Prepare your Bets for the Kentucky Derby: Top Prop Bets
There are few more famous races on the horse racing schedule than the Kentucky Derby. The race attracts millions of wagers from across the globe, as the Run for the Roses is staged at Churchill Downs on the first Saturday of May.
Kentucky Derby Picks
- Pick: Sierra Leone +1700.
This year’s race is already shaping up to be one of the most exciting in recent memory, and there are already live horse racing odds for the famous race. However, what are some of the Kentucky Derby props bets that will be on offer for the opening leg of the Triple Crown?
Kentucky Derby 2024 Information
Kentucky Derby 2024
Location of the Race: Churchill Downs, Louisville, Kentucky
Date & Time: Saturday, May 4, 2024
How to Watch: NBC
Kentucky Derby 2024 Latest Odds
As one of the biggest events on the horse racing calendar, the Kentucky Derby odds are already live. However, most bettors will typically wait until the final field is announced in March following the final race on the Road to the Kentucky Derby.
At present, Breeders’ Cup 2023 winner Fierceness remains the +1200 favorite after winning the Juvenile, while Locked and Track Phantom are both priced up at +1400. Dornoch was an impressive winner of the G2 Remsen Stakes in December and could be an interesting selection at the same odds.
Sierra Leone was second in the Remsen but retains plenty of attention at +1700. All other potential runners are currently priced up at +2000 or bigger.
Kentucky Derby Prop Bets
Derby/Oaks Double
One of the most popular Kentucky Derby prop bets to keep bettors engaged over the weekend is the Derby/Oaks double. No trainer has achieved victories in both huge Grade 1s since Ben Jones in 1952.
Jones landed success in the Oaks with Real Delight before capturing the unlikely double with Hill Gain on the following day. The trainer also achieved the double in 1949. A number of trainers will have leading chances in both the Derby and Kentucky Oaks, meaning it could be a fascinating props market.
Favorite To Win?
One of the other most interesting Kentucky Derby prop bets is the option to bet on the field to overcome the favorite. In this market, you can either opt to stake on the horse at the top of the betting to win, or take up the option to cover all other runners.
It is an interesting option for betters, which could have proven lucrative if betting against the market leader in recent years, with the pre-race favorite having failed to win the Kentucky Derby in each of the last five renewals. In fact, the last winning Derby favorite was Triple Crown hero Justify in 2018.
Post Position Of Winner
The post draw on Derby week is always one of the most important for bettors on the race, as it could pinpoint potential pace angles in the Triple Crown race. Traditionally, the draw will kick off the Kentucky Derby celebrations on Monday, giving bettors five days to do their research before coming down on a selection.
Alternatively, bettors could wager on the side of the draw that the winner will come from. For example, a bet could be placed on the winning runner coming from stalls 1-8.
There have been some successful stalls throughout history, with stall five boasting a 10.8% win rate, and stall 15 having a dominant strike rate of 9.8%. However, stalls to be wary of include stall 17, which is yet to produce a single winner of the Triple Crown race.
Horse To Win Triple Crown
Another prop market that could be lucrative is the option to bet on a horse to complete the Triple Crown in the U.S. Justify remains the most recent runner to have achieved that feat after justifying his short Preakness odds and Belmont Stakes odds to land victories in all three races in 2018.
He was the 13th horse to achieve that feat, with other legendary horses to achieve the unlikely being American Pharoah, Secretariat, and War Admiral.
Early Kentucky Derby 2024 Pick
The final field for the 2024 running of the Kentucky Derby is still months away from being finalized, but it appears set to be a wide-open edition at this stage. In our horse racing predictions, we expect to see a very interesting contender come out of the UAE Derby in March, but the best American chance at this stage could be Sierra Leone.
The three-year-old may have finished behind Dornoch in the Remsen Stakes, but he clocked a higher speed figure in conditions that didn’t suit. However, we will learn more about his potential Derby chances when he clashes with Track Phantom in the G2 Risen Star at Fair Grounds.
- Pick: Sierra Leone +1700.
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