is also at +600 and has won all three of his starts, including his graded-stakes debut at the Rebel Stakes last month. He is trained by Todd Pletcher, who has won the Kentucky Derby twice, including last year with Always Dreaming.
Mendelssohn rounds out this group at +600 after winning the Breeders Cup Juvenile Turf, his first of three straight wins. The Breeders Cup was the first American start for this Irish horse, which is trained by Aiden O’Brien, who is still looking for his first Triple Crown win.
