Kentucky Derby 2016 Horses: Full Lineup, Favorites and Sleepers in 142nd Race

The posts are drawn. The odds are set. Now all that's left is actually running the 142nd Kentucky Derby. 

Saturday's race features a favorite on par with where American Pharoah sat a year ago. Around this time last year, Pharoah was a 3-1 favorite. That distinction now goes to Nyquist, who is attempting to follow Pharoah's path to Triple Crown greatness.

But the odds-on favorite is facing a field that's arguably more daunting than the one from 2015. Exaggerator is coming off a win of more than six lengths at the Santa Anita Derby. Creator took home the Arkansas Derby, Gun Runner was a Louisiana Derby champion and Mohaymen was an undefeated favorite before a fourth-place finish at the Florida Derby.

Overall, 15 of the 20 horses in the field are carrying odds of 20-1 or better. Half the field is at 15-1 or better. This is not a race where Nyquist is so head and shoulders above the field that it'd be shocking to see him lose. If you plotted Pharoah in this crowd, it'd be hard to see him win all three races—although he'd still be a favorite.

How does the whole field shake out now that the posts are set? Let's take a look and highlight some potential horse that could steal the show.

2016 Kentucky Derby Lineup

Post No.	Horse	Trainer	Jockey	Morning-Line Odds
1	Trojan Nation	Patrick Gallagher	Aaron T. Gryder	50-1
2	Suddenbreakingnews	Donnie K. Von Hemel	Luis Quinonez	20-1
3	Creator	Steven M. Asmussen	Ricardo Santana Jr.	10-1
4	Mo Tom	Thomas M. Amoss	Corey J. Lanerie	20-1
5	Gun Runner	Steven M. Asmussen	Florent Geroux	10-1
6	My Man Sam	Chad C. Brown	Irad Ortiz Jr.	20-1
7	Oscar Nominated	Michael J. Maker	Julien R. Leparoux	50-1
8	Lani	Mikio Matsunaga	Yutaka Take	30-1
9	Destin	Todd A. Pletcher	Javier Castellano	15-1
10	Whitmore	Ron Moquett	Victor Espinoza	20-1
11	Exaggerator	J. Keith Desormeaux	Kent J. Desormeaux	8-1
12	Tom's Ready	Dallas Stewart	Brian Hernandez Jr.	30-1
13	Nyquist	Doug F. O'Neill	Mario Gutierrez	3-1
14	Mohaymen	Kiaran P. McLaughlin	Junior Alvarado	10-1
15	Outwork	Todd A. Pletcher	John R. Velazquez	15-1
16	Shagaf	Chad C. Brown	Joel Rosario	20-1
17	Mor Spirit	Bob Baffert	Gary L. Stevens	12-1
18	Majesto	Gustavo Delgado	Javier Castellano	30-1
19	Brody's Cause	Dale L. Romans	Luis Saez	12-1
20	Danzing Candy	Clifford W. Sise Jr.	Mike E. Smith	15-1

Favorites

Nyquist (3-1)

The obvious front-runner. Nyquist has won all seven races he's participated in, including some high-profile gallops. He took down Exaggerator at the San Vicente Stakes and dominated Mohaymen at the Florida Derby. 

The Doug O'Neill-trained colt is also in the lucky No. 13 post. It's the same spot he won the Breeders' Cup Juvenile from last year, though Smarty Jones is the only winner from that spot since 1968. O'Neill has not seemed the least bit scared about Nyquist's readiness all week.

"What makes Kobe Bryant so much better than everyone else is he brings it to every practice, every workout," O'Neill said, per John Cherwa of the Los Angeles Times. "He would persevere throughout. Nyquist has days when he doesn't feel like training, but he brings it. He's got a great work ethic. He's competitive to the highest quality."

Winning at Churchill Downs would be something of a redemption story for O'Neill. The trainer pushed I'll Have Another to a triumph in 2012 and was one win away from a Triple Crown before controversy enveloped his run. He was suspended for wellness violations, and then I'll Have Another suffered a calf injury that forced him to scratch.

O'Neill had not won a major race since the suspension until last year. Given the controversy that's been prevalent throughout his career, getting a clean win on the biggest stage would be huge for his reputation. 

Exaggerator (8-1)

Charlie Riedel/Associated Press

There's a whiff of overratedness here to me. Exaggerator, yes, is coming off the best run of his career. He took home the Santa Anita Derby by 6 1/4 lengths and navigated a sloppy track in doing so. Few horses could have looked as strong under those circumstances.

There will be no horse pulling more for rain come Saturday. As of right now, the odds are looking decent. Weather.com currently has a 40 percent chance of precipitation, with most of it coming in the morning. Given the expected heatwave on Saturday, it's possible things dry up in time for a semi-normal track. But if that rain turns the Derby into a slop-fest, Exaggerator has a chance.

Otherwise, it's hard to see where the 8-1 odds are coming from. Exaggerator has lost more races than he's won. He's won two of his last six races. In the same Breeders' Cup Juvenile won by Nyquist, Exaggerator was sitting all the way in fourth.

This...isn't it.

Sleeper

Whitmore (20-1)

Garry Jones/Associated Press

In two words: Victor Espinoza. The jockey has taken home the last two Kentucky Derby crowns and three overall. 

This time, though, he won't be riding on a favorite. Whitmore has run six races in his career; he's won two. He has four straight podium finishes but can never seem to finish the job. Creator and Suddenbreakingnews defeated him at the Arkansas Derby, Cupid took him down at the Rebel Stakes and Suddenbreakingnews got the job done at the Southwest Stakes.

Still, Espinoza remains confident.

“The only time you don’t have a chance to win the Derby is when you don’t have a horse in the Derby," Espinoza said, per Jonathan Lintner of the Courier-Journal.

This will be more reminiscent of Espinoza's first Derby win. In 2002, he rode War Emblem to a title despite odds worse than 20-1. He'll need a similar streak of luck this time around and may have got it with his post draw. The No. 10 spot has posted the most winners in Kentucky Derby history with nine. 

Outwork (15-1)

It wouldn't be right to have a sleepers list and not include a Todd Pletcher-trained horse. Pletcher has only won one Kentucky Derby (2010), but he enters every year with multiple competitors.

This year's best shot may be Outwork, a colt that has entered only four races in his career. He's walked away with three wins and one second-place finish. Outwork took home the Wood Memorial last month and came in second behind Destin at March's Tampa Bay Derby. 

Also of note: Outwork and Nyquist are half brothers. Both come directly from former Derby contender Uncle Mo, a talented horse that was unbeaten in his first four career races before his career came to a screeching halt. The two do not share the same mare, but it's clear this weekend that Uncle Mo's bloodline is awfully strong.

Outwork also has John Velazquez at his side. The 44-year-old jockey won the 2011 Kentucky Derby atop the unheralded Animal Kingdom and carries a pair of Belmont Stakes victories on his mantle. The Preakness is the only one of the three major horse races Velazquez hasn't taken home.