The first leg of this year’s horse racing Triple Crown takes place on Saturday, May 3, at Churchill Downs, the 2025 Kentucky Derby. Post time for the 151st Run for the Roses is 6:57 p.m. ET. Legendary trainer Todd Pletcher will look for his third Kentucky Derby win and will have one horse in the 2025 Kentucky Derby field. Pletcher’s sole contender among the 2025 Kentucky Derby horses is Grande, a 20-1 longshot in the 2025 Kentucky Derby odds. With a win at Churchill Downs on Saturday, Pletcher would become just the third trainer with three Kentucky Derby winners. Bob Baffert and Ben “Plain Ben” Jones are tied for the most all-time wins among Kentucky Derby trainers with six.
Journalism enters Churchill Downs as the 3-1 Kentucky Derby favorite, followed by Sovereignty (5-1) and Sandman (6-1). Should your 2025 Kentucky Derby picks include backing one of the favorites, or should you target one of the potential 2025 Kentucky Derby sleepers like Grande? Before making any 2025 Kentucky Derby picks, you’ll want to see what SportsLine horse racing expert Gene Menez has to say before making any 2025 Kentucky Derby picks or horse racing predictions.
A former reporter and editor at Sports Illustrated, Menez covered an array of sports, including horse racing, for the magazine and its website for almost 14 years. Between 2010 and 2012, he served as SI’s handicapper for the Triple Crown races and correctly predicted Super Saver to win the Kentucky Derby in 2010.
In 2015, Menez accurately gave out the Kentucky Derby superfecta, which paid $1,268.20 for $2. In 2017, he tweeted out his Kentucky Derby picks, including Always Dreaming to win, and hit the Pick 4, which paid almost $6,900 on a $1 bet.
In May of last year, Menez nailed 18-1 Mystik Dan as a live longshot in the Kentucky Derby. In November, he crushed the late Pick 4 on Breeders’ Cup Saturday for a $5,303 jackpot. This year, he hit the winner and exacta in the Holy Bull Stakes and the winner, trifecta and superfecta in the Florida Derby.
For the Run for the Roses, Menez has handicapped the 2025 Kentucky Derby field, made his picks and constructed his best bets. You can head to SportsLine now to see them.
Top 2025 Kentucky Derby predictions
One of Menez’ surprising 2025 Kentucky Derby picks: He is fading Sandman (6-1), even though he won the Arkansas Derby and is one of the top 2025 Kentucky Derby favorites. Sandman captured the 1 1/8-mile Arkansas Derby at Oaklawn Park on March 29, proving he has the pace to compete with the best 3-year-olds.
However, Sandman’s track record at Churchill Downs isn’t impressive. He’s finished third, fifth and fifth in his three runs at this track, including a third-place finish at the 2024 Street Sense behind Derby probables Sovereignty and Tiztastic. “He will shave to outfinish Sovereignty, who already proved he can outrun Sandman in a race with a pace meltdown when he did so in the Street Sense Stakes at Churchill Downs last year,” Menez told SportsLine.
Menez thinks a late charge to a third-place finish is the best-case scenario for Sandman, making him a horse to fade when finalizing how to bet the Kentucky Derby 2025. See which 2025 Kentucky Derby horses he likes at SportsLine.
How to make 2025 Kentucky Derby bets, picks
Menez’ top pick is a horse who “is bred to only get better with the added distance.” He’s also high on a double-digit longshot who owns “the most awesome turn of foot of any of the Kentucky Derby hopefuls.” Menez is sharing who he likes over at SportsLine.
Which horse wins the Kentucky Derby 2025, and which double-digit longshot is a must-back? Check out the latest 2025 Kentucky Derby odds below, then visit SportsLine to see Menez’ picks for the Kentucky Derby, all from the expert who called Mystik Dan as an 18-1 live longshot in last year’s race.