Morning line favorite Forte will start from the No. 15 post position after the draw for Saturday’s Kentucky Derby was held on Monday at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky.
Forte, who won last month’s Florida Derby, is a 3-1 favorite for the first leg of the Triple Crown. Forte has won both races he has entered as a 3-year-old and has won six of seven career starts.
Post time for Saturday’s Run for the Roses is at 6:57 p.m. ET.
Tapit Trice is second at 5-1 in the 20-horse field and drew the No. 5 post. Tapit Trice won last month’s Blue Grass Stakes.
Todd Pletcher is the trainer for both Forte and Tapit Trice. He said he was happy with the draw.
“I’ve always said you can get good trips from bad post positions and bad trips from good post positions,” Pletcher said. “It’s really about how the race unfolds. But I do think the post positions do kind of affect strategies, and that can affect the outcome.”
Angel of Empire is the third choice at 8-1 and drew the No. 14 post, right next to Forte. Angel of Empire won last month’s Arkansas Derby.
Practical Move (No. 10) and Derma Sotogake (No. 17) are both 10-1. Derma Sotogake is vying to become the first Kentucky Derby winner from the No. 17 post.
At 12-1 are Two Phil’s (No. 3) and Kingsbarns (No. 6).
The longest shots are Reincarnate (No. 7), Sun Thunder (No. 13), Raise Cain (No. 16) and Continuar (No. 20) at 50-1.
Also eligible for the race are Cyclone Mischief, Mandarin Hero and King Russell. One, two or all three of those horses could enter the field if there are scratches by Friday morning.
Kentucky Derby post position, horse, trainer, jockey, odds
1. Hit Show, Brad Cox, Manny Franco, 30-1
2. Verifying, Brad Cox, Tyler Gaffalione, 15-1
3. Two Phil’s, Larry Rivelli, Jareth Loveberry, 12-1
4. Confidence Game, Keith Desormeaux, James Graham, 20-1
5. Tapit Trice, Todd Pletcher, Luis Saez, 5-1
6. Kingsbarns, Todd Pletcher, Jose Ortiz, 12-1
7. Reincarnate, Tim Yakteen, John Velazquez, 50-1
8. Mage, Gustavo Delgado, Javier Castellano, 15-1
9. Skinner, John Shirreffs, Juan Hernandez, 20-1
10. Practical Move, Tim Yakteen, Ramon Vazquez, 10-1
11. Disarm, Steve Asmussen, Joel Rosario, 30-1
12. Jace’s Road, Brad Cox, Florent Geroux, 15-1
13. Sun Thunder, Kenny McPeek, Brian Hernandez Jr., 50-1
14. Angel of Empire, Brad Cox, Flavien Prat, 8-1
15. Forte, Todd Pletcher, Irad Ortiz Jr., 3-1
16. Raise Cain, Ben Colebrook, Gerardo Corrales, 50-1
17. Derma Sotogake, Hidetaka Otonashi, Christophe Lemaire, 10-1
18. Rocket Can, Bill Mott, Junior Alvarado, 15-1
19. Lord Miles, Saffie Joseph Jr., Paco Lopez, 30-1
20. Continuar, Yoshito Yahagi, Ryusei Sakai, 50-1
–Field Level Media
