Kentucky Derby Field 2013: Full Listing of Odds and Post-Position for Each Horse

With the starting bell of the 2013 Kentucky Derby mere hours from ringing, the time is now to start surveying the odds and picking some winners in the race.

A whopping 19 horses will be competing to be adorned with a blanket of roses at the end of the “Most Exciting Two Minutes in Sports,” making it tough to choose which contenders will hit the board.

Regardless, it’s worth a shot and I’ll be doing my best to help you identify some great bets to make on Saturday evening. Before we do that, lets take a look at the complete race information and the odds, post-position, jockeys and trainers for each contender.

Complete Race Information, Updated Field and Latest Odds

2013 Kentucky Derby | Churchill Downs, Louisville, Ky. | Purse: $2.18 Million | Grade I | Distance: 10 furlongs | Post Time: 6.24 p.m. ET

*Post positions and odds via KentuckyDerby.com

Post	Horse	Jockey	Trainer	Odds
1	Black Onyx	SCR	SCR	N/A
2	Oxbow	Gary Stevens	D. Wayne Lukas	25-1
3	Revolutionary	Calvin Borel	Todd Pletcher	5-1
4	Golden Soul	Robby Albarado	Dallas Stewart	31-1
5	Normandy Invasion	Javier Castellano	Chad Brown	8-1
6	Mylute	Rosie Napravnik	Tom Amoss	14-1
7	Giant Finish	Jose L. Espinoza	Anthony W. Dutrow	44-1
8	Goldencents	Kevin Krigger	Doug O'Neill	5-1
9	Overanalyze	Rafael Bejarano	Todd Pletcher	14-1
10	Palace Malice	Mike Smith	Todd Pletcher	26-1
11	Lines of Battle	Ryan Moore	Aidan O'Brien	42-1
12	Itsmyluckyday	Elvis Trujillo	Eddie Plesa, Jr.	11-1
13	Falling Sky	Luis Saez	John Terranova II	49-1
14	Verrazano	John R. Velazquez	Todd Pletcher	11-1
15	Charming Kitten	Edgar Prado	Todd Pletcher	32-1
16	Orb	Joel Rosario	Claude R. McGaughey III	6-1
17	Will Take Charge	Jon Court	D. Wayne Lukas	31-1
18	Frac Daddy	Victor Lebron	Kenny McPeek	15-1
19	Java's War	Julien Leparoux	Kenny McPeek	22-1
20	Vyjack	Garrett Gomez	Rudy Rodriguez	43-1

Long Shot to Watch: Frac Daddy 15-1

After starting out with much longer odds than this, it seems the public is finally catching on and realizing Frac Daddy has great potential to win the Run for the Roses.

He started off his prep career with a bang, dominating at Churchill Downs in his maiden and showing much promise before injuries derailed his training schedule earlier in 2013.

Frac Daddy suffered a gruesome gash on his leg and developed throat ulcers immediately after, putting him behind schedule. However, after a shaky comeback in the Florida Derby in late March, this colt finished just behind Overanalyze in the Arkansas Derby on April 13.

He seems to be rounding into shape and peaking at the right time, meaning Frac Daddy should be able to use his familiarity with the course, his elite stalking ability and blazing speed to finish near the front of the pack.

Prediction: Show

 

Contender That Will Hit the Board: Verrazano 11-1

Despite being neck-and-neck with Orb for favorite status throughout the early Derby Pools, Verrazano has dropped down to 11-1. He is now behind not only Orb, but also Goldencents, Revolutionary, Normandy Invasion and tied with Itsmyluckyday for odds to win in this event.

While the colt did not race as a two-year-old, he began his three-year-old career on January 1 and has some huge victories under his belt already. His run at the Tampa Bay Derby was legendary, and there is also a solid victory against a stout field in the Wood Memorial at Aqueduct.

If any contender could break the curse of Apollo (who was the last horse to win the Kentucky Derby without racing at age 2, all the way back in 1882), it’s Verrazano.

Unfortunately, I have him finishing a nose behind this next competitor and keeping the curse going for yet another year.

Prediction: Place

 

Projected Winner: Goldencents 5-1

Here’s the fastest horse in the race, one that has the ability to leave the rest of the field in his dust and win by a mile on Saturday evening.

Goldencents is getting much fanfare for his relationship to co-owner Rick Pitino and trainer Doug O’Neill—who won two of the three Triple Crown jewels with I’ll Have Another in 2012.

However, not enough attention is being paid to his pure speed figures, which show this horse can gallop to the finish line well before the pack. His top Beyer Speed Figure clocked in at 105, which is lengths ahead of Orb (97), Verrazano (95), Revolutionary (93) and the other top competitors in this race.

Of course his stamina is of concern, but I believe the initial lead that Goldencents jumps out to will be enough to keep the rest of the horses at bay in this 10-furlong run.

Prediction: Win