Kentucky Derby 2015: TV Schedule, Post Time, Undercard and Weekend Race Info

The 2015 Kentucky Derby is nearly upon us, as horse racing fans all across the globe get ready for a fantastic weekend of top-level action at Churchill downs. NBCSN and NBC will provide TV coverage of the event throughout the weekend's undercard, in anticipation of the first leg of the Triple Crown on Saturday.

American Pharoah (13-5) enters the weekend as the favourite to win this year's title, ahead of stablemate Dortmund (7-2), both trained by legendary trainer Bob Baffert. But unlike last year, the field running in the 141st edition of the Kentucky Derby is deep and incredibly strong, and a major upset could be on the horizon.

Let's have a look at the weekend race info, before we break down some of the key factors heading into the crown jewel of this weekend's action at Churchill Downs.

The TV schedule for the upcoming weekend:

Date	Event	Time (ET)	TV
Fri., May 1	Kentucky Oaks	12:30 p.m. - 6 p.m. ET	NBCSN
Sat., May 2	Derby Prep	12 p.m. - 4 p.m. ET	NBCSN
Sat., May 2	Kentucky Derby	4 p.m. - 7:30 p.m. ET	NBC

Post time for the Kentucky Derby is approximately 6:24 p.m. ET, via KentuckyDerby.com.

The undercard for Saturday's action, courtesy of the event's official website:

Post Time (ET)	Race
10:30 a.m.	Allowance Optional Claiming (3 years and older)
11 a.m.	Allowance Optional Claiming (3-year-olds)
11:30 a.m.	Maiden Special Weight
12:04 p.m.	Allowance Optional Claiming (3 years and older)
12:38 p.m.	Pat Day Mile Stakes
1:19 p.m.	American Turf Stakes
2:08 p.m.	Humana Distaff Stakes
2:59 p.m.	Churchill Distaff Turf Mile Stakes
3:51 p.m.	Churchill Downs Stakes
4:49 p.m.	Woodford Reserve Turf Classic Stakes
6:24 p.m.	Kentucky Derby
7:20 p.m.	Allowance Optional Claiming (3 years and older)
7:50 p.m.	Maiden Special Weight

And finally, the latest odds and post information for the Derby itself, via Odds Shark:

Post	Horse	Jockey	Trainer	Morning-Line Odds
1	Ocho Ocho Ocho	Elvis Trujillo	Jim Cassidy	50-1
2	Carpe Diem	John Velazquez	Todd Pletcher	17-2
3	Materiality	Javier Castellano	Todd Pletcher	14-1
4	Tencendur	Manny Franco	George Weaver	50-1
5	Danzig Moon	Julien Leparoux	Mark Casse	50-1
6	Mubtaahij	Christophe Soumillion	Mike de Kock	12-1
7	El Kabeir	Calvin Borel	John Terranova II	33-1
8	Dortmund	Martin Garcia	Bob Baffert	7-1
9	Bolo	Rafael Bejarano	Carla Gaines	40-1
10	Firing Line	Gary Stevens	Simon Callaghan	14-1
11	International Star	Miguel Mena	Mike Maker	22-1
12	Itsaknockout	Luis Saez	Todd Pletcher	33-1
13	Keen Ice	Kent Desormeaux	Dale Romans	50-1
14	Frosted	Joel Rosario	Kiaran McLaughlin	16-1
15	War Story	Joe Talamo	Tom Amoss	50-1
16	Mr. Z	Ramon Vazquez	D. Wayne Lukas	50-1
17	American Pharoah	Victor Espinoza	Bob Baffert	13-5
18	Upstart	Jose Ortiz	Rick Violette Jr.	22-1
19	Far Right	Mike Smith	Ron Moquett	33-1
20	Frammento	Joe Bravo	Nick Zito	Not available

Key Factors

American Pharoah And The Curse Of Post 17

Originally drawn to race from Post 18, favourite American Pharoah moved one slot following the scratching of Stanford on Thursday. As shared by Kent Taylor of WAVE TV, it's an ill omen for Baffert and Company:

America's Best Racing's Joe Kristufek warned racing fans not to get too excited over certain horses until the draw had been made:

American Pharoah will remain the favourite for Saturday's race, and for good reason. The colt dominated the field at the Arkansas Derby and has looked nothing short of amazing in the past few months.

At times, he has even looked like last year's winner, California Chrome, with his uncanny ability to put several lengths between himself and the competition in no time at all.

But superstitious punters may turn to some of the other horses in light of the draw, with Post 17 having never produced a winner. The field is incredibly deep this year, making it that much harder for American Pharoah to break a curse that has lived since the race's inception.

Contenders Everywhere

Outside of American Pharoah, there's stablemate Dortmund (7-2), who will enter the race undefeated. As reported by Jason Frakes of The Courier Journal, Baffert believes the giant colt may be the biggest horse he's ever trained:

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Baffert said Dortmund—at 17 hands—likely is the tallest horse he's ever trained, with former Breeders' Cup Sprint winner Midnight Lute also in the conversation. Dortmund's sire, 2008 Kentucky Derby and Preakness winner Big Brown, was 16.1 hands.

A hand is four inches, and horses are measured from the ground to the withers, which is where the neck joins the body. An average horse measures 16 hands.

Baffert said Dortmund weighs 1,280 pounds, well above the average thoroughbred weight of 1,100 pounds. By comparison, Baffert's American Pharoah—the likely Derby favorite—measures 16.1 hands and 1,170 pounds.

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Dortmund uses his long strides extremely well and is capable of shifting gear just as explosively as American Pharoah. He's battle tested and well used to winning, and he will start from the favourable Post 8.

Firing Line (14-1) gave Dortmund all he could handle in the Robert B. Lewis stakes and should never be overlooked. Neither should Carpe Diem (17-2), Frosted (16-1) or Mubtaahij (12-1), the international sensation that will have punters buzzing with anticipation.

The Irish-bred colt was winning races as a two-year-old against horses twice his age and has experience racing longer distances, via the National Thoroughbred Racing Association:

He's also trained by legendary trainer Mike de Kock, whose been taking a very casual approach to the race, via ESPN's Jeannine Edwards:

Given the recent struggles of international horses on American soil, Mubtaahij enters the race with manageable expectations. As far as dark horses go, he adds yet another layer to one of the closest and most exciting Derby's we've seen in years. Let's hope it manages to live up to its billing.

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