Kentucky Derby 2020 Contenders: Final Vegas Odds and Projections for Top Horses

The two-and-a-half-month wait between Triple Crown races ends Saturday. 

Tiz the Law will try to back up his Belmont Stakes triumph with a win at the Kentucky Derby. 

The horse trained by Barclay Tagg has been the most impressive three-year-old male horse in 2020, but now he needs to back that up with a victory against his most competitive field yet. 

Honor A. P. and Authentic headline the list of 15 challengers that will attempt to end the Triple Crown quest before it reaches the Preakness Stakes. 

Kentucky Derby Odds

2. Max Player (15-1)

3. Enforceable (21-1)

4. Storm the Court (21-1)

5. Major Fed (29-1)

7. Money Moves (14-1)

8. South Bend (32-1)

9. Mr. Big News (40-1)

10. Thousand Words (9-1)

11. Necker Island (39-1)

12. Sole Volante (25-1)

13. Attachment Rate (38-1)

14. Winning Impression (38-1)

15. Ny Traffic (16-1)

16. Honor A. P. (8-1)

17. Tiz the Law (6-5)

18. Authentic (9-1)

Projections for Top Horses

Tiz the Law

Tiz the Law has hovered around even money on the odds line for the majority of the week. 

After more money flows in on race day, he could enter the post with lower odds. It is almost guaranteed he will start as the race favorite. 

Making a case against Tiz the Law winning the Kentucky Derby is much more difficult than convincing someone he will take first. 

The New York-born horse has been untouchable over his last four races since he has been winning by three lengths or longer. 

Due to the unusual schedule, Tiz the Law competed in a non-Triple Crown race in between the first and second crown jewels. 

As he has done all year, he dominated his competition in the Travers Stakes, which included Derby horses Max Player and South Bend.

His dominance across the board has led many to believe Tiz the Law is up for the task of winning the Triple Crown, as Hall of Fame jockey Jerry Bailey told the Associated Press' Beth Harris. 

"He's checked all those boxes, and I believe he very well could win the Triple Crown this year," Bailey said. 

Tiz the Law has the luxury of marking his top competitors from the start. Honor A. P. and Authentic will go off to the left and right of him. 

Jockey Manuel Franco should have a good feel for how Tiz the Law handles the opening segment of the race, and if he manages it well by working up the field, the Belmont winner will be in the mix to win. 

Since he has shown the best finishing speed of any horse in the field, Tiz the Law should come out on top if he is within striking distance in the final few lengths.

Prediction: First 

Honor A. P. 

There is a reason why they do not adorn favorites with the spoils of a champion before the competition starts. 

Unlikely horses or the second-or-third-best thoroughbreds in the field could emerge from the pack and upset Tiz the Law. 

Honor A. P. trainer John Shirreffs noted those factors when talking about his horse's Derby chances, per Harris. 

"The odds don't guarantee anything," Shirreffs said. "We just have to see how the race is run."

Honor A. P. holds the best odds to surprise the Belmont champion and land in the winner's circle. 

He may not have a lengthy list of victories like Tiz the Law, but Honor A. P. has run at the front in his last three races and has one of the most experienced jockeys in the field scheduled to ride him. 

Mike E. Smith won the Kentucky Derby on two occasions with two different types of horses. He won with favorite Justify in 2018 and with 50-1 long shot Giacomo in 2005. 

If Honor A. P. runs at the same pace as Tiz the Law and makes a surge to the front at the same time, or slightly before, he could put Franco and his horse under pressure. 

At minimum, Honor A. P. should be in the mix for a high placing considering his past results and the experience on board. With that in mind, he should be considered for exotic bets, as well as a possible victory.

Prediction: Second

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Statistics obtained from KentuckyDerby.com