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The Kentucky Derby, the most famous horse race in the world, happens Saturday, May 3 at Churchill Downs. It is a horse race like no other, with 20 of the top three-year-olds in the country going a taxing 1 ¼ miles.
And, you are going to want to be a part of the action. With so many horses in the field, betting the Kentucky Derby is a great way to score big! Keep on reading to find out the best horses in the 2025 Run for the Roses, and the best online sportsbooks to bet the Kentucky Derby online.
Where to Bet the Kentucky Derby
Maximizing your Kentucky Derby profit starts before you pick a horse. In fact, it starts by choosing the right Kentucky Derby online sportsbook. There are many choices, which may seem daunting at first, but our expert online sportsbook reviews help make a confident, informed decision easy.
Every horse racing betting site we recommend has the basics: trusted payouts, market-leading odds, and a great user interface. They also offer great bonuses you won’t find at the track like sign-up bonuses, deposit bonuses, referral benefits, and horse racing rebates! These can help you build your bankroll by hundreds or even thousands of dollars, so take advantage!
These are the best places to bet the Kentucky Derby online:
Kentucky Derby Horses and Odds
This is the official field for the 2025 Kentucky Derby including post positions, trainers, jockeys, and morning-line odds:
- Citizen Bull (Bob Baffert / Martin Garcia) – 20/1
- Neoequos (Saffie Joseph, Jr. / Flavien Prat) – 30/1
- Final Gambit (Brad Cox / Luan Machado) – 30/1
- Rodriguez (Bob Baffert / Mike Smith) – 12/1
- American Promise (D. Wayne Lukas / Nic Juarez) – 30/1
- Admire Daytona (Yukihiro Kato / Christophe Lemaire) – 30/1
- Luxor Cafe (Noriyuki Hori / Joao Moreira) – 15/1
- Journalism (Michael McCarthy / Umberto Rispoli) – 3/1
- Burnham Square (Ian Wilkes / Brian Hernandez, Jr.) – 12/1
- Grande (Todd Pletcher / John Velazquez) – 20/1
- Flying Mohawk (Whit Beckman / Joseph Ramos) – 30/1
- East Avenue (Brendan Walsh / Manny Franco) – 20/1
- Publisher (Steve Asmussen / Irad Ortiz) – 20/1
- Tiztastic (Steve Asmussen / Joel Rosario) – 20/1
- Render Judgment (Kenny McPeek / Julien Leparoux) – 30/1
- Coal Battle (Lonnie Briley / Juan Vargas) – 30/1
- Sandman (Mark Casse / Jose Ortiz) – 6/1
- Sovereignty (Bill Mott / Junior Alvarado) – 5/1
- Chunk of Gold (Ethan West / Jareth Loveberry) – 30/1
- Owen Almighty (Brian Lynch / Javier Castellano) – 30/1
- Baeza (John Shirreffs / Flavien Prat) – ALSO ELIGIBLE – 12/1
Baeza will only draw in if at least one horse scratches from the main field before 9:00 a.m. Friday morning, when Kentucky Derby betting begins.
Though the morning line can help you determine how the betting board may look, they are not guaranteed prices since odds at the track are not final until post time. Your best bet is to bet the Kentucky Derby at an online sportsbook, since they offer fixed-odds betting on major races like the Kentucky Derby. You’re insulated from late odds drifts, and you’ll know exactly what you’ll be paid when your horse wins!
These are the Kentucky Derby 2025 betting odds at the best online sportsbooks:
 |  |  |
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| Journalism | +300 | +285 | +280 |
| Sovereignty | +600 | +600 | +600 |
| Sandman | +800 | +1000 | +800 |
| Luxor Cafe | +1200 | +1100 | +1100 |
| American Promise | +1200 | +1800 | +1400 |
| Burnham Square | +1400 | +1400 | +1400 |
| Rodriguez | +1400 | +1400 | +1200 |
Free Kentucky Derby Picks
Now you’re all set up to bet horse racing online, so it’s time to meet the 2025 Kentucky Derby contenders. The race is a test unlike any of these horses have ever seen, between the 1 ¼-mile distance and the 20-horse field. However, thinking about things like running style, pedigree, class, and form will help your Kentucky Derby bets pay big!
Kentucky Derby Best Bet
The best bet in the Kentucky Derby is Burnham Square. He comes off of a late-running victory in the Blue Grass (G1), a race with a rising recent profile, in which he reeled in a lone leader who was already a Grade 1 winner on the course. This time, he won’t be reeling in a lone leader – he’ll be running at a bunch of horses who all need the lead, meaning he gets a better setup.
He also has every chance to get a good trip. The 9 hole is a good middle gate for the Kentucky Derby. And, even though he is most likely going to run as a closer, looking back to his form at Gulfstream he has shown he doesn’t have to sit very far off the pace if the race demands it, a good dimension of versatility. And, his jockey has won the Run for the Roses before – Brian Hernandez, Jr. just won last year with Mystik Dan.
Kentucky Derby Logical Favorites
Journalism will be the favorite in the Kentucky Derby, and there’s good reason why. He tore through the California spur of the Kentucky Derby trail, winning the Los Alamitos Futurity (G2), San Felipe (G2), and Santa Anita Derby (G1). He is tactical enough to sit a few lengths off of what will be a crackling pace, and his Santa Anita Derby win showed he could handle a rough trip. The cherry on top is the draw – he got the 8 hole, a cozy middle gate.
Sovereignty, the second choice on the morning line, also figures strongly. The Bill Mott trainee is a strong late runner, the style that is going to get a dream setup in the Kentucky Derby with so much one-way speed. It’s plausible that he wasn’t fully cranked for the Florida Derby since he already had that Fountain of Youth (G2) win, and yet he still ran a very good second. Returning to Churchill Downs, where he is already a graded winner, he should be sharp.
Kentucky Derby Exotics Horses
There’s always some overachiever who just keeps firing for a share no matter what, and this year’s is Chunk of Gold. He hasn’t won a stakes yet, but he was second in both the Risen Star (G2) and the Louisiana Derby (G2), taking advantage of sharp paces to claim those underneath shares. He’ll get that again, he is bred to keep moving up with more distance, and even though Jareth Loveberry is lesser known he gave Two Phil’s a brilliant Derby ride two years back.
Sandman is a little tough to back on the win end since he still has some mental growing up to do. However, he should have no trouble running into the exotics. He is another who can take advantage of all the one-way speed in the race, and he regularly fires with a late run. He is bred beautifully for classic distances, and he wasn’t a bad third in his last start at Churchill Downs.
Grande is another horse who has a shot at a piece. He couldn’t catch Rodriguez last out in the Wood Memorial (G2), but Rodriguez had a plum trip up front last time whereas this race sets up for the speed to burn itself out. Grande cedes experience to his foes, but his jockey John Velazquez has decades of Derby experience and Grande can get the jump on the real closers.
Kentucky Derby Bet-Againsts
In short, bet against early speed. Citizen Bull, Neoequos, Rodriguez, and East Avenue all need things their own way on the front end, meaning they’re likely to clash early and burn each other out. Among the speed brigade Owen Almighty is slightly more appealing in that he has proven to hang on for a share if there’s a big fight up front, but even then…this distance will more than test his stamina, no matter how much grit he has.
Kentucky Derby Free Picks
Now all that’s left to do is bet the race! These are your free Kentucky Derby expert picks for the 2025 Kentucky Derby:
- $20 win/place/show: #9 Burnham Square
- $1 Exacta Key: #9 Burnham Square with #8 Journalism, #18 Sovereignty, #19 Chunk of Gold
- $1 Trifecta Key: #9 Burnham Square with #8 Journalism, #17 Sandman, #18 Sovereignty, #19 Chunk of Gold
- $1 Superfecta Key: #9 Burnham Square with #8 Journalism, #10 Grande, #17 Sandman, #18 Sovereignty, #19 Chunk of Gold
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