Rowan Ward
The 2022 Kentucky Oaks betting races will be run on Friday, May 6, 2022. The race drew fourteen of the best three-year-old fillies in the United States to run a mile and an eighth at Churchill Downs. The stakes are high: a $1,250,000 purse, the famous blanket of lilies, and being forever remembered as the best three-year-old filly of the year.
This is one of the best betting races of the year, so get ready to make your wagers!
Where to Bet the Kentucky Oaks
Before you decide who to bet in the Kentucky Oaks, it is important to choose the right sportsbook for betting the Kentucky Oaks online. All of these sportsbooks are easy-to-use, trusted, and offer excellent odds for the Kentucky Oaks and beyond.
They also offer great benefits to their players. Different sites offer different incentives like sign-up bonuses and rebates, which are more profitable for different styles of betting. Our expert reviews will help you choose the site that will suit you best.
Kentucky Oaks Entries and Odds
This is the official field for the 2022 Kentucky Oaks including post positions, trainers, and jockeys:
- Secret Oath (D. Wayne Lukas/Luis Saez) – 6-1
- Nostalgic (Bill Mott/Jose Ortiz) – 15-1
- Hidden Connection (Bret Calhoun/Reylu Gutierrez) – 20-1
- Nest (Todd Pletcher/Irad Ortiz, Jr.) – 5-2
- Goddess of Fire (Todd Pletcher/John Velazquez) – 15-1
- Yuugiri (Rodolphe Brisset/Florent Geroux) – 30-1
- Echo Zulu (Steve Asmussen/Joel Rosario) – 4-1
- Venti Valentine (Jose Abreu/Tyler Gaffalione) – 20-1
- Desert Dawn (Phil d’Amato/Umberto Rispoli) – 20-1
- Kathleen O. (Shug McGaughey/Javier Castellano) – 7-2
- Cocktail Moments (Ken McPeek/Corey Lanerie) – 30-1
- Candy Raid (Keith Desormeaux/Rafael Bejarano) – 30-1
- Shahama (Todd Pletcher/Flavien Prat) – 15-1
- Turnerloose (Brad Cox/Manuel Franco) – 20-1
- Beguine (Daniel Peitz/Ricardo Santana) – 30-1 – ALSO ELIGIBLE
That is the list of entrants for the 2022 Kentucky Oaks. Here are the odds on the leading Kentucky Oaks horses in 2022 at the best online sportsbooks:
 |  |  |
|
| Nest | +300 | +300 | +275 |
| Echo Zulu | +350 | +400 | +350 |
| Kathleen O. | +425 | +400 | +450 |
| Secret Oath | +450 | +550 | +500 |
| Shahama | +1400 | +2000 | +1600 |
| Hidden Connection | +1600 | +1600 | +1200 |
| Desert Dawn | +1600 | +2000 | +1400 |
Free Kentucky Oaks Picks
Let’s learn more about the most interesting and bettable horses entered for the 2022 Kentucky Oaks, including some more formful horses and some intriguing longshots.
Kentucky Oaks Favorites
Though Nest is the morning line favorite in the Kentucky Oaks, she is an appealing horse to play because she has done everything to justify that status. A good two-year-old, she is a G2 winner at the distance of the Oaks, since she won the Demoiselle last year. In two starts this year, including in the Ashland (G1), she tracked in range and opened way up on the field. She has never lost at two turns, and even this classy field should prove no problem.
There will be some very talented horses trying to chase her home. Secret Oath tried males in the Arkansas Derby (G1) last out. Though she did not win, she finished a credible third to strong Kentucky Derby prospect Cyberknife. The rail draw could get her into some traffic trouble, but she should have no problem settling and has won with troubled trips before.
The Gulfstream Park spur of the Kentucky Derby trail is not usually the most productive, but Kathleen O. may buck that trend. This undefeated filly has unrolled a smart rally in all four of her starts, including a win over a muddy track at Aqueduct on debut. With a lot of speed signed on for the Kentucky Oaks, she could get a very good trip.
Kentucky Oaks Longshots
Shahama makes her first stateside start. She has dominated her foes in the UAE as strongly as she needs to in order to be an interesting Oaks prospect. Her closing style gives her a chance at a good trip given all the speed signed on, and being by star slop sire Munnings, the rainy forecast suits. And, though Munnings is more often a sprint sire, she has already won going longer than this.
Nostalgic was only fourth in the nine-furlong Demoiselle last year, but she tried the distance again last month in the Gazelle (G3) and won convincingly. The waters get deeper here, but she can sit off of a likely contested pace, giving her a chance at a good trip. She also has an appealing pedigree for the likely sloppy track, being by Medaglia d’Oro out of a Tapit mare.
Kentucky Oaks Picks
These are the best bets for the Kentucky Oaks.
- $20 win: #4 Nest
- $5 win/place/show: #13 Shahama
- $5 exacta key: #4 Nest with #1 Secret Oath, #13 Shahama
- $1 trifecta key: #4 Nest with #1 Secret Oath, #10 Kathleen O., #13 Shahama
- $1 superfecta key: #4 Nest with #1 Secret Oath, #2 Nostalgic, #10 Kathleen O., #13 Shahama
Kentucky Oaks Day Picks
Though the Kentucky Oaks is Friday’s feature at Churchill Downs, the day features a full assortment of rich stakes races featuring the best horses in the country. It includes an all-stakes Pick 6 featuring six rich races in a row, starting with the La Troienne.
Here are the horses to make sure to use in the other races on that Pick 6, or to consider betting to win throughout the day:
- Race 5 – $250,000 Modesty Stakes: #1 Fluffy Socks, #8 Bleecker Street
- Race 6 – $750,000 La Troienne Stakes: #2 Shedaresthedevil, #6 Pauline’s Pearl
- Race 7 – $500,000 Alysheba Stakes: #5 Olympiad
- Race 8 – $500,000 Edgewood Stakes: #5 Dolce Zel, #8 Spicer, #10 Dream Lith (if the race is washed off to dirt)
- Race 9 – $500,000 Eight Belles Stakes: #1 Sweet as Pie, #8 Matareya
- Race 10 – $500,000 Twin Spires Turf Sprint: #4 Chasing Artie, #7 Diamond Oops, #9 Pyron
