Kentucky Derby Contenders: Breaking Down Best Bets in Louisville

The Kentucky Derby gets going for the 139th time Saturday from the hallowed Churchill Downs.

The derby favorites have struggled to break away from the pack; the last overall favorite to take the roses was Big Brown in 2008. Nevertheless, there are some very good horses atop the betting list in 2013. Here's a breakdown of the three best bets to get the glory in Louisville.

*Post positions via the Kentucky Derby's official website. Odds via Kentucky Derby Online. (Note: Black Onyx has been scratched from the race, and it appears the first post position will be left open.)

Post	Horse	Jockey	Trainer	Odds
1	Open
2	Oxbow	Gary Stevens	D. Wayne Lukas	30-1
3	Revolutionary	Calvin Borel	Todd Pletcher	10-1
4	Golden Soul	Robby Albarado	Dallas Stewart	50-1
5	Normandy Invasion	Javier Castellano	Chad Brown	12-1
6	Mylute	Rosie Napravnik	Tom Amoss	15-1
7	Giant Finish	Jose L. Espinoza	Anthony W. Dutrow	50-1
8	Goldencents	Kevin Krigger	Doug O'Neill	5-1
9	Overanalyze	Rafael Bejarano	Todd Pletcher	15-1
10	Palace Malice	Mike Smith	Todd Pletcher	20-1
11	Lines of Battle	Ryan Moore	Aidan O'Brien	30-1
12	Itsmyluckyday	Elvis Trujillo	Eddie Plesa, Jr.	15-1
13	Falling Sky	Luis Saez	John Terranova II	50-1
14	Verrazano	John R. Velazquez	Todd Pletcher	4-1
15	Charming Kitten	Edgar Prado	Todd Pletcher	20-1
16	Orb	Joel Rosario	Claude R. McGaughey III	7-2
17	Will Take Charge	Jon Court	D. Wayne Lukas	20-1
18	Frac Daddy	Victor Lebron	Kenny McPeek	50-1
19	Java's War	Julien Leparoux	Kenny McPeek	15-1
20	Vyjack	Garrett Gomez	Rudy Rodriguez	15-1

Orb (7-2)

Thanks to a dazzling practice run earlier in the week, Orb came from behind to upset Verrazano and become the derby favorite. Orb is on the outside with the No. 16 slot but has the blazing speed to make up the extra ground. 

Orb is also a sentimental favorite among fans. Orb's jockey, Hall of Famer Shug McGaughey, has never won the roses. This could be the last best chance for the 62-year-old.

Verrazano (4-1)

Despite not being the favorite, this undefeated three-year-old might be the most well-regarded horse in the 2013 derby field. Verrazano drew the 14th post position—a pretty plum assignment given there is extra room there, thanks to the gab between slot No. 14 and slot No. 15, where the auxiliary gate begins.

Still, Verrazano will be racing against history, as well as 18 other horses. Verrazano started racing relatively late in life, and Saturday will be looking to become the first horse to win the derby without racing as a two-year-old since Apollo, all the way back in 1882.

Goldencents (5-1)

Goldencents has the best draw of the three top bets with the comfortable eighth slot, which has produced four derby champions since 1990, including 2009 upset winner Mine That Bird.

There is also good mojo on the trainer's side, as Doug O'Neill was also the trainer for last year's winner, I'll Have Another. 

Most importantly, though, is the fact that Goldencents is really, really fast. He held off Bob Baffert-trained speedsters Flashback and Super Ninety Nine to win the Santa Anita Derby in April.