Kentucky Derby 2025 Contenders, Horse Pedigree and Jockey Info for Top Favorites

Three horses come into the 2025 Kentucky Derby as clear favorites among the 20-horse field.

Journalism, Sovereingty and Sandman are the only horses currently listed under 10-1 to take the first leg of the Triple Crown.

Each of the three favorites boasts a remarkable resume in the buildup to the Derby and all of them have established jockeys on board.

Kentucky Derby Lineup

Top Contenders

Journalism (Jockey: Umberto Rispoli)

Journalism is the horse to beat on paper.

The current pre-race favorite won each of its last four starts, with the last one being the Santa Anita Derby.

Journalism will be the pick of many people going into Saturday. The horse and its jockey Umberto Rispoli are both used to winning.

Rispoli is one of the winningest European-born jockeys and he's won a handful of the most notable international races.

However, if there is one knock against the Rispoli-Journalism duo it's that the Italian jockey has not won an American Triple Crown race.

Sovereingty (Jockey: Junior Alvarado)

Second-favorite Sovereingty comes to Churchill Downs off back-to-back wins and a second-place finish in his last three races.

Sovereignty won the Fountain of Youth Stakes in March and followed that up with a second-place mark behind Tappan Street at the Florida Derby.

The horse drawn in post 18 has an edge in his team compared to Journalism since trainer William Mott won the Kentucky Derby in 2019.

Jockey Junior Alvarado has had an accomplished career, but like Rispoli, he is after his first American Triple Crown victory.

Sandman (Jockey: Jose Ortiz)

Sandman found his form in his last race, the Arkansas Derby, where he took first place.

The third favorite produced a second-and-third-place finish in his first two starts of 2025 prior to Arkansas.

Just like Journalism and Sovereingty, Sandman is used to finishing at the front, but the horse starting in post No. 17 has one clear edge compared to the other two favorites.

Jockey Jose Ortiz won the 2017 Belmont Stakes with Tapwrit and the 2022 Preakness Stakes with Early Voting. A win on Saturday would complete the personal Triple Crown for the 31-year-old.