2013 Kentucky Derby Favorites: Highlighting Odds for Top Contenders

The dirt track at Churchill Downs is turning into a muddy mess, causing betting lines for the 2013 Kentucky Derby to shift in favor of horses that are better suited to win in sloppy conditions.

Rain has fallen throughout the day, and as the race draws near, the intensity has increased, causing officials to downgrade the track to "sloppy," according to the Huffington Post:

The 139th annual Derby will be one we remember for years to come thanks to these conditions, and the winning horse could end up being one nobody saw coming. 

That said, there are a few favorites that will likely see the lion's share of betting money fall to them. These horses have excellent pedigrees, a track record of winning races and are trained by the best in the business.

Here are the latest odds being given for each horse, courtesy of KentuckyDerby.com:

Post	Horse	Jockey	Trainer	Odds
1	Black Onyx	Joe Bravo	Kelly Breen	SCR
2	Oxbow	Gary Stevens	D. Wayne Lukas	22-1
3	Revolutionary	Calvin Borel	Todd Pletcher	5-1
4	Golden Soul	Robby Albarado	Dallas Stewart	29-1
5	Normandy Invasion	Javier Castellano	Chad Brown	8-1
6	Mylute	Rosie Napravnik	Tom Amoss	13-1
7	Giant Finish	Jose L. Espinoza	Anthony W. Dutrow	35-1
8	Goldencents	Kevin Krigger	Doug O'Neill	7-1
9	Overanalyze	Rafael Bejarano	Todd Pletcher	14-1
10	Palace Malice	Mike Smith	Todd Pletcher	22-1
11	Lines of Battle	Ryan Moore	Aidan O'Brien	32-1
12	Itsmyluckyday	Elvis Trujillo	Eddie Plesa Jr.	9-1
13	Falling Sky	Luis Saez	John Terranova II	36-1
14	Verrazano	John R. Velazquez	Todd Pletcher	9-1
15	Charming Kitten	Edgar Prado	Todd Pletcher	29-1
16	Orb	Joel Rosario	Claude R. McGaughey III	7-1
17	Will Take Charge	Jon Court	D. Wayne Lukas	32-1
18	Frac Daddy	Victor Lebron	Kenny McPeek	22-1
19	Java's War	Julien Leparoux	Kenny McPeek	25-1
20	Vyjack	Garrett Gomez	Rudy Rodriguez	31-1

Highlighting Top Contenders

Revolutionary: 5-1 Odds

This hard-charging horse will churn through the mud with abandon and is now the betting favorite to win. As the track gets sloppier, Revolutionary's chances of winning increase.

Revolutionary is a big, strong horse with the "pedigree to love mud," according to ESPN.com's Bob Ehalt. He has the ability to fight through traffic and has won two recent races by a neck, proving he has a temperament that is impervious to adversity.

He has also won previously on a wet track, according to Yahoo! Sports' Pat Forde, which is another reason for his emergence as the top horse in this race:

Ridden by jockey Calvin "Bo-Rail" Borel, Revolutionary shouldn't have any difficulty fighting for position from his No. 3 post—especially in light of Black Onyx's scratch. 

Goldencents: 7-1 Odds

Partially owned by Louisville men's basketball head coach Rick Pitino, Goldencents brings pure speed to the track at Churchill Downs. 

According to James Scully of BrisNet.com, this horse owns the "top last-race BRIS speed rating (106)" of any horse entered to race at Churchill Downs. 

Goldencents is trained by last year's Derby winner Doug O'Neill, who was pleased at his horse landing the No. 8 post for this race. According to the AP (via the Boston Globe), O'Neill said, "It should be perfect for him."

This horse has won three of the five races entered in 2013. In addition to Pitino's star power, Goldencents is ridden by African-American jockey Kevin Krigger, who aims to become the first African-American Derby winner since 1902.

Orb: 7-1 Odds

After landing post No. 16 on Wednesday, Orb was considered to be the betting favorite. 

Then, the rain moved in and caused oddsmakers to temper expectations for this horse, which has never before won on a wet track. 

That said, Orb's pedigree is such that he has maintained his status as one of the top horses in the race. According to Jennie Rees of the Courier-Journal.com:

"

Orb directly traces to a mare, Claiborne-bred Bold Irish...that direct line produced one of American racing’s most legendary horses – the brilliant and unbeaten filly Ruffian, who suffered fatal injuries in the 1975 match race with Kentucky Derby winner Foolish Pleasure. It also produced Private Terms, who went into the 1988 Kentucky Derby unbeaten...

"

Additionally, Orb has won four straight races heading into the Derby and is being touted by SI.com's Richard Deitsch and Tim Layden:

The biggest concerns will be whether or not this horse has what it takes to win on a wet track and whether or not it has the pure speed to keep up with the other top horses. 

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