Kentucky Derby Field 2016: Pinpointing Contenders from All Horses and Jockeys

Following American Pharoah's run to the Triple Crown last year, anticipation is high for Saturday's 142nd running of the Kentucky Derby, as one horse will take the first step toward repeating that feat.

Nyquist is the clear favorite to do so due to his dominance and the strong team around him, but there are a number of potential contenders in the deep and talented field with a legitimate chance to end his impressive undefeated streak.

Along with a full listing of entrants and post positions for the 2016 Kentucky Derby, here is a closer look at some of the top horse-jockey combinations to watch in the Run for the Roses.

Post	Horse	Jockey	Odds
1	Trojan Nation	Aaron Gryder	66-1
2	Suddenbreakingnews	Luis Quinonez	20-1
3	Creator	Ricardo Santana Jr.	12-1
4	Mo Tom	Corey Lanerie	22-1
5	Gun Runner	Florent Geroux	9-1
6	My Man Sam	Irad Ortiz Jr.	20-1
7	Oscar Nominated	Julien Leparoux	66-1
8	Lani	Yutaka Take	28-1
9	Destin	Javier Castellano	14-1
10	Whitmore	Victor Espinoza	18-1
11	Exaggerator	Kent Desormeaux	15-2
12	Tom's Ready	Brian Hernandez Jr.	40-1
13	Nyquist	Mario Gutierrez	3-1
14	Mohaymen	Junior Alvarado	8-1
15	Outwork	John Velazquez	16-1
16	Shagaf	Joel Rosario	28-1
17	Mor Spirit	Gary Stevens	14-1
18	Majesto	Emisael Jaramillo	33-1
19	Brody's Cause	Luis Saez	14-1
20	Danzing Candy	Mike E. Smith	20-1

Nyquist

All signs point to Nyquist being the horse to beat at Churchill Downs, which is something no other horse has managed to accomplish thus far.

In addition to being a perfect 7-0, Nyquist landed a favorable post position at No. 13, which should allow him to get out in space and avoid getting caught up in traffic at any point in the race.

According to Jeremy Balan of Blood-Horse (h/t AmericasBestRacing.net), trainer Doug O'Neill is happy with the 13th slot since it could conceivably give Nyquist several different paths to victory:

"

The most interesting thing is Danzing Candy in the 20 hole. Is he going to send hard and try to clear? If he does, that may affect his energy late. If he doesn't send hard, is that going to make us make the lead? ... I wouldn't mind (the lead) at all. He's shown versatility to win on the lead or off the pace, so we've got options.

"

ESPN college basketball analyst Dick Vitale is among those who believe Nyquist is an even surer bet to win after the post draw:

Although it has been 12 years since a horse won the Derby from No. 13, David Grening of Daily Racing Form pointed out that there are some parallels between Nyquist and the last horse to do so:

In addition to that, Nyquist is surrounded by people who know how to get the job done at Churchill Downs.

O'Neill and jockey Mario Gutierrez combined to guide I'll Have Another to a Kentucky Derby victory in 2012, and they are seemingly in the driver's seat to take the win once again.

Gutierrez's experience and success in the Kentucky Derby figure to be huge factors Saturday since a clean trip may be all Nyquist needs to beat out the rest of the field.

Whitmore

Garry Jones/Associated Press

Every horse in the field aside from Nyquist has at least one blemish, but few have been as solid and consistent as Whitmore.

The three-year-old gelding has finished third or better in all but one of his six outings, including third in the Arkansas Derby and second in the Rebel Stakes.

He also has two wins to his credit, and trainer Ron Moquett believes the horse's confidence is high entering the Run for the Roses, according to Jonathan Lintner of the Courier-Journal: "He thinks he's a bad man. I'm not telling him differently. ... He's happy. That's the thing. I promise you we've kept the best weight and everything. He looks great."

Perhaps the biggest thing working in Whitmore's favor, though, is the presence of jockey Victor Espinoza.

The Mexico native is a three-time Kentucky Derby winner, including each of the past two. He also led American Pharoah to the Triple Crown last year, making him the unquestioned top jockey in the sport.

As seen in this tweet courtesy of Espinoza, he just recently met Whitmore:

"

Getting to know my @KentuckyDerby horse, Whitmore!  pic.twitter.com/bZkghMEBLH

— Victor Espinoza (@EspinozasVictor) May 3, 2016"

It is difficult to predict how the lack of synergy and familiarity will impact Whitmore in the Kentucky Derby, but Espinoza is a veteran who knows his way around Churchill Downs as well as anyone.

Whitmore is a middling contender in terms of the odds, but an Espinoza-guided horse should never be counted out, especially with a solid post position at No. 10, which should allow them to avoid any trouble.

Outwork

Garry Jones/Associated Press

Outwork doesn't have much experience compared to the rest of the field with just four races to his credit, but with three victories and one second-place finish, he has proven to be a worthy contender to win the Kentucky Derby.

The talented colt took the Wood Memorial in April, and trainer Todd Pletcher feels comfortable with his horse's form entering the Run for the Roses.

While Outwork generally likes to take the lead early and hold it, Pletcher doesn't anticipate that being the case. He has focused on getting Outwork used to coming off the pace and believes he is prepared to do precisely that Saturday, according to Tim Wilkin of the Albany Times Union. 

"He actually settled better, more so than when he was engaged head-to-head with another horse," Pletcher said. "He took dirt with no issue. He relaxes behind horses really well."

Pletcher is a former Kentucky Derby-winning trainer, and jockey John Velazquez is a Derby winner in his own right, which gives Outwork one of the best teams this year's race has to offer.

That combination is among the reasons why Jonathan Peterlin of Yahoo Sports Radio favors Outwork to win the first leg of the Triple Crown:

With Nyquist and Danzing Candy likely opting to move to the front of the field in the early going, Outwork must be kept in position to strike late by Velazquez.

The No. 15 post is a good place to employ that strategy from, and if Pletcher's tactics entering the race were as successful as he believes they were, Outwork may very well be Nyquist's most dangerous competition.

Follow @MikeChiari on Twitter.