The most important race of the year is coming up on Saturday, May 6: the $3 million Kentucky Derby! A field of 20 of the best three-year-old horses will clash at 1 ¼ miles over the dirt, a challenge like no other in horse racing. Whether you bet horse races all the time or you’re just trying it for the first time, this is a race you cannot miss!
Mage
To win the Kentucky Derby
With such a big field going a distance none of them have tried before, the Kentucky Derby is ripe for huge payouts. So, this is the perfect time to find out the most profitable place to bet the race, and get to know the best bets in the race.
Betting the 2023 Kentucky Derby Online
Before you bet the Kentucky Derby online, you need to decide where you are going to bet it! If you are serious about maximizing your profit on the Kentucky Derby, your bet bet is to play the race online at a trusted online racebook! There are many options out there, but our recommended racebooks offer market-leading odds, trusted payouts, and great user interfaces.
Betting the Kentucky Derby online offers lucrative betting bonuses that you will never find at the racetrack. These include horse racing rebates, deposit bonuses, and sign-up bonuses. Taking a few minutes now to find which ones will pay the most on the bets you like to play can mean hundreds or even thousands of dollars to build your bankroll!
These are the top online betting websites for Illinois residents to play the Kentucky Derby
Handicapping the 2023 Kentucky Derby
Now that you have an account at a top Illinois racebook, it is time to get to know the Kentucky Derby field and pick a winner!
2023 Kentucky Derby Horses
This is the official field for the 2023 Kentucky Derby including post positions, trainers, jockeys, and morning-line odds:
- Hit Show (Brad Cox / Manny Franco) – 30/1
- Verifying (Brad Cox / Tyler Gaffalione) – 15/1
- Two Phil’s (Larry Rivelli / Jareth Loveberry) – 12/1
- Confidence Game (Keith Desormeaux / James Graham) – 20/1
- Tapit Trice (Todd Pletcher / Luis Saez) – 5/1
- Kingsbarns (Todd Pletcher / Jose Ortiz) – 12/1
- Reincarnate (Tim Yakteen / John Velazquez) – 50/1
- Mage (Gustavo Delgado / Javier Castellano) – 15/1
- Skinner (John Shirreffs / Juan Hernandez) – 20/1
- Practical Move (Tim Yakteen / Ramon Vazquez) – 10/1
- Disarm (Steve Asmussen / Joel Rosario) – 30/1
- Jace’s Road (Brad Cox / Florent Geroux) – 15/1
- Sun Thunder (Kenny McPeek / Brian Hernandez, Jr.) – 50/1
- Angel of Empire (Brad Cox / Flavien Prat) – 8/1
- Forte (Todd Pletcher / Irad Ortiz, Jr.) – 3/1
- Raise Cain (Ben Colebrook / Gerardo Corrales) – 50/1
- Derma Sotogake (Hidetaka Otonashi / Christophe Lemaire) – 10/1
- Rocket Can (Bill Mott / Junior Alvarado) – 30/1
- Lord Miles (Saffie Joseph, Jr. / Paco Lopez) – 30/1
- Continuar (Yosito Yahagi / Ryusei Sakai) – 50/1
- ALSO ELIGIBLE – Cyclone Mischief (Dale Romans / Joel Rosario) – 30/1
- ALSO ELIGIBLE – Mandarin Hero (Terunobu Fujita / Kazushi Kimura) – 20/1
- ALSO ELIGIBLE – King Russell (Ron Moquett / Rafael Bejarano) – 50/1
Cyclone Mischief, Mandarin Hero, and King Russell will only draw in, in that order of priority, if horses scratch from the main field before 9:00 a.m. Friday morning, when Kentucky Derby betting begins.
Remember, the morning line is just the track’s best guess for what the betting will look like. Your better bet is to play at an online racebook, since they offer fixed-odds wagering on major races. This means you can lock in the best price the moment you bet, instead of waiting for post time at the track.
2023 Kentucky Derby Best Bet
This is a good year for playing a long shot in the Kentucky Derby, because Mage has a lot to offer for a horse who is 20-1 or better in so many betting markets. Though he missed by a length to Forte in the Florida Derby (G1), the lightly-raced horse showed so much maturity: after a rough start, he switched to a closing style, rallied, and just couldn’t hold off the favorite.
Mage
To win the Kentucky Derby
Mage’s more natural style has him a lot closer to the pace, and a stalking trip looks likely to be a winning trip given the composition of the 2023 field. His pedigree also appeals strongly for the Derby distance, as he is by Curlin son Good Magic out of a stoutly-bred Big Brown mare.
2023 Kentucky Derby Favorites
Forte will be the wagering favorite. The champion juvenile male of last year, he has carried great form into this year with an easy score in the Fountain of Youth (G2) and a tougher victory when he reeled in Mage to take the Florida Derby. He is consistent, he fires with a late run even if the pace does not fall apart, and he has a good chance to continue the streak of all the favorites finding the superfecta in the points era.
Tapit Trice, however, is the even more interesting of the shorter-priced horses. He’ll probably be the second choice in the wagering. And, he is going the right way. In the Blue Grass (G1) he overcame a rail draw in a big field, got a better start than he had gotten in previous races, got out into the clear, and reeled in pace-advantaged frontrunner Verifying. These are skills that should prove useful in the Derby.
2023 Kentucky Derby Exotics Horses
It is not often that a serious Kentucky Derby contender is based at Hawthorne Race Course in Illinois, but Chicago-based Two Phil’s (for perennial Illinois training-title winner Larry Rivelli) comes out of an impressive score in the Jeff Ruby Steaks (G3) and looks well primed to take a step forward in the Kentucky Derby.
Even though his final prep came on Tapeta, he is a Grade 3 winner at Churchill Downs and he also held his own in dirt preps at Fair Grounds. Even though he (unlike so many of Rivelli’s runners) is not a speed horse, he is going to get the jump on the real closers and he reliably fires to make a run.
Derma Sotogake has to reverse a trend of UAE Derby horses disappointing in the Kentucky Derby, but has the assets to do so. Japan-based horses have shined in recent years and he is the best of the Derby contingent from Japan. He has good tactical speed, which has a good chance to be the kind of trip that wins the Derby, and should love the extra distance.
Practical Move, the leader of the West Coast sophomore set, could find the Derby exotics as well. Though he had to dig in for that victory in the Santa Anita Derby (G1) by just a nose over Mandarin Hero, he dug in well enough to suggest that he has the grit that will serve him well in the Run for the Roses. With well-proven tactical speed and dam-side stamina, he has upside.
2023 Kentucky Derby Free Picks
You have your betting account, and you know the horses. Now all you need to do is get your bets down! Here are the best bets for Saturday’s 2023 Kentucky Derby:
- $20 win/place/show: #8 Mage
- $1 Exacta Key: #5 Tapit Trice with #17 Derma Sotogake, #8 Mage, and #3 Two Phil’s
- $1 Trifecta Key: #5 Tapit Trice with #17 Derma Sotogake, #15 Forte, #8 Mage, and #3 Two Phil’s
- $1 Superfecta Key: #5 Tapit Trice with #17 Derma Sotogake, #15 Forte, #10 Practical Move, #8 Mage, and #3 Two Phil’s
Mage
To win the Kentucky Derby
Post positions have been drawn, and the oddsmakers have instilled Omaha Beach as the morning line favorite for the running of the 145th Kentucky Derby. The race goes Saturday, May 4th, with 20 runners set to battle 1 1/4 miles on the Churchill Downs dirt track, chasing a purse of $3 million and the first leg of the US Triple Crown.
