Kentucky Derby Field 2016: Entries List, Betting Lines and Picks

The 2016 Kentucky Derby field is set. The odds for the 2016 Kentucky Derby are set. Odds are, even the hats people have picked out for their Saturday afternoons are set—or at the very least being made in some stylist's office.

All that's left is the Run for the Roses. Nyquist enters the event as an overwhelming favorite. His 3-1 odds are right on par with where American Pharoah was a year ago. The Doug O'Neill-trained colt is a winner of his first seven races, including triumphs over some of his biggest competition.

Nyquist defeated Exaggerator at the San Vicente Stakes in February. Then, for good measure, he took down Mohaymen at April's Florida Derby. Add in a triumph at the Breeders' Cup Juvenile last year, and Nyquist has a resume on par with the likes of Pharoah and California Chrome.

"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."

O'Neill is looking to overcome one of the most controversial reputations in the sport. He trained I'll Have Another to a win in 2012 and the Preakness Stakes before wellness violations began cropping up. I'll Have Another wound up being forced out of the Preakness due to a calf injury, but O'Neill wasn't done getting into trouble.

Post No.	Horse	Trainer	Jockey	Morning-Line Odds
1	Trojan Nation	Patrick Gallagher	Aaron T. Gryder	+6600
2	Suddenbreakingnews	Donnie K. Von Hemel	Luis Quinonez	+2000
3	Creator	Steven M. Asmussen	Ricardo Santana Jr.	+1200
4	Mo Tom	Thomas M. Amoss	Corey J. Lanerie	+2200
5	Gun Runner	Steven M. Asmussen	Florent Geroux	+900
6	My Man Sam	Chad C. Brown	Irad Ortiz Jr.	+2000
7	Oscar Nominated	Michael J. Maker	Julien R. Leparoux	+6600
8	Lani	Mikio Matsunaga	Yutaka Take	+2800
9	Destin	Todd A. Pletcher	Javier Castellano	+1400
10	Whitmore	Ron Moquett	Victor Espinoza	+1800
11	Exaggerator	J. Keith Desormeaux	Kent J. Desormeaux	+750
12	Tom's Ready	Dallas Stewart	Brian Hernandez Jr.	+4000
13	Nyquist	Doug F. O'Neill	Mario Gutierrez	+300
14	Mohaymen	Kiaran P. McLaughlin	Junior Alvarado	+800
15	Outwork	Todd A. Pletcher	John R. Velazquez	+1600
16	Shagaf	Chad C. Brown	Joel Rosario	+2800
17	Mor Spirit	Bob Baffert	Gary L. Stevens	+1400
18	Majesto	Gustavo Delgado	Javier Castellano	+3300
19	Brody's Cause	Dale L. Romans	Luis Saez	+1400
20	Danzing Candy	Clifford W. Sise Jr.	Mike E. Smith	+2000

In 2014, O'Neill was hit with yet another ban. He's been hit for positive tests and violations no fewer than 19 times in his career. This has all gone surprisingly unmentioned throughout the buildup to Saturday's race, but O'Neill is in a real redemptive position here.

"And then even if you get a clean trip, you've got to have a horse that can go a mile-and-a-quarter no matter what time it is. What I love about Nyquist's chances is he's won from the rail, he's won from the 12-hole, he's won wire-to-wire, he's won from just off the pace," O'Neill said, per UPI.com.

The two horses with the best chance at unseating Nyquist are ones he's already beaten. Exaggerator is sitting at +750 as of Thursday, a slight bump up from his 8-1 morning line status. While he's actually lost more races than he's won, Exaggerator is coming off a win of 6 1/4 lengths at the Santa Anita Derby in April.

Right now, the weather isn't playing into his favor. Exaggerator proved he can win on a sloppy track at Santa Anita. He almost didn't miss a beat. Unfortunately, the weather isn't cooperating. Weather.com is reporting there is only a 10 percent chance of rain, down from 40 percent earlier in the week. There were reports of morning showers that could have pushed things in Exaggerator's favor.

Now, the biggest competition may come in the form of Mohaymen. The colt was undefeated through his first five races before a disappointing fourth-place finish at the Florida Derby. He was the one many had pegged as the Derby favorite before Nyquist knocked him off in Florida.

“(Mohaymen) has had a bad 1:49 his whole life,” trainer Kiaran McLaughlin said, per Tim Wilkin of the Houston Chronicle. “That’s it. He has never missed a day of training. He is a great mover. And he will run in the afternoon.”

Winner	Place	Show
Mohaymen	Nyquist	Whitmore

Beyond the three at the top, there are some interesting names. Gun Runner is becoming a quick riser, already up to 9-1 odds coming off his Louisiana Derby win. The biggest sleeper in the race is arguably Whitmore, a horse that has Victor Espinoza in his stable. Espinoza has won the last two Derbys atop American Pharoah and California Chrome. 

“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.

Sitting at 18-1, he won't be riding a favorite. But Espinoza's first title came atop War Emblem, even less of a favorite. Creator and Mor Spirit are also solid outside chances at taking down Nyquist.

Given the depth of the field, it's arguable that we never would have had a Triple Crown winner last year if the horses were the same. 

Odds via Oddsshark.