Kentucky Derby 2023 Odds: Latest Lines for Top Contenders and Dark Horses

With May just around the corner the horse racing world has its eyes set on Churchill Downs where the 2023 Triple Crown race will kick off with the 149th running of the Kentucky Derby.

Just a little more than a week from the race the 20-horse field is shaping up to be an intriguing one. Todd Pletcher-trained Forte is the early week favorite but those odds should tighten throughout the week as bettors familiarize themselves with the field.

The large field that typically runs in the Derby can make things unpredictable and that will once again be the case this year.

Last year's favorite Epicenter was beaten by longshot Rich Strike to kick off things with a real stunner.

This year everyone will be looking to identify who the next Rich Strike could be. Here, we'll take a look at the early list of probable starters and odds before breaking down a few horses who are sneaky good picks to pull off an upset.

Forte 5-2

Tapit Trice 6-1

Angel of Empire 8-1

Practical Move 8-1

Derma Sotogake 10-1

Kingsbarns 10-1

Mandarin Hero 16-1

Verifying 16-1

Mage 20-1

Two Phil's 20-1

Confidence Game 25-1

Disarm 25-1

Hit Show 25-1

Lord Miles 25-1

Rocket Can 25-1

Skinner 33-1

Major Dude 40-1

Reincarnate 40-1

Continuar 50-1

Cyclone Mischief 50-1

King Russell 50-1

Jace's Road 66-1

Raise Cain 66-1

Sun Thunder 66-1

Odds via Odds Checker

Derma Sotogake is one of two Japanese horses that figures to be in the Derby. Continuar will also be coming stateside to run for the Roses.

While Continuar is a steep longshot. Derma Sotogake is coming in at the middle of the pack as far as odds are concerned. There are a few reasons to believe the colt will outperform his race odds, though.

For one, he is coming off a win in the UAE Derby which featured a field of 13 horses, including a few American-bred entrants.

In that race, the Hidetaka Otonashi-trained colt broke from the gate with the lead as a 10-1 underdog but stormed out ahead to capture the win on a 1 3⁄16-mile track.

His ability to start fast and close the final lengths of the distance with some juice bodes well in a Derby race where getting a clean break can set up a successful trip and a surprise win.

Kingsbarns is going to be one of the toughest horses to project in this field. He didn't make any starts as a two-year-old and has just three races under his belt.

Those starts have all been impressive, though. He's won all three including a win in the Grade 2 Lousiana Derby in a field that included fellow Derby entrants Disarm, Jace's Road and Sun Thunder.

He's earned an Equibase speed figure of 100 in each of his last two races.

Trainer Todd Pletcher has plenty of experience with the Derby. He's trained two winners, Super Saver in 2010 and Always Dreaming in 2017.

Kingsbarns is a risky pick. He's certainly shown out in all of his starts but he'll be going against much more experienced horses in this field. How he'll react to the bigger field size and the pressure that comes with the talent in the race are hard to know.

Still, if he continues to build on his early performances he could give Forte a real challenge.

Verfiying is much more experienced than the first two colts on this list. The Kentucky-bred horse six career starts with two wins.

His resume as a two-year-old is fairly lackluster, but the recent progress has been encouraging. He finished second behind Tapit Trice in the Blue Grass Stakes in Keeneland. The prep race has produced 19 winners and is one of the top prep races historically.

That was a much better performance than his fourth-place finish at the Rebel Stakes at Oaklawn Park to close out February.

Brad Cox got his first Kentucky Derby win in 2021 with Mandaloun named the winner due ot the disqualification of Medina Spirit. Verifying represents a chance for him to get his second historic win, hopefully without waiting to find out if the original winner is going to be disqualified.

If you believe in Verifying's run at the Blue Grass Stakes against one of the favorites in this race to be a sign of things to come then he's a strong dark horse pick for the roses.