The Fastest Two Minutes in Sports is days away. This Saturday at 7:01 PM ET, 18 of the world’s top three-year-old Thoroughbreds will run 1 ¼ miles for a share of the Kentucky Derby’s $3 million purse. Post positions have been drawn, and Tiz the Law will be breaking from No. 17—the only post to have never produce a Kentucky Derby winner before.
Due to the coronavirus pandemic, this year’s Kentucky Derby became the second leg of the Triple Crown when it was postponed 2 ½ months after the Belmont Stakes. That leaves the Preakness Stakes as the final test if we do see Tiz the Law claim the second jewel after winning the Belmont. There are 17 more options beyond him on the 2020 Kentucky Derby odds board, so keep reading to get to know this year’s contenders.
Post 1: Finnick the Fierce
Jockey: Martin Garcia
Trainer: Rey Hernandez
Odds for Kentucky Derby: +12500
The one-eyed colt, Finnick the Fierce is familiar with Churchill Downs, having raced there three times before. He finished a head in front of Tiz the Law for second place at the Grade 2 Kentucky Jockey Club Stakes last November; that was his second Churchill Downs race.
Post 2: Max Player
Jockey: Ricardo Santana Jr.
Trainer: Steve Asmussen
Odds for Kentucky Derby: +4000
Max Player has shown good speed in his last two outings, the Travers Stakes and Belmont Stakes—both of which, he finished third. Before that, he won the Grade 3 Withers Stakes in February.
Post 3: Enforceable
Jockey: Adam Beschizza
Trainer: Mark Casse
Odds for Kentucky Derby: +4000
With 10 races under his belt, Enforceable is more seasoned than your typical three-year-old colt. He has already competed at Churchill Downs three times, including the Kentucky Jockey Club Stakes, where he finished fourth—1 ¼ lengths behind Tiz the Law.
Post 4: Storm the Court
Jockey: Julien Leparoux
Trainer: Peter Eurton
Odds for Kentucky Derby: +6600
After breaking his maiden on first attempt, Storm the Court wasted no time getting into top-graded races. He has finished in the money in two of his four grade 1 events, and three of his four grade 2 and 3 events.
Post 5: Major Fed
Jockey: James Graham
Trainer: Gregory Foley
Odds for Kentucky Derby: +5000
Post 5 has produced the most Kentucky Derby winners (10) of all time, but it would be a tall order for Major Fed to overcome his long Kentucky Derby betting odds, as he has yet to win anything other than his maiden race in January.
Post 6: King Guillermo
Jockey: Samy Camacho
Trainer: Juan Carlos Avila
Odds for Kentucky Derby: +2200
King Guillermo has pretty good odds of pulling an upset on the Kentucky Derby 2020 odds board if the stars align for the bay colt. He finished second at the Grade 1 Arkansas Derby and first at the Grade 2 Lambholm South Tampa Bay Derby in his only two starts in his sophomore year.
Post 7: Money Moves
Jockey: Javier Castellano
Trainer: Todd Pletcher
Odds for Kentucky Derby: +5500
Money Moves’ graded stakes debut will be the Kentucky Derby. Pletcher has been watching the colt work out, and his most recent one (5 furlongs in 1:00.14) led to the decision to take a flier on the son of Candy Ride.
Post 8: South Bend
Jockey: Tyler Gaffalione
Trainer: Bill Mott
Odds for Kentucky Derby: +12500
South Bend has had an up-and-down racing career up to this point, with eight outings so far in 2020. His most recent, the Grade 1 Travers Stakes, resulted in a fourth-place finish. He does have two victories at Churchill Downs—both were in 2019.
Post 9: Mr. Big News
Jockey: Gabriel Saez
Trainer: Bret Calhoun
Odds for Kentucky Derby: +10000
Mr. Big News broke his maiden on fourth attempt in January. In April, he won the Oaklawn Stakes, utilizing a closing style to beat the 13-horse field in the stretch.
Post 10: Thousand Words
Jockey: Florent Geroux
Trainer: Bob Baffert
Odds for Kentucky Derby: +1800
After post No. 5, No. 10 has produced the most Kentucky Derby winners at nine, and the lucky horse breaking from that post this year is the Bob Baffert trainee, Thousand Words, who’s hot off a victory at the Shared Belief Stakes. He’s also the winner of the Grade 2 Los Alamitos Futurity.
Post 11: Necker Island
Jockey: Miguel Mena
Trainer: Chris Hartman
Odds for Kentucky Derby: +12500
Necker Island is still looking for his first victory at a graded stakes race. He did finish third in his last two outings, one of which was the Grade 3 Indiana Derby. With Hard Spun as his sire, he has good lineage; Hard Spun finished second in the Kentucky Derby and Breeders’ Cup Classic in 2007.
Post 12: Sole Volante
Jockey: Luca Panici
Trainer: Patrick Biancone
Odds for Kentucky Derby: +3300
Sole Volante is one of the few Belmont Stakes contenders who’s also competing in the Kentucky Derby. He was a bit slow at the Belmont, finishing fourth, but he has shown good speed before, including his victory at the Pulpit Stakes and the Grade 3 Sam F. Davis Stakes.
Post 13: Attachment Rate
Jockey: Joe Talamo
Trainer: Dale Romans
Odds for Kentucky Derby: +5500
Another son of Hard Spun, Attachment Rate is coming off a second-place finish at the Ellis Park Derby. He’s still looking for his first win since breaking his maiden on third attempt in February.
Post 14: Winning Impression
Jockey: Joe Rocco Jr.
Trainer: Dallas Stewart
Odds for Kentucky Derby: +12500
Winning Impression also competed at the Ellis Park Derby, but he finished seventh in the 12-horse field. He did show promise at the Grade 1 Arkansas Derby, where he finished third.
Post 15: Ny Traffic
Jockey: Paco Lopez
Trainer: Saffie Joseph
Odds for Kentucky Derby: +2500
There’s some upset potential for the Kentucky Derby betting lines with NY Traffic. He showed incredible speed in his latest outing, the Grade 1 Haskell Stakes, where he and Authentic set a good pace and led the entire way, but NY Traffic missed the victory by a nose.
Post 16: Honor A.P.
Jockey: Mike Smith
Trainer: John Shirreffs
This year’s Santa Anita Derby winner, Honor A.P. is considered Tiz the Law’s top competition with 5-1 odds on the Kentucky Derby. He has shown consistently good speeds since breaking his maiden last October and has finished either first or second in all five career races.
Post 17: Tiz the Law
Jockey: Manny Franco
Trainer: Barclay Tagg
With Art Collector dropping from the field, Tiz the Law is now head and shoulders above the competition when it comes to Kentucky Derby betting. The son of Constitution is a perfect 4-0 as a three-year-old and has reached the fastest speed of his cohort (on a main track of at least 1 mile) at the Grade 1 Travers Stakes.
Post 18: Authentic
Jockey: John Velazquez
Trainer: Bob Baffert
Odds for Kentucky Derby: +1000
The top Bob Baffert-trained contender this year is Authentic, winner of the Grade 1 Haskell Stakes. He also won the Grade 3 Sham Stakes, Grade 2 San Felipe Stakes, and finished second at the Grade 1 Santa Anita Derby, making him a great choice for anyone’s bet on Kentucky Derby glory.