Bovada Horse Racing Futures Watch: Back To The 1700s

Epsom Oaks and Derby Odds

It has been a couple months since we last checked in on the future bet odds for the horses most likely to run in the Epsom Oaks and Epsom Derby, while there has been little change in the order of the favorites at the top of the list, there has been some slight shifting of the odds further down the board. Today we'll look at a few longer-shot horses worthy of a second look in each race. 

Epsom Oaks 2018 Longshots

Checking in at odds of 14-1, the Charlie Appleby-trained Wild Illusion is a filly who has already once outrun her odds, taking a Group 1 event at Chantilly last October at 25-1, beating the heavy favorite Polydream by 1 1/2 lengths over a soft track at seven furlongs. That was her third lifetime start and while it could be said she handled the soft going better than the rest of the field, it should also be noted she won her racing debut at Yarmouth in August on a course rated good to firm.

She only has one race to her name so far, but Highgarden (25-1) made that effort a winning one, finishing first by more than two lengths in her novice debut over a field of 14 as the favorite. That race was run at a flat mile over soft turf at Newbury, and while she's going to have to show between now and then that she can repeat the effort against tougher competition, trainer John Gosden has a lot of recent success in the Oaks, winning in 2014 and again last year with superstar filly Enable. 

One that really catches the eye in the bottom third of the of the odds board at 33-1 is Liquid Amber. A Kentucky-bred by US Eclipse Award winner Kitten's Joy, she has plenty of pedigree to handle the 1 1/2 miles Oaks distance. She made her racing debut last August and finished second of 15 going one mile at the Curragh at odds of 20-1, and then came back just two weeks later to win, also at a mile at the Curragh, defeating favored Ballet Shoes (listed here at 25-1) by more than five lengths. She has not raced since then, however. 

Epsom Derby 2018 Longshots

Turning to the 2018 Derby, we find another Kitten's Joy contender in the form of Roaring Lion (12-1) whose career got off to a flying start, as he won his first three races, all run at one mile, before coming up just short in his final effort of 2017, beaten a neck by current Derby favorite Saxon Warrior (4-1). He came from way back in that one to actually get a head in front before Saxon Warrior battled back in the shadow of the wire, and he can only benefit from stretching out the extra 1/2 mile. 

Another with the pedigree of a champion is Nelson (25-1) who is by the legendary Frankel. He has already raced five times as a two-year-old and was fairly well-backed in each, coming away with a pair of wins and a pair of runner-up efforts in his last four starts. In the last of those he was the beaten favorite, but just a neck back of Roaring Lion in a Group 1 event run at Newmarket in late September. 

Also a last-out winner at Newmarket, Ghaiyyath (25-1) took the Group 3 Autumn Stakes by 1 3/4 lengths off an excellent stalking trip, where he started to move on the leaders in the last two furlongs and then took over the lead one furlong from the finish. That was his second consecutive win, in three lifetime starts, and while like all others he'll be facing a distance test in the Derby, his 2017 form would seem to indicate he has a much better chance than his current odds suggest.

You can bet both the Epsom Derby and Epsom Oaks, as well as more than a dozen other top European and North American championship races on the spring schedule with an account at Bovada's online racebook.  

Category : Betting Picks

Tag : Bovada , Horse Racing