The morning line odds and post positions have been released for the 2023 Kentucky Derby. It’s time to really dive into the research and figure out which bet(s) I like for Saturday.
The first thing you notice when looking at the odds is that Forte (3-1) and Tapit Trice (5-1) are the two favourites, and there are only 5 horses in the field of 20 that have odds of 10-1 or shorter. That said there are plenty of mid-range contenders with two horses having odds of 12-1 and another six horses with odds of 15-1. This is much different from last year when there was only 6 horses total with odds shorter than 20-1. This years race has the two favourites and then a significant variety of horses who should be considered contenders.
The Derby is so exciting and fun to handicap because there isn’t a huge amount of information on the three-year-old horses. They have often only ran a few races each, and the Kentucky Derby will be the first time most horses in the field have competed with each other.
Best Kentucky Derby Betting Site for Canadians
2023 Kentucky Derby Morning Line Odds
Below are the official morning line odds (and post positions) for the 2023 Kentucky Derby, set for the 49th straight year by Mike Battaglia.
The morning line is the odds that each horse will begin the day at when betting opens in the Racebook. The odds will change throughout the day depending on the amount of money that is wagered on each horse. The amount of money bet on each horse relative to the entire amount bet on the race winner will determine each horses final odds. Check out our parimutuel betting system page for a further breakdown of this form of betting, which is the norm in horse racing.
- Hit Show 30-1
- Verifying 15-1
- Two Phil’s 12-1
- Confidence Game 20-1
- Tapit Trice 5-1
- Kingsbarns 12-1
- Reincarnate 50-1
- Mage 15-1
- Skinner 20-1
- Practical Move 10-1
- Disarm 30-1
- Jace’s Road 15-1
- Sun Thunder 30-1
- Angel of Empire 8-1
- Forte 3-1
- Raise Cain 15-1
- Derma Sotogake 10-1
- Rocket Can 15-1
- Lord Miles 30-1
- Continuar 50-1
There are 20 horses taking part in the race and, as you can see 12 of those horses have morning line odds of 15-1 or better. Forte, the favourite at odds of 3-1, and Tapit Trice, the second favourite, will both start at similar post positions with Forte drawing post 15 and Tapit Trice drawing post 5.
The Kentucky Derby futures odds, which are fixed odds, are already quite a bit different than these morning line odds, so I would expect to see these odds change significantly on race day with Forte’s odds potentially shortening to closer to 5-2 by the start of the race on Saturday.
My Kentucky Derby Pick
I like the odds for Forte at 3-1. His come from behind run in the Florida Derby showed me that this horse is a winner. He was boxed in down the stretch, struggled at different points in the race, and still had that extra gear to win the race over a strong field.
Forte has won his last five races now, with the Florida Derby win last month, and the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile victory in November being the two most high profile wins of his career. He had a strong time in the Florida Derby even with the race not going his way. I think Forte has more in the tank and a second race at the 10 furlong distance should provide an even better showing.
Forte 3-1
Below you can see Forte run down Mage down the stretch to win the Florida Derby last month.
Where To Bet On The 2023 Kentucky Derby
I will be placing my Kentucky Derby bets at SportsInteraction.com. They are our top rated betting site for Canadians and this includes their racebook. You can check out our how to bet on the 2023 Kentucky Derby in Canada page if you have more questions about getting your wagers placed.
I also suggest that you check out our horse race betting section to learn about the different bets you can make on the Derby, as well as some of the different racing terms you should know when placing your horse racing bets.
Ready to bet on the Kentucky Derby? Click here to visit SportsInteraction.com.
Wow, Nice handicapping Niko! Medina was down to 6-1 when I saw this earlier so didn’t play it but enjoyed watching the event tonight. Congrats on your bet!
Thank you!