The Kentucky Derby and Kentucky Oaks are just over two months away. Before you spend all your money on admission tickets and the perfect hat, now’s the time to invest a little in that horse you’ve had your eye on. Pool 3 in the Kentucky Derby future wagers and the lone Kentucky Oaks future pool open Thursday, Feb. 27 at noon and run through Saturday, Mar. 1 before post-time of the Gotham Stakes (G3) or Santa Ysabel Stakes (G3). One remaining Kentucky Derby Future Wager pool will run Mar. 27 – Mar. 29.
The Future Wagers allow bettors the opportunity at higher odds than may be available on Derby Day or Oaks Day. However, there are no refunds if your horse doesn’t start in the Kentucky Derby or Kentucky Oaks or is injured or otherwise removed from consideration during pool wagering. Churchill Downs will immediately suspend wagering on a horse if it learns that something has happened to a horse to prevent it from entering the race.
Each of the Kentucky Derby and Kentucky Oaks pari-mutuel wagering pools offers bettors 23 individual betting interests and one “All Others.” The future wager pools offer a minimum $2 win wager only, no place or show wagering. Also offered is a minimum $2 straight exacta wager or a minimum $1 boxed exacta or part-wheel wager. Wagering interests for the Kentucky Derby Future Wager and Kentucky Oaks Future Wager pools are selected by a panel of horse racing experts, including Gary West, Brad Free, Ed DeRosa, and John Asher. Churchill Downs oddsmaker, Mike Battaglia, sets the morning-line odds for each of the betting interests.
Installed as the morning-line favorite in the Kentucky Derby Future Wager Pool 3 is the “All Others” option at odds of 6-1. Tied for first choice in the individual interests, at odds of 8-1, is Kiaran McLaughlin’s Holy Bull (G2) winner Cairo Prince and Claude “Shug” McGaughey’s Fountain of Youth (G2) third-place finisher Top Billing. Cairo Prince closed at odds of 26-1 in Pool 1 and 13-1 in Pool 2. Top Billing also closed at odds of 13-1 in Pool 2. Top Billing was not individually named in Pool 1 and would be included in the All Others which closed at odds of 4-5.
