2020 Kentucky Derby Postponed: What it Means for Sports Bettors

Due to concerns regarding the global coronavirus pandemic, like many other sporting events, the 146th Kentucky Derby (G1) has now been postponed. Bill Carstanjen, the CEO of Churchill Downs, announced that the most famous horse race in the US has been rescheduled from May 2. The event will now take place on September 5. What does this mean for sports bettors? Let’s find out.

Has the Kentucky Derby ever been postponed before?

The annual Kentucky Derby is the defining event in the horse racing calendar. It sets the stage for a Triple Crown pursuit, being the first of three legs, along with the the Preakness Stakes (G1) and the Belmont Stakes (G1). The postponement of the Derby is just the latest marquee sports event to be canceled due to concerns over the COVID-19 outbreak. The NCAA men’s and women’s basketball competitions and the NBA, NHL, and MLS seasons, as well as other sports, have all been canceled.

Is this the first time the Kentucky Derby has been postponed? Actually, the racing event has only been postponed once before, towards the end of World War II in 1945. At the time, the Office of War Mobilization deemed horse racing as an unnecessary expenditure of resources. So, all horse racing was banned in the US on January 3. When Nazi Germany was defeated on May 7, 1945, the ban was lifted, and the derby was run on June 9 that year.

What happens to Derby Future Wager pools?

You can keep up-to-date with all the latest developments and odds for the Kentucky Derby and other sporting events at reputable online sports betting platforms. And when this year’s Kentucky Derby finally takes place, you can catch the real-time action online too.

People who have already made bets with Churchill Downs will be wondering whether those wagers will still be honored. Well, there’s good news. According to Churchill Downs, following many internal and external discussions on how to best handle future wagers, all bets made in the future wage pool will continue to be honored. As long as a winner of the Kentucky Derby is announced in 2020, all future wagers remain intact.

Which horses are the futures favorites?

Betting on Kentucky Derby futures means you are wagering on the horse most likely to reach the tournament. At present, the top five horses in the Kentucky Derby Futures Pool 3 Odds are:

• Tiz the Law, with odds of 8/1
• All Other 3-Year-Olds, with odds of 9/1
• Ete Indian, with odds of 10/1
• Nadal, with odds of 10/1
• Authentic, with odds of 12/1

Types of Bets

There are six main types of wagers you can place on the Kentucky Derby itself. They are:

• Win: Bet on your chosen horse to win the race.
• Place: Bet on your chosen horse to finish either first or second.
• Show: Bet on your horse to finish first, second, or third.
• Exacta: Pick the two horses to come first and second, in order.
• Trifecta: Pick the first, second, and third horses in order.
• Superfecta:  Pick the first, second, third, and fourth horses in order.

How do you place bets on the Kentucky Derby?

There are various ways in which you can place a bet on the Kentucky Derby. Firstly, if you are lucky enough to attend the track when the event finally takes place, you can place bets with Churchill Downs itself. Simply head to a teller and make your bet. Other tracks beside Churchill Downs will also offer Kentucky Derby betting opportunities on the day of the event, so you can just visit your nearest track. Another option is to go to one of the many off-track betting shops throughout the US.

The easiest way of placing a bet is to wager online, as long as you are in a state which permits online horse race betting. The majority of states do allow it. Just make sure you use a regulated and legal site.