Kentucky Derby Odds: Smart Bets and Horses You Must Take

The Kentucky Derby is more than just "The Most Exciting Two Minutes in Sports." It's more than just a horse race.

It is an event—a time to host extravagant, fancy parties; a time to wear over-the-top over-the-top (yes, I meant it twice) hats; a time to bet some of that hard-earned money.

That last one especially.

Whether you bet on a trainer or jockey you like, or whether you bet on a horse's name that makes you chuckle, there's nothing quite as exhilarating as letting it ride at the Kentucky Derby.

If you're looking for a little direction on where to place your bets, here's a complete look at the full list of odds, along with some intriguing picks to get you started. 

Note: Following odds courtesy of Bovada.

Post	Horse	Jockey	Trainer	Odds
1	Vacant (Black Onyx scratched)	N/A	N/A	N/A
2	Oxbow	Gary Stevens	D. Wayne Lukas	33-1
3	Revolutionary	Calvin Borel	Todd Pletcher	7-1
4	Golden Soul	Robby Albarado	Dallas Stewart	50-1
5	Normandy Invasion	Javier Castellano	Chad Brown	9-1
6	Mylute	Rosie Napravnik	Tom Amoss	25-1
7	Giant Finish	Jose L. Espinoza	Anthony W. Dutrow	50-1
8	Goldencents	Kevin Krigger	Doug O'Neill	8-1
9	Overanalyze	Rafael Bejarano	Todd Pletcher	14-1
10	Palace Malice	Mike Smith	Todd Pletcher	28-1
11	Lines of Battle	Ryan Moore	Aidan O'Brien	25-1
12	Itsmyluckyday	Elvis Trujillo	Eddie Plesa, Jr.	10-1
13	Falling Sky	Luis Saez	John Terranova II	50-1
14	Verrazano	John R. Velazquez	Todd Pletcher	9-2
15	Charming Kitten	Edgar Prado	Todd Pletcher	40-1
16	Orb	Joel Rosario	Claude R. McGaughey III	9-2
17	Will Take Charge	Jon Court	D. Wayne Lukas	28-1
18	Frac Daddy	Victor Lebron	Kenny McPeek	28-1
19	Java's War	Julien Leparoux	Kenny McPeek	18-1
20	Vyjack	Garrett Gomez	Rudy Rodriguez	20-1

Verrazano (9-2)

If you're hell-bent on taking one of the favorites—where's the fun in that?—I like Verrazano more than Orb and Goldencents. 

One of five of Todd Pletcher's entries this year, the undefeated colt is being ridden by legendary jockey John R. Velazquez, who has won just about every race imaginable, including the Derby in 2011 aboard Animal Kingdom. 

In that race, Velazquez came from the No. 16 position. While he's not in the recently successful auxiliary gate (which holds the outside six horses) this year, he'll be the last entrant in the main gate, giving him some buffer room to make a clean escape. 

And as Verrazano proved during his win at the Grade 1 Wood Memorial, being outside most of the other horses will prove to be beneficial:

Eventually, however, a move to the rail will be made, and being two spots closer than top favorite Orb is key. Essentially, the uber-talented Verrazano is on the outside, but not too far outside.

Like the middle bowl of porridge, his post is juuuust right. 

Normandy Invasion (9-1)

This should be all the convincing you need (via Russell Crowe's official Twitter account):

If Maximus Decimus Meridius is inclined to go with a certain horse, I'm certainly not going to argue against him.

Of course, it also helps that I've been big on Normandy Invasion since the final leg of the Wood Memorial. Take a look at the video above, and watch the last straightaway again.

Chad Brown's horse wasn't able to pull out the victory, but he was blazing at the end, and if the race was another furlong, he would have easily won.

Fortunately, the Kentucky Derby (10 furlongs) is exactly one furlong further than the Wood Memorial, and that should play right into Normandy Invasion's favor.

Oh, and he looks super playful, cute and fun to be around (via HRTV's Joanne Jones):

How are you going to not pick that horse?

Will Take Charge (28-1)

D. Wayne Lukas is a winner. 

One of the most storied, successful trainers in history, Lukas has four Derby wins and a whopping 13 victories in the Triple Crown races. 

Betting against him is a no-no. 

This year, you have two options with Oxbow and Will Take Charge, but the former is stuck in post No. 2 right inside Calvin Borel, so it's probably best to stay away from him. Will Take Charge, on the other hand, is an intriguing pick. 

The No. 17 post isn't all that much better, as no horse has ever won from that spot and the chance of getting caught on the outside is always present. 

Nevertheless, Will Take Charge is coming off an encouraging win at the Grade 2 Rebel Stakes (after a dreadful performance at the Grade 3 Southwest Stakes) and makes for a compelling value pick if you're feeling brave. 

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