Kentucky Derby 2020 Odds: Best and Worse Horse-Jockey Tandems to Bet

Last year's Kentucky Derby was an interesting one for bettors after Maximum Security, one of the pre-race favorites, was disqualified for impeding War of Will.

Maximum Security bettors' emotions changed from ecstasy to agony at that moment, and in turn, enterprising gamblers who felt lucky enough to bet on 66-1 Country House struck rich.

It's unlikely we will see such a dramatic turn of events this time around, but you never know how the Kentucky Derby, which has featured plenty of surprises during its 145-year run, will shake out.

Here's a look at the odds as of Friday morning alongside some analysis on horse-jockey tandems to back (and a few to avoid).

Odds

Tiz the Law: 6-5

Honor A. P.: 7-1

Authentic: 8-1

Thousand Words: 10-1

Money Moves: 14-1

Max Player: 14-1

Ny Traffic: 19-1

Enforceable: 24-1

Major Fed: 25-1

Storm the Court: 26-1

Sole Volante: 28-1

South Bend: 35-1

Finnick the Fierce: 35-1

Necker Island: 42-1

Mr. Big News: 48-1

Attachment Rate: 48-1

Winning Impression: 51-1

Source: Official Kentucky Derby Website

Best Horse-Jockey Tandem to Bet (Safety)

This isn't exactly a hot take: Tiz the Law has 6-5 odds to win, meaning it's nearly a coin flip to pick him against the entire field combined.

There isn't much of a reason to bet against the favorite. He looked great in his last race at the Travers Stakes on August 8, winning by five-and-a-half lengths. He got the job done at the Belmont Stakes with relative ease down the stretch, which featured little drama as he cruised to victory.

Tiz the Law and jockey Manny Franco, who has ridden the colt for all four of his wins this year, are battle-tested, successful and very likely to win.

Betting on Tiz the Law at the Kentucky Derby doesn't bring the safety that, say, Secretariat brought to bettors at 1-10 during the 1973 Belmont Stakes, though. This is still a deep field with 18 horses, and anything can happen.

But Tiz the Law has lived up to his lofty billing thus far, and the withdrawal of previous top contender Art Collector only slants the odds in his favor. If you're looking for the likeliest profit on your betting investment, take Tiz the Law and Franco at 6-5.

Best Horse-Jockey Tandems to Bet (Value)

Sure, Tiz the Law is the favorite, but you're not getting a great return on that investment. You can find better values elsewhere.

For example, a step down to Honor A. P. and Authentic returns seven or eight times your money, respectively.

But let's live a little and look further down the odds ledger to see if there's a middle-of-the-pack horse who can give you a better ROI.

A look at how the odds shifted from Wednesday to Thursday may hint at bettors' confidence in some longer shots. For example, Money Moves was 30-1 but has since moved to 14-1. South Bend moved from 50-1 to 35-1, and Max Player is 14-1 after finding himself at 30-1.

Money Moves, who will be ridden by Javier Castellano, only has three races to his name but has won twice and finished second the other time.

South Bend, who will be ridden by Tyler Gaffalione, finished fourth in a tough Travers Stakes field that featured winner Tiz the Law and third-place finisher Max Player.

Speaking of which, Max Player (jockey: Ricardo Santana, Jr.) has won two of his last four races. He took third in the two others, which Tiz the Law won.

Again, Tiz the Law is your likely winner, but if you're looking to take a few risks deeper down the odds list, consider any of these contenders.

Worst Horse-Jockey Tandems to Bet (Overall)

If you're hoping to strike rich on the Derby and bet on a long shot to win a la 66-1 Country House in 2019 and 50-1 Giacomo in 2005, then you're playing with fire.

That isn't an indictment on the horse-and-jockey talent in the deep-end range: Mr. Big News has won a pair of races, Attachment Rate has a win in 2020, and Finnick the Fierce finished an impressive third in the Arkansas Derby.

On the jockey side, Gabriel Saez has three Derby races on his resume including a second-place finish with Eight Belles in 2008, per Jason Frakes of the Louisville Courier-Journal.

Dale Romans will be on Attachment Rate, and he's been in the Run for the Roses 10 times with a pair of third-place finishes.

Martin Garcia has four Derby races to his name (and one third-place finish), and he'll be on Finnick the Fierce, who finished ahead of Tiz the Law in the only race the favorite has lost (the 2019 Grade 2 Kentucky Jockey Club Cup).

The bottom line is that the most successful horses in this portion of the odds ledger have some credible and experienced jockeys.

The problem is that won't be enough to solve the puzzle of beating Tiz the Law, which no horse or jockey has come close to figuring out during his four victories in 2020.