Horse racing’s Triple Crown season gets underway on Saturday at Churchill Downs when the 2025 Kentucky Derby goes to post at 6:57 p.m. ET. “The Fastest Two Minutes in Sports” is the culmination of months of Kentucky Derby prep races. Now that the 2025 Kentucky Derby posts are set and the 2025 Kentucky Derby odds are out, bettors are studying the 2025 Kentucky Derby field and looking for the best values. Three of the 2025 Kentucky Derby horses are getting single-digit odds, let by Journalism (3-1). The other two top 2025 Kentucky Derby contenders according to oddsmakers are Sovereignty (5-1) and Sandman (6-1). Owen Almighty, American Promise, Admire Daytona and Coal Battle are among the biggest longshots at 30-1, giving anyone making 2025 Kentucky Derby bets a range of options. With so much to consider while making your 2025 Kentucky Derby picks, a little expert help can go a long way.
If the 2025 Kentucky Derby betting trends continue, the Kentucky Derby 2025 will generate a bigger handle than any edition before it. Last year set the record of $320 million, which topped the previous record set in 2023 of $288.7 million. The largest nine all-sources handles in derby history have come over the last 10 years, with the one outlier being the 2020 derby, which had no spectators due to the pandemic. Figures for the Kentucky Derby handle are available as far back as 1980, and that year’s race, which had no off-track betting, had just over $10 million. The 2000 Kentucky Derby was the first to reach $100 million in betting handle, and if the handle increases at its current rate, then the 2025 Kentucky Derby is projected to be the largest in history.
Given all the history, there’s a method to picking which horses to focus on for exacta, trifecta and superfecta bets in a Kentucky Derby like this, and SportsLine expert Jody Demling knows what it is. He can help you make the best 2025 Kentucky Derby picks possible.
A fixture in the horse racing world who has been writing about, talking about and betting on races for years, Demling has nailed the Kentucky Oaks-Derby double 11 times in the last 16 years. He also predicted the winner of the Belmont Stakes four of the last seven years and called 10 of the last 20 Preakness winners, including in 2023, when he hit the winner, exacta, trifecta and superfecta, as well as the trifecta in 2024. Anyone who has followed him on those picks could be up huge at sites like FanDuel Racing, TwinSpires, and 1/ST BET.
Now, with the 2025 Kentucky Derby post positions set and odds on the board, Demling is sharing his picks and 2025 Kentucky Derby betting predictions over at SportsLine. Go here to see them.
Top 2025 Kentucky Derby expert picks
Here’s a refresher on these types of bets from SportsLine’s Jody Demling:
Kentucky Derby Exacta: Pick the first- and second-place finishers in the correct order. A $2 exacta returned $258.56 at the 2024 Kentucky Derby with Mystik Dan and Sierra Leone.
Kentucky Derby Trifecta: Pick the first-, second- and third-place finishers in the correct order. A $1 trifecta returned $1,113.84 at the 2024 Kentucky Derby with Mystik Dan, Sierra Leone and Forever Young.
Kentucky Derby Superfecta: Pick the first-, second-, third- and fourth-place finishers in the correct order. A $1 superfecta returned a colossal $8,254 at the 2024 Kentucky Derby with Mystik Dan, Sierra Leone, Forever Young and Catching Freedom.
While Demling has no quibbles about the favorite status of Journalism (3-1), the Michael McCarthy-trained colt isn’t his top pick. Instead, he is building his tickets around Luxor Cafe (15-1) and an even bigger longshot who is “generating buzz on the backside,” spicing up his 2025 Kentucky Derby exotics. You can see his picks here.
How to make 2025 Kentucky Derby bets
Demling has specific recommendations for exacta, trifecta and superfecta wagers so you can cover all your bases at the Kentucky Derby 2025. He’s sharing them over at SportsLine.
So which horses do you take? And in what combinations? Visit SportsLine to get Demling’s picks for exacta, trifecta and superfecta bets for the 2025 Kentucky Derby.