El Camino Real Derby Picks for the 2023 Race
If you are serious about betting horse races, you do not want to miss the El Camino Real Derby on Saturday, February 11 at Golden Gate Fields! A 1 ⅛-mile race over the Tapeta surface, it is the only Kentucky Derby points race in Northern California. As such, it always draws an eclectic mix of proven synthetic runners and Southern California dirt horses.
The race offers a $100,000 purse, 10-4-3-2-1 Road to the Kentucky Derby points, and an automatic bid to the Preakness Stakes for its winner. In 2021, Rombauer parlayed an El Camino Real victory into a Preakness win as well. Other horses to win both races include Tank’s Prospect (1985), Snow Chief (1986), and Tabasco Cat (1994); Tabasco Cat won the Belmont as well!
Who will add their name to the illustrious list of winners and join the fast track to Triple Crown-season glory? Keep reading to find out, and to learn the best places to bet the El Camino Real Derby online!
Betting the 2023 El Camino Real Derby Online
Before you place your bets on the 2023 El Camino Real Derby, make sure to sign up for a betting site with the best features and bonuses! You have many options, but our expert racebook reviews will help you choose the best option quickly and with confidence. All of our recommended racebooks have a great user interface, market-leading odds, and trusted cash-outs.
Online racebooks also offer big betting bonuses that you will never get at the racetrack. Those include horse racing rebates, deposit and sign-up incentives, and referral benefits. Picking the right bonus for your betting style can mean hundreds or even thousands of dollars in extra cash or free bets, so take a few minutes now to find the best bonuses for you!
The Best Online Racebooks
These are the best online racebooks for playing the 2023 El Camino Real Derby:
El Camino Real Derby Handicapping
With your betting account now set up, it is time to get to know the field for the 2023 El Camino Real Derby and focus on the horses you want to bet!
El Camino Real Derby 2023 Field
These are the likely entrants for the 2023 El Camino Real Derby including their trainers:
- Chase the Chaos (Ed Moger, Jr.)
- De La Luna (Quinn Howey)
- GIlmore (Bob Baffert)
- Happy Does (Felix Rondan)
- Harcyn (Steve Sherman)
- Mother’s Prayer (Steven Specht)
- Nullarbor (Bob Baffert)
- Passarando (Steven Specht)
- Sea Dog (O. J. Jauregui)
- Thirsty John (Peter Miller)
Jockeys, post positions, and morning-line odds will be released closer to the race date. When it is released, the morning line typically provides a good preview of betting action. However, you are not guaranteed the morning-line price if you bet at the track. You are at the mercy of the tote, which fluctuates until post time.
However, many online racebooks offer fixed-odds wagering, especially on major stakes races. This is a better bet because you can lock in an overlay when you bet on the race. You can know exactly what you’ll cash in if you win, and you are protected against late odds plunges.
 |  |  | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gilmore | TBA | TBA | TBA |
| Passarando | TBA | TBA | TBA |
| Thirsty John | TBA | TBA | TBA |
| Chase the Chaos | TBA | TBA | TBA |
| Nullarbor | TBA | TBA | TBA |
| Happy Does | TBA | TBA | TBA |
| Harcyn | TBA | TBA | TBA |
El Camino Real Derby Top Contenders
Passarando comes into the El Camino Real looking strong. Though he lost to Cal-breds last out, that was over the dirt in Southern California. He has been his best self over the Golden Gate Tapeta, and his versatile off-pace style should help him get just the right trip behind a likely contested pace. His pedigree also appeals strongly for the stretch out to nine furlongs.
Gilmore is the much better representative of trainer Bob Baffert, who has won two of the last three El Camino Reals. He broke his maiden the first time he stretched to two turns, and did so from off the pace after some early trouble. Though he has never tried a synthetic, he is by excellent synthetic sire Twirling Candy, giving him a chance to thrive.
Though Thirsty John will probably take money, take a stand against him. He will be part of a likely hot pace up front, and may not see it out. Tapeta also raises some questions, as he has never tried it and his pedigree appeals more for the dirt. Furthermore, though his trainer Peter Miller is a name trainer down south, he has yet to win this race.
El Camino Real Derby Exotics Horses
Chase the Chaos was dismissed at 65-1 two back in the Gold Rush, but finished a credible second to Passarando. He proved he was no fluke when returning in allowance company December 30 and winning by 7 ½ lengths. His rallying-from-midpack style should get the right setup in this race, and the Uncle Mo on bottom may give him a chance to stretch out to this trip.
Happy Does was the well-beaten second in Chase the Chaos’s last-out win, but he came back at the same level and one-mile distance January 21 and won in game fashion over a couple expected to return here, Mother’s Prayer and Sea Dog. An off-pace runner who has some versatility about where to sit, he is a reliable sort on Tapeta and should be able to get a piece.
Even though Harcyn won’t have it easy, he has enough upside to consider in exotics. He is part of the speed brigade, but he did win after being pressured early on debut. And, though Harcyn has yet to try a route distance (much less nine furlongs), being by Goldencents out of a Street Cry half to Giacomo and Tiago, Harcyn has a good chance to handle the challenge.
2023 El Camino Real Derby Free Picks
You know the best online racebooks for betting the El Camino Real Derby online, and the top contenders in the field. Now it is time for the best part of all: making your wager!
These are the best bets for Saturday’s 2023 El Camino Real Derby:
- $20 to win - Passarando
- $1 exacta key - Passarando with Chase the Chaos, Gilmore
- $0.50 trifecta key - Passarando with Chase the Chaos, Gilmore, Happy Does
- $0.20 superfecta key - Passarando with Chase the Chaos, Gilmore, Happy Does, Harcyn
