The Kentucky Derby is the USA’s most famous horse race. Held annually at Churchill Downs racecourse in the city of Louisville, it is part of America’s Triple Crown for thoroughbreds on the Flat. The Kentucky Derby distance is approximately 1m 2f or around 2 km. It is open to three-year-old colts, fillies and, unlike the British Classics, geldings too. The first Saturday in May is the traditional Kentucky Derby date and a two-week long racing festival has developed around this main event. Winners of this prestigious race go on to contest the Preakness Stakes at Pimlico in Baltimore, Maryland and then the Belmont Stakes at the eponymous Belmont Park just outside New York City limits.
Famous Kentucky Derby results include when Secretariat set a course record for the fastest ever running of the race when he dipped under 2 minutes and went on complete the Triple Crown in 1973. Speaking of that achievement, only 13 horses have gone on to taste Preakness and Belmont Stakes success with the last two being trained by five-time Kentucky Derby winning trainer Bob Baffert. Witnessing the Kentucky Derby live should be on every horse racing fan’s bucket list. Another way in which this great race differs from the Classics in the British Isles is that it is held on dirt rather turf. There’s no grass under the three-year-olds’ hooves as they gallop around the left-handed track at Churchill Downs. Fillies get a 5lb sex allowance, which is 2lb more than any female gets if contesting the Epsom equivalent.
What you can expect from our betting tips for the Kentucky Derby 2024
Previous Kentucky Derby results can’t really help you pick the winner of the latest renewal as horses can only run in it once. They can give you an indicator of which trainers do well in the race, though, like Baffert and Todd Pletcher. Thoroughbreds with proven form over the Kentucky Derby distance or that look likely to get the trip are obviously ones to consider backing. Or you can let our expert tipsters here on OpenOdds do all the legwork for you. When it comes to betting tips on the Kentucky Derby 2024 , they’ll put up a shortlist of three for punters to consider. Our first selection is the horse rated by our experts as the best bet to win the big race at the odds on offer. Given how competitive a race like the Kentucky Derby is, however, it’s unlikely to be plain sailing for any of those lining up at Churchill Downs. There will always be a danger, so we’ll highlight that horse and their claims of winning the race so you’re fully in the picture as to what the main opposition looks like. Each-way betting can be a smart angle for the Kentucky Derby live betting or a regular fixed odds punt alike. Our experts’ third and final selection will be one with claims of making the frame and possibly even outrunning a relatively large price to do better than placing. We highlight where the best odds for all of our picks can be found at the time of writing, but be aware as this is such a lively event from a gambling perspective that prices are subject to change. Our Kentucky Derby bets are all assessed in terms of riskiness too on an easy to follow scale of one to 10. The higher the number next to the wager, then the greater the risk involved.
- Each way betting could prove to be the smart angle
- Keep up to date with news around the event
- Compare odds via our patented odds comparison tool
- Unfortunately, no previous results available
See where the best prices for the Kentucky Derby 2024 are through our odds comparison tool
The Kentucky Derby is a date in every horse racing lover’s diary. While that’s easy to track down, getting the top price when you want to have a bet used to be very tricky indeed. Thankfully, the days of trawling the internet in search of the best odds are a thing of the past. You don’t even have to leave OpenOdds if you’re reading this page. That’s because we’ve got our own odds comparison tool that allows you to find exactly what you are looking for. Just treat it like a search engine. It really is that simple to use. Enter the name of the horse you want to back, then filter the result to make sure you get the prices in the Kentucky Derby betting. You can even see how member of the OpenOdds betting community rate the online bookmakers and their service. They use a simply star rating system and it’s free to join by the way! As well as seeing the best and worst prices for a horse in a particular race, you can even find details of the latest sportsbook welcome bonuses. We added this into our odds comparison tool just in case one of the firms have an offer that looks too good to turn down, especially if you’ve not signed up to them before!
Every major racecourse covered on OpenOdds and here’s why
Witnessing the Kentucky Derby live is pretty awesome, but Churchill Downs is but one track from many dotted all over the world. International events like this one always appeal and the Melbourne Cup during the Victoria Racing Club’s Spring Carnival in Australia is another notable example. Closer to home to a fiercely loyal British and Irish fanbase is the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe at Longchamp in Paris across the Channel in France. Top class days of Group or Grade 1 action like these are highlights. These specials days sit in amongst a wealth of great Flat and National Hunt horse racing at home. The British Isles has the greatest strength in depth within the sport of kings. From huge festivals of horse racing like Cheltenham and Royal Ascot to the all-weather meetings on artificial surfaces throughout the winter months, every racecourse from Aintree to York and Ayr to Yarmouth are worth a look. That’s the attitude we take at OpenOdds. If there’s some significant sporting action taking place, then we are on it to furnish it with the coverage it so richly deserves. With horse racing, you’re never short of betting opportunities. Now’s the perfect time to look at those main events in more detail…
What big events are there in horse racing?
Besides those international events mentioned above and the Breeders’ Cup on the other side of America, the nuts and bolts of any horse racing punter’s regular betting is the jumps and Flat action in the UK and Ireland. The annual calendar is firmly established leaving it familiar to anyone who has followed this sport for a while. In January, Cheltenham Festival Trials Day dominates the agenda with British horses hopeful of scoring big successes at the track in March getting one last prep run over course and distance. Across the Irish Sea, meanwhile, the Dublin Racing Festival at Leopardstown is another high-profile event en route to the Cheltenham Festival and equivalent at Punchestown. The Grand National at Aintree in April is another huge day for British horse racing. Jumps action soon gives way to the Flat, however, and the 1000 and 2000 Guineas at Newmarket. More Classics at Epsom follow with The Derby and Oaks. Royal Ascot is the undisputed highlight of the racing calendar in June, followed by the July Festival (again at Newmarket), then Glorious Goodwood and York’s Ebor Festival towards the end of August. The St Leger at Doncaster is the final Classic of the season, while in the Emerald Isle there’s Irish Champions Weekend to round things off. British Champions Day isn’t until October back at Ascot, then National Hunt returns with a host of events at Cheltenham and the Ladbrokes Trophy at Newbury. Christmastime is special for horse racing fans with so much jumps actions to look forward to, including the King George VI Chase at Kempton, a big festival at Leopardstown and the Welsh Grand National at Chepstow.
Expert advice is at hand to help if you need it
News develops in horse racing all the time, so you need a service that takes a betting first approach to the breaking stories. Weight, entries and the significance of things like the Kentucky Derby results all need setting in their proper context. That’s what our experts do here on OpenOdds. What does an injury to a fancied runner mean for the market, and more importantly your chances of winning a race on the one you fancy? There’s plenty of that on offer regarding the latest horse racing betting news right here. You’ve got a great authoritative resource at your fingertips.
The world of horse racing and betting has a lot of terms to get to grips with when you first start out gambling. Help is at hand for all newbies on the punting front as we direct you to our glossary section. OpenOdds is all about giving you a leg up so you can understand many of the things talked about in the industry. We’re on a mission to bust all the jargon and our experts have written a series of articles explaining what a whole host of horse racing betting things mean. Want to know the difference between a quaddie and a forecast? Now there’s a simple way to discover it. Check out the OpenOdds glossary now!
