Kentucky Derby Odds: Wednesday's Draw Will Have Major Impact on Final Odds

The Kentucky Derby will hold their draw for post positions in the Run for the Roses on Wednesday, May 2 and it’s going to have a huge affect on the odds of each horse.

According to Tom Pedulla of USA TODAY, oddsmakers are definitely going to factor in the draw and the favorite will likely be decided by their position.

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"If Bodemeister has a bad draw, then it's got to be Union Rags," said bookmaker Mike Battaglia. "And if Union Rags has a bad draw, it would be the other way around." He noted that the rail would be an extremely difficult position to overcome with a full 20-horse field anticipated.

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After the draw, Battaglia predicted that no favorite would be lower than 4-1, which makes sense considering how closely matched many of these contenders are and how large the field truly is.

As of right now KentuckyDerby.info’s odds agree with Battaglia’s assessments and list Bodemeister and Union Rags as the 9/2 favorites. That is slightly better than 4-1, but could change if either gets a great position away from the rail.

Another horse, Gemologist, could also sneak up and become the favorite on Wednesday.

He has finished first in all five of his races and already won twice at Churchill. The colt is capable of running the 1.25-mile track with ease and continues to gain speed in every victory.

There are a ton of horses to choose from in the 2012 Kentucky Derby, so make sure you catch the results of Wendesday’s draw and handicap appropriately before making a big bet.