
After a three-year suspension, Bob Baffert is eligible to enter horses into the 2025 Kentucky Derby. Baffert was banned from the last three editions of the Kentucky Derby stemming from his horse, Medina Spirit, testing positive for a banned substance after winning the race in 2021. Now reinstated, Baffert returns to Churchill Downs with history on his mind. Winning the Kentucky Derby 2025 would make him the first, and only, trainer to win The Most Exciting Two Minutes in Sports seven times. His horse with the best odds to do that is Citizen Bull, who has won four of five career starts. He’s at 9-1 in the latest 2025 Kentucky Derby odds, trailing only Journalism (5-1) and Sovereignty (7-1). The 151st Kentucky Derby will take place on Saturday, May 3 from Churchill Downs. Before making any 2025 Kentucky Derby picks, be sure to see the horse racing predictions and futures bets from SportsLine’s elite horse racing expert Jody Demling.
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 is up huge.
Now, with the 2025 Kentucky Derby futures already on the board, Demling is sharing his picks and 2025 Kentucky Derby predictions over at SportsLine. Go here to see them.
Top 2025 Kentucky Derby predictions
One of Demling’s surprising 2025 Kentucky Derby picks: He is fading Final Gambit, even though he is one of the top favorites and just won the Jeff Ruby Stakes. The Brad Cox-trained horse would become Cox’s first horse to cross the finish line first at the Kentucky Derby despite Cox having multiple starters in each of the last four Kentucky Derby races. Cox had two horses with the five-lowest odds favorites to win last year’s Kentucky Derby but still failed to leave Churchill Downs with the victory.
Final Gambit has never run in a race higher than a Grade III stakes, and he still has only won half of his four career races. Cox also trains Tappan Street, who also qualified for the Kentucky Derby. Entering the Kentucky Derby with multiple horses hasn’t bode well for Cox’s starters in the past and at 10-1 odds, Demling doesn’t see value in Final Gambit being the one to change that. See which other 2025 Kentucky Derby horses to avoid at SportsLine.
Another stunner: Demling is high on Coal Battle, even though he is a 14-1 longshot in the latest Kentucky Derby odds 2025. He has won five of six career starts on dirt, prevailing both on fast surfaces and on muddy tracks. The highlight of those was claiming the Rebel Stakes in late February. Coal Battle placed third in his last start at the Arkansas Derby, but the horse who won that race, Sandman, finished third to Coal Battle at the Rebel.
Coal Battle has the type of pedigree you want in a Kentucky Derby longshot as both his sire and grandsire won Graded Stakes races. Trainer Lonnie Briley hasn’t sent a horse to the Kentucky Derby before, but he’s no novice as the 72-year-old has over 3,000 starts under his belt. Demling loves the versatility of Coal Battle, with his ability to deploy several running styles, and of the horse at the Derby, Demling says “He could win a number of different ways.” See which other horses to back at SportsLine.
How to make 2025 Kentucky Derby picks, bets
Demling is especially high on an epic double-digit longshot who “could be a superstar.” Demling is sharing which horse it is, along with his entire projected 2025 Kentucky Derby leaderboard, 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 Demling’s picks for the Kentucky Derby, all from the expert who has nailed 11 Derby-Oaks doubles.
2025 Kentucky Derby odds, futures
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