Kentucky Oaks: Leslie's Rose can get clean stalking trip
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A full field of the best sophomore fillies in the country will line up at Churchill Downs on Friday, May 3 for the 2024 Kentucky Oaks! Betting the Kentucky Oaks is one of the most exciting wagering opportunities of the season, since the field is so bid, the runners are so classy, and the race is so challenging.
The Kentucky Oaks is a 1 ⅛-mile race on the Churchill Downs dirt. The purse has been raised in 2024 to $1.5 million, perfect for celebrating the 150th anniversary of this historic race. In addition to the purse, the spoils also include the iconic blanket of lilies and a place in horse racing history.
Stay here to find out the best bets for the 2024 Kentucky Oaks, and the best places for betting horse racing online.
Betting the Kentucky Oaks
You can maximize your profit on the Kentucky Oaks and horse races all year long by betting online! Not only is betting online more convenient because you can do it from anywhere, but online racebooks also offer fixed-odds betting on major races like the Kentucky Oaks. Instead of betting at the track, where you have to wait until post time to know your odds, you can lock in your price the moment you bet online!
There are many options for betting online, but our expert betting site reviews can help you make a quick, confident, and profitable decision. Every recommended site has the basics: trusted payouts, market-leading odds, and a great user interface.
Online betting sites also offer lucrative racebook bonuses that the track does not. These include deposit bonuses, referral benefits for betting with your friends, and horse racing rebates that pay you for every bet you make! Take a few minutes now to find out which bonuses will make you the most money, and then build your betting bankroll faster than ever!
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Kentucky Oaks Horses
This is the official field for the 2024 Kentucky Oaks including post positions, trainers, jockeys, and morning-line odds:
- Tapit Jenallie (Eddie Milligan, Jr./Emmanuel Esquivel) - 30/1
- Gin Gin (Brad Cox/Florent Geroux) - 30/1
- Where’s My Ring (Val Brinkerhoff/Jose Lezcano) - 15/1
- Regulatory Risk (Chad Brown/Jose Ortiz) - 20/1
- Thorpedo Anna (Kenny McPeek/Brian Hernandez, Jr.) - 5-1
- Lemon Muffin (D. Wayne Lukas/Keith Asmussen) - 30/1
- Fiona’s Magic (Michael Yates/Luis Saez) - 30/1
- Tarifa (Brad Cox/Flavien Prat) - 7/2
- Everland (Eric Foster/Abel Cedillo) - 30/1
- Into Champagne (Ian Wilkes/Julien Leparoux) - 30/1
- Ways and Means (Chad Brown/Tyler Gaffalione) - 5/1
- Power Squeeze (Jorge Delgado/Daniel Centeno) - 9/2
- Just F Y I (Bill Mott/Junior Alvarado) - 9/2
- Leslie’s Rose (Todd Pletcher/Irad Ortiz, Jr.) - 4/1
- Our Pretty Woman (Steve Asmussen/Joel Rosario) - 15/1 - ALSO ELIGIBLE
- Candied (Todd Pletcher/Luis Saez) - 20/1
If horses scratch from the Oaks field before 9:00 a.m. Eastern on Friday, then one or more horses from the also-eligible list will replace them in order of their priority on that list: Our Pretty Woman has first priority, then Candied.
The morning line is no guarantee, remember. It can be a good guide to which horses are expected to take money, but the on-track price will shift until post time. On the other hand, you can lock in the best odds on your Kentucky Oaks horse by betting the race online!
The odds for leading Kentucky Oaks contenders at top online sportsbooks are below:
 | |  | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tarifa | +350 | +400 | +350 |
| Just F Y I | +450 | +500 | +450 |
| Thorpedo Anna | +500 | +500 | +500 |
| Leslie's Rose | +500 | +500 | +500 |
| Ways and Means | +600 | +550 | +500 |
| Power Squeeze | +1000 | +1200 | +1200 |
| Where's My Ring | +1200 | +1600 | +1500 |
Kentucky Oaks Handicapping
With your betting account at the ready, let’s get to know the field for the Kentucky Oaks. This includes horses at every price point, to help you build the best exotic wagers for the race.
Kentucky Oaks Best Bet
Leslie’s Rose may have scared a few people off after being defeated at odds-on in the Davona Dale (G2), but she bounced back in a big way in the Ashland (G1). Particularly significant about her three-length Ashland win was that it was her first start at two turns: and, being by Into Mischief out of a Galileo half-sister to Materiality and My Miss Sophia, she likely belonged at two turns all along.
Even though she drew the far outside, over this distance Churchill tends to be fair to horses with such draws. Her tactical speed is an asset; expect her to be in range from the outset , get a clean outside-stalking trip, and to have the stamina to finish the assignment.
Kentucky Oaks Contenders
Fair Grounds Oaks (G2) winner Tarifa comes out of what has, in recent years, emerged as the most important final prep for the Kentucky Oaks. She won both that race and the Rachel Alexandra (G2) in stalk-and-pounce fashion, which should be a good running style for the Oaks. the Rachel Alexandra win came over a wet track, too, which could come in handy if the possible rain materializes.
Where’s My Ring broke her maiden in the Gazelle (G3), her eighth career start, but had shown some promise even before that. Three starts back, in a maiden race, she did the dirty work on a fast pace and was only narrowly beaten. Two back, in the Santa Ysabel (G3), the only horse ahead of her was the well-regarded Kinza. With improving form and tactical speed, she can keep her momentum going.
Kentucky Oaks Longshots
Make sure to watch the scratch board, because Our Pretty Woman belongs on tickets if she draws in. She was a close second to Tarifa in the Fair Grounds Oaks in her stakes debut, an effort that makes it unfortunate that she was relegated to the AE list. If she draws in, she can get a clean outside stalking trip and can outrun her odds.
The question about Lemon Muffin is if the real one showed up when she won the Honeybee (G3) impressively, or when she faltered in the Fantasy (G3). Trainer D. Wayne Lukas said she was not feeling well coming out of the Fantasy. If that is the case, then she is a horse who found herself in her first two-turn try. If that Lemon Muffin shows up to the Oaks, she will be an overlay.
Gin Gin may be worth consideration, too. She is one of the few 1 ⅛-mile winners in the field with a win in the Busanda. Though she was well beaten by Where’s My Ring in the Gazelle, her effort still came back fast and her connections are proven Oaks winners: trainer Brad Cox and jockey Florent Geroux, who have won two editions of this race together.
Free Kentucky Oaks Expert Picks
Here are your free Kentucky Oaks expert picks for the 2024 Kentucky Oaks:
- $30 to win: #14 Leslie’s Rose
- $10 to win/place/show: #3 Where's My Ring
- $1 exacta key: #14 Leslie’s Rose with #3 Where's My Ring, #7 Tarifa
- $1 trifecta key (if Our Pretty Woman draws in): #14 Leslie’s Rose with #3 Where's My Ring, #6 Lemon Muffin, #7 Tarifa, #15 Our Pretty Woman
- $1 trifecta key (if Our Pretty Woman does not get in): #14 Leslie’s Rose with #2 Gin Gin, #3 Where's My Ring, #6 Lemon Muffin, #7 Tarifa
- $1 superfecta key (if Our Pretty Woman draws in): #14 Leslie’s Rose with #3 Where's My Ring, #6 Lemon Muffin, #7 Tarifa, #15 Our Pretty Woman
- $1 superfecta key (if Our Pretty Woman does not get in): #14 Leslie’s Rose with #2 Gin Gin, #3 Where's My Ring, #6 Lemon Muffin, #7 Tarifa
Kentucky Derby Undercard Picks
The Kentucky Oaks is not the only big race going on Friday, May 5 at Churchill Downs. There are six other stakes races that also provide excellent betting opportunities. These are the best contenders in the undercard stakes on Kentucky Oaks day at Churchill Downs:
- $1,000,000 La Troienne Stakes (G1): #4 Idiomatic
- $400,000 Unbridled Sidney Stakes (G3): #2 Ova Charged, #10 Tony Ann
- $750,000 Alysheba Stakes (G2): #10 Trademark, #7 Tapit Trice
- $400,000 Modesty Stakes (G3): #2 Aspen Grove, #10 Sparkle Blue, #6 Surprisingly
- $600,000 Eight Belles Stakes (G2): #7 Denim and Pearls, #9 Halina’s Forte
- $600,000 Edgewood Stakes (G2): #9 Hard to Justify, #13 Dancing N Dixie, #4 Buchu
