This year's Kentucky Derby at Churchill Hill Downs is set for Saturday, May 7 in its traditional time slot of the first Saturday of May. While post positions with the opening morning line odds will not be decided until Tuesday, May 3, most online sportsbooks have released Kentucky Derby futures odds for the top 20 contenders.
From a betting standpoint, locking in a horse's odds to win before the race offers quite a bit of value. This is especially true if a contender is undervalued as compared to his eventual pari-mutuel betting odds for that race at the track.
For example, you can bet the favorite Epicenter at +450 which equates to 9-to-2 odds. By locking in the fixed odds through a futures bet on the Kentucky Derby, you are guaranteed that payout. Epicenter might drop down as low as 2-to-1 by post time on Derby Day.
This three-year old Kentucky-bred colt won the Louisiana Derby his last time out on March 26. This win marked his fourth graded-stakes victory in his last five events. The only slip was to second place in the Grade 3 Lecomte Stakes at Fair Grounds on Jan. 22. Sired by Not This Time and trained by Steve Asmussen, Epicenter appears to be the colt to beat at Churchill Downs in this year's Run for the Roses.
If you are looking for betting value at longer odds on the Kentucky Derby futures board, Mo Donegal at +1200 would be on my list. Trained by Todd Pletcher, this Kentucky-bred three-year old is coming off an impressive victory in this year's Grade 2 Wood Memorial at Aqueduct on April 9. The son of Uncle Mo closed out his juvenile campaign by winning the Grade 2 Remsen Stakes at that same track on Dec. 14.
Going even deeper down the list of futures odds, my top-valued pick to win the Kentucky Derby would be Cyberknife at +2000 odds. The son of Gun Runner has excellent pedigree and a proven track record of success under the watchful eye of trainer Brad Cox. This Kentucky-bred three-year old's biggest claim to fame is a stunning victory in this year's Grade 1 Arkansas Derby at Oaklawn Park on April 2. After starting his three-year old campaign with a disappointing fade to sixth in the Lecomte Stakes, he has made some tremendous progress in the past few months.
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