The 151st Kentucky Derby kicks takes place Saturday and will see multiple horses compete in one of the top horse races of the year and as the first step to winning a Triple Crown.
Here's a look at how to watch the race, the betting odds and some of the famous horse owners.
How to Watch 2025 Kentucky Derby: The 2025 Kentucky Derby takes place on Saturday, May 3, from Churchill Downs, which is a unit of Churchill Downs Inc (NASDAQ:CHDN).
The track will host a full lineup of races during the day, with the Kentucky Derby expected to begin at 6:57 p.m. ET.
Live coverage of the Kentucky Derby and some of the other races of the day begins at 2:30 p.m. ET on NBC and streams on Peacock, which is a unit of Comcast Corporation (NASDAQ:CMCSA).
Betting Odds: Hundreds of millions of dollars will be bet on the Kentucky Derby with sportsbooks like DraftKings Inc (NASDAQ:DKNG) and Flutter Entertainment (NYSE:FLUT) owned FanDuel offering horse race betting.
Churchill Downs will likely be the big winner as the host of the race. The company set betting records for betting handle for last year's full Saturday card and the Kentucky Derby race.
Here are the current betting odds for the 2025 Kentucky Derby, which will likely continuously change up until post time of the race.
- 1. Citizen Bull, 20-1
- 2. Neoequos, 30-1
- 3. Final Gambit, 30-1
- 5. American Promise, 30-1
- 6. Admire Daytona, 30-1
- 7. Luxor Café, 15-1
- 8. Journalism, 3-1
- 9. Burnham Square, 12-1
- 11. Flying Mohawk, 30-1
- 12. East Avenue, 20-1
- 13. Publisher, 20-1
- 14. Tiztastic, 20-1
- 15. Render Judgment, 30-1
- 16. Coal Battle, 30-1
- 17. Sandman, 6-1
- 18. Sovereignty, 5-1
- 19. Chunk of Gold, 30-1
- 20. Owen Almighty, 30-1
- 21. Baeza, 12-1
The odds come with two horses scratched ahead of the race.
Along with sportsbooks offering bets on the Kentucky Derby, prediction marketplace Polymarket also has a market for the race. Journalism is the favorite on Polymarket at 27%, followed by Sovereignty at 15% and Sandman at 13%.
Read Also: Churchill Downs Analyst Bullish About Kentucky Derby, New Virginia Gaming Resort: ‘Sustainable Double-Digit Growth’
Famous Owners: Several of the horses taking part in the 2025 Kentucky Derby have famous owners that include celebrities, athletes, social media influencers and public company CEOs among their ownership groups.
Kentucky Derby favorite Journalism counts media magnate John Malone as a co-owner. Malone is the Chairman of Liberty Media (NASDAQ:LLYVA), Liberty Global (NASDAQ:LBTYA) and other media ventures.
Famous billionaire investor George Soros is the owner of SF Racing Syndicate, who was scheduled to have two horses in this year's Kentucky Derby. Rodriguez has been scratched, leaving Soros with Citizen Bull as his lone horse in the race. Just like hoping for a bull stock market, Soros will be hoping for a bull to win the Derby.
Render Judgment is co-owned by Dream Walkin' Farms, a horse racing venture started by late country singer Toby Keith. The racing venture is now run by Keith's sister Tonni Covel, as reported by the Lexington Herald Leader. Keith dreamed of having a horse in the Kentucky Derby and while he isn't alive to see that feat come true, he was close to living out that legacy.
Sandman is co-owned by St. Elias Stables. Vincent Viola, who is the founder and Executive Chairman of Virtu Financial (NASDAQ:VIRT), is the owner of St. Elias Stables. Viola also owns the Florida Panthers NHL team.
Social media influencer Griffin Johnson is also included in the ownership group for Sandman.
Dutch Bros Inc (NYSE:BROS) co-founder and Executive Chairman Travis Boersma owns the Flying Dutchmen racing operation, which owns Owen Almighty. Fans of the coffee chain may be rooting for Owen Almighty to win the race.
Flying Mohawk is owned by Two Eight Racing, a venture from former MLB player Jayson Werth. The former MLB player also had a horse in last year's Kentucky Derby. Werth played for the Toronto Blue Jays, Los Angeles Dodgers, Philadelphia Phillies and Washington Nationals during his MLB career.
Grande, who was one of the horses scratched, is owned by Mike Repole. The beverage titan is best known for founding Vitaminwater maker Glaceau and BodyArmor, two companies that are owned or co-owned by The Coca-Cola Company.
Those watching and betting on the Kentucky Derby can choose based on a horse’s name, their racing history, betting odds or perhaps based on rooting interest in one of the famous co-owners.
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Photo: Shutterstock
