Kentucky Derby Prop Bets: Expect A Close Finish

The 148th running of the Kentucky Derby goes down Saturday at Churchill Downs and although the horse race lasts just two minutes, it’s one of the most popular sports betting events of the year. Besides your win, place, show bets, there’s a lot more action to get in on.

So whether you’re new to the sport or a seasoned expert, feast your eyes on a comprehensive list of the best Kentucky Derby prop bets provided by Sportsbook.

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For more coverage of the 2022 Kentucky Derby, check out the latest Kentucky Derby odds. We also have the field’s top contenders and the best Kentucky Derby picks.

While you’ll find Kentucky Derby props below, here are the top 10 odds to win the Kentucky Derby:

Bet On The Kentucky Derby

Odds as of May 7 at Sportsbook

What Are Kentucky Derby Prop Bets?

Before we get into the best prop bets, let’s kick off by explaining what a prop bet is and why you might use them for your Kentucky Derby picks.

Any serious horseplayers will know what a “prop bet” is, but for those of you who are more novice to this type of betting, let’s try to explain it in simple terms.

A prop bet is really a duel between two rivals or a bet that can produce one of two results.

The easiest way to think about a prop bet is by looking at a roulette table. In roulette, you bet on numbers or maybe the colors red and black.

So you pick either red or black. It’s a duel between the two who will win and it’s even, as there are 18 red numbers and 18 black numbers.

Kentucky Derby Prop Bets

There are so many different markets that will be available come race day but here are five of the top prop bets that our experts have chosen. These are great for both novice and experienced players.

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Kentucky Derby - First Half-Mile

In this bet, you are making a decision on whether the time will be OVER or UNDER a certain number of seconds.

Using your skills to judge the way the race will be run can give you an idea of how this one may play out. If there are lots of horses in the field that like to set the pace, then they will take each other on for the lead, which means that the UNDER bet is a more likely outcome.

If there are only a few horses that like to set the pace, then it might be wiser to go for the OVER bet as a more likely outcome.

See Odds Shark’s Best Horse Racing Betting Sites

Kentucky Derby - How Many Lengths Will The Sportsbook Win By?

This is another straightforward prop bet and one that is easy to understand.

With 20 runners and a highly competitive race, the finish is more likely to be close. It’s not customary for the race to be won by a big margin so betting the UNDER market here – which as you can see from the betting is the favorite – could be the best way to go.

However, if you feel the favorite Epicenter is a superstar and is going to win easily, then you are more likely to pick the OVER market price of -140.

Kentucky Derby - Head-To-Head Matchup

This is probably the most common prop bet you’ll find in horse racing, pitting one rival against another. Usually, they will include two horses who are close together in the outright betting odds. For the two favorites in the Kentucky Derby odds, it is a pick’em for who will come out ahead.

Epicenter and Zandon are in a pick’em. Now the beauty of this bet is that it does not matter where these horses finish in the race. Epicenter might win and Zandon might finish second. This means if you backed Epicenter, you would win.

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Now let’s say Zandon finished 19th and Epicenter finished 20th; if you backed Zandon, you would win. This is a great bet for both novice and expert horseplayers.

Weird and Wacky Kentucky Derby Prop Bets

We’ve looked at a few of the more conventional prop bets but the sportsbooks and racebooks like to come up with some weird and wonderful ideas for betting on the Kentucky Derby, and below are a couple that the more novice punter might enjoy.

Kentucky Derby - What Will Be The Color Of The Winning Horse?

The ladies are always great at picking out colors so this might be a fun bet to have by choosing the color of the winning horse.

Rest Of The Kentucky Derby Prop Bets

Best Kentucky Derby Betting Sites

Head-To-Head Kentucky Derby Matchups

Kentucky Derby Props and Specials

Kentucky Derby prop bets are fun horse racing wagers where you bet on things that aren’t directly related to the result of that specific horse race. Online sportsbooks let you wager on who the winning jockey will mention first in his post-race victory speech, or whether it will be a trainer’s first time winning the Kentucky Derby.

If you’d like to learn more about how to bet on the Kentucky Derby, check out our Kentucky Derby betting guide for tips and strategy on the Run for the Roses.