When it comes to horse racing there are few things that are more exciting that the running for the roses, or aptly named the Kentucky Derby.  Widely considered the most exciting two minutes in sports, the race is the craziest thing you will see in the horse racing today.  I mean, really, 20 of the best horses in the entire world screaming down the track bumping and bruising each other all in the longest race they will have run in their entire lives to that point.  On top of that, the pomp and circumstance of the day is world known with mint julip’s and large hats adorning the female contingent at the race.  And to top all of that off the payouts on the race have been mind boggling over the past couple decades.  All of this makes a Kentucky Derby horse racing system all the more important.

With that in mind, we need to key on some things that all of the winners have in common.  Or at least what most of them have in common.  I’m not here to say that you could have an easy way to ferret out that Mine That Bird would win the 2009 Kentucky Derby going away.  Given the odds on that horse I would be very suspicious of anyone that would claim such a thing.   None the less, we need to consider the Mine That Bird’s and Giacomo’s of the horse racing world in the addition to the Barbaro’s and Big Brown’s.  Without further adieu, here is a list of the things that you should be taking into consideration when you look to place your bets.

Jockey at the Kentucky Derby

Here is one thing that we can take away from the 2009 derby.  Calvin Borel rode a race for the ages on Mine that Bird

Few will forget the great ride by Calvin Borel in the 2009 Kentucky Derby. It is a great example of a jockey having a considerable impact on what horse won the race.

and found a way to capture the rail and scoot into an improbable win.  This is something that is shared by most of the derby winning horses, a jockey that has been there before.  This was shared by the horses in 2009 (Mine That Bird), 2008 (Big Brown), 2007 (Street Sense), and 2006 (Barbaro) as perfect examples.  Now to be fair, there are obviously more than 1 or 2 experienced jockeys in the field each year.

An Experienced Trainer Can Be A Harbinger of a Kentucky Derby Winner

When it comes to the derby few things can truly get a person ready for all that goes on.  Given that this is often the largest race in a trainers career the first time they enter the race it is no surprise that not many first time trainers win in the derby.  One should look to see if the trainer of a given horse has been in the derby before and also how his horses fared.

Raise A Native a Force In The Kentucky Derby

When it comes to lineage there is a driving force in winning this race.  And the name to keep in mind is Raise A Native.  This horse is on the sire’s lineage and is quite strong in determining a legitimate charge in this race.  In fact, from 2000 to 2004 every winner drew his lineage through the Raise A Native line on the sire’s side.  In the recent past 2 notable exceptions come to mind which are Big Brown and Barbaro which don’t follow this line (Northern Dancer and Turn To respectively).  The key things with both of these horses is that they were two of the bigger freaks in horse racing of the past 20 years, which is something to keep in mind.  In other words, if the horse isn’t a physical specimen you would be better served finding a charge that has the Raise A Native line backing his blood.

Post position is a key factor in the Derby

When there are 20 horses fighting to the largest prize in horse racing it can get a bit crowded to say the least.  It is this very reason that an inside post (positions 1 to 4) can be a large hindrance to a horse’s chances at winning.  For a similar reason, the outside posts lead to an even longer route to the finish for the horses starting there.  Given the distance of this race is the longest they have ever faced to date (and unless they end up running the Belmont Stakes, it will almost assuredly be the longest of their entire career) this can be a consternating factor.

Look Keenly At The Kentucky Derby Prep Races

A key thing to note is that the majority of winners have had a couple of key things in their recent histories.  They have both taken part in a race that is 1 1/8 miles in length (the longest of their careers to that date and the longest available outside of the Kentucky Derby and Belmont Stakes) and they finished in the top 3 in that race.  This isn’t a hard fast rule, but it does go along with many horses that have won this prestigious race.

So there you have some key things to look at when handicapping the Kentucky Derby.  Take the above things into account and you will have a leg up the competition.  If you can find many of the above attributes on a horse that is at long odds you have a formula that could be very lucrative for you.