Kentucky Derby Wagering

He may have finished second in the Breeders Cup Juvenile race last fall, but Union Rags is first in the early odds to win the Kentucky Derby, according to online racebook Bodog.

Union Rags opened at 11/1 odds and will hit the Derby trail shortly with an eye to winning the Run For the Roses in May. The horse he lost to at the Breeders Cup, in a showcase of the best 2-year-old thoroughbreds, is down at 22/1 odds.

Hansen won the juvenile, but bettors know that the winner of the race very seldom wins the Kentucky Derby. Only Street Sense back in 2007 was able to translate Juvenile success into a Derby win. We all remember jockey Calvin Borel’s magical ride up the rail to win that day.

Ever So Lucky and Liaison are 20/1 in the early list and Creative Cause is 22/1 along with Hansen.

Closer to race day, hundreds of fun Derby props will be added to the odds menus. There will be horse matchups (picking one horse to finish ahead of another) and plenty of wagers on things such as overall attendance and the over under on the final time.

And Kentucky Derby hype always spills over into Triple Crown hype. No horse has won the three races comprising the Crown (Derby, Preakness Stakes and Belmont Stakes) since Affirmed in 1978. The odds are overwhelmingly against it happening as Bodog has it currently as -900 for the ‘no’ answer.