May 2 · 152nd Running of the Kentucky Derby
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Saturday, May 2, 2026 · Post 6:57 PM ET · Churchill Downs

Ten furlongs.
Twenty horses.
One analytical edge.

Why most bettors lose
  • The favorite has lost 7 straight Kentucky Derbys. Last winning fav: Justify, 2018.
  • Post 1 hasn't won since Ferdinand in 1986. Post 2 since Affirmed in 1978.
  • Post 17 has never produced a winner. 0-for-46 all-time.
  • The Apollo Curse: only 1 horse since 1882 has won the Derby without racing as a 2-year-old. That's 1 in 144 years.
The bettor's edge
  • Final Fractions Theory — 31 of the last 36 winners ran their last prep's final 3/8 in :38 or faster.
  • Beyer Speed Rating ≥95 — 27 of the last 32 winners cleared this threshold.
  • Brisnet Late Pace ≥100 — back-to-back triple-digit ratings is the gold standard closing signal.
  • 9 of the last 15 winners drew post 13 or wider. Outside posts beat inside posts.
  • Stack the qualifiers. Horses that pass FFT + Beyer + Late Pace + Strong Prep win at a rate the morning line never accounts for.
Most fans pick on names, hats, and gut. You can pick with the math.
11 handicapping factors
20 contenders analyzed
31 years of historical data
$0 · free to use
Bonus · 14-Race Card

Claude vs ChatGPT.

Side-by-side picks for every race on Derby Day — Win/Place/Show, exotics, and a single Best Bet from each model. Plus our human panel: Papa Dude, Vinny Blond, Jon White, an algo, and a longshot specialist. The AI tip sheet for the 152nd Run for the Roses.

🤖 Open the AI Tip Sheet (PDF) →
vs.
Built for Two Kinds of Fans

Who this is for.

For the curious fan

You want to be in the conversation.

You're going to a Derby party. You're watching at home with friends. Most people pick on names and hat colors. You want to be the one who knows why Post 17 has never won. Why the favorite has lost seven straight. Why "Final Fractions" is the most predictive signal in the race.

You don't need to be a degenerate to sound like one. Ten Furlongs lays out the systems the betting world uses, and lets you talk about the race like you've been studying it for years. Because by Saturday, you will have been.

For the serious handicapper

You're tired of stitching ten paywalls together.

Beyer figures live in DRF. Brisnet ratings cost $40 a card. Post position trends are buried in BloodHorse archives. Jockey form is on Equibase. Pedigree analysis is on TrueNicks. Past Derby qualifiers are scattered across a dozen sources and editorials.

Nobody has put all of it in one place for the one race that actually matters. Ten Furlongs aggregates it cleanly, applies eleven classical handicapping theories with full transparency, and gives you a custom-weighting Predictor so you can build your own model. Every threshold is auditable. Every source is named.

The math between the roses. For the novice who wants to be smarter Saturday. For the bettor who wants the edge.
The Methodology

Eleven theories.
One scorecard.

For decades, racing analysts have identified statistical patterns shared by Derby winners. Ten Furlongs applies eleven of the most documented theories to every horse in this year's field . pass or fail, on each one. The total score isn't a prediction; it's a transparent ranking you can audit factor by factor.

1

Final Fractions Theory

The horse must run the final 3/8 mile of its last prep in :38 or better, or the final 1/8 in :13 or better. The single most predictive Derby factor.

31 of last 36 cashable winners passed
2

Better Beyers

A career-best Beyer Speed Rating of 95 or higher. The gold standard of speed handicapping that separates contenders from pretenders.

27 of last 32 cashable winners cleared
3

Brisnet Triples

A Brisnet Speed Rating of 100 or higher in the last prep race. Validates the horse has Derby-caliber speed approaching race day.

19 of 24 recent winners qualified
4

Brisnet Late Pace

Late Pace rating of 100 or higher measures pure closing ability. Back-to-back triple-digit ratings is the gold standard signal.

3 contenders qualify in 2026
5

Strong Prep Race

Florida Derby, Santa Anita Derby, Arkansas Derby, Blue Grass, or Wood Memorial. The G1 and G2 dirt routes that produce most winners.

Documented Derby track record
6

Top-4 in Last Prep

The horse must show competitiveness against quality. Finishing fifth or worse is a meaningful red flag heading into a sharper field.

Rare exceptions only
7

Foundation at Two

The Apollo Curse: only Justify (2018) won the Derby without racing as a 2-year-old since Apollo in 1882.

142 years of history
8

Distance Pedigree

Sire is a Grade 1 winner at 1 1/16 miles or further on dirt. Stamina pedigree is the best clue to whether a horse will see out ten furlongs.

Curlin, Gun Runner, Tapit, Tacitus
9

Post Position

Each starting gate has its own Derby record. The 5 posts with sub-4% historical win rates (Posts 6, 11, 14, 17, 19) are the punishing draws.

Post 17 has never produced a winner
10

Tactical Position

Recent Derbies favor pressers and stalkers. Pure deep closers can win when pace collapses, but it is lottery-style.

Forward types win more
11

Not Bouncing

When a horse runs its career-best speed in its final prep, regression risk is real. The peak came at the wrong time.

Watch for late-prep career bests
+

Value Detection

Beyond pass and fail. The model converts factor scores into win probabilities and compares them to morning line odds. Edge is where value lives.

Model probability vs. market
What You Get

Built for Derby Day, but smarter.

Six interconnected views designed for everyone from newcomers to serious handicappers. No accounts, no email, no friction . just open the app.

F

The Field

Every contender in the 2026 Derby with their score, odds, and value edge. Sort by post, odds, score, Beyer, Late Pace, jockey form, or fastest final fractions.

Notes & Compare

Tag any horse with what you like . Late Pace, FFT pass, value bet . and compare your shortlist side-by-side in cards or matrix view.

W

Bet Builder

Construct WPS, Exacta, Trifecta, and Superfecta tickets. See implied probability, combinations covered, and ticket cost . without the parimutuel guesswork of payout estimation.

T

The Theories

Read what each handicapping factor measures, why it matters, the historical track record, and which 2026 contenders pass or fail.

H

Past Winners

Every Kentucky Derby from 1995 to 2025: full charts, winning times, fractional splits, and a retrospective qualifier scorecard for each winner.

$

Always Free

No paywall, no subscription, no email required. Built as a labor of love. If it helps you Saturday, share it with someone who'd appreciate it.

A horse passes the screen by checking boxes that decades of Derby winners have shared. No machine learning. No proprietary algorithm picking winners. Just transparent arithmetic applied to documented data, displayed cleanly. If you don't agree with a threshold, the math is right there for you to argue with.

. Ten Furlongs Methodology
Quick Reference

How to read the field.

Each contender's row shows a tight strip of figures. Here's what they mean and what's good.

Beyer
Career-best Beyer Speed Rating
The gold standard speed figure published by Daily Racing Form. Higher is faster.
95 or higher is Derby-caliber.
LP
Brisnet Late Pace (last prep)
Measures pure closing ability — the speed in the final fraction of the race.
100 or higher is the gold standard. Back-to-back triple-digit ratings is the strongest closing signal.
F3/8
Final 3/8 mile time of last prep
The most predictive Derby factor. Did the horse finish strong in its last race?
:38.00 or faster passes Final Fractions Theory.
Win%
Jockey 2026 national win rate
How often the jockey has won races this year across all tracks.
20% or higher is elite. The leaders sit around 25-27%.
E / EP / P / S
Brisnet running style
How the horse runs. E = Early Speed (front-runner). EP = Early Presser. P = Presser (sits just off pace). S = Sustained Closer (deep closer).
Pressers and stalkers (EP/P) win the Derby most often.
M/L Odds
Morning Line odds
The track's pre-race estimate of each horse's chances. "4-1" means $4 returned for every $1 bet (plus your stake back).
Final live odds at post time may differ significantly.
9/11
Qualifying Factors passed
Out of the 11 classical handicapping theories Ten Furlongs applies, how many this horse passes.
9 or higher is a strong profile. Tap any horse to see which factors pass and fail.
Value Edge
Model probability vs. market
Positive number = the model thinks the horse is undervalued by the public. Negative = overbet.
+1.0 or higher is a value play. -2.0 or lower is overbet.
Factor abbreviations on each row
FFT Final Fractions Theory Beyer Speed Rating ≥95 Bris Brisnet Speed ≥100 LP Late Pace ≥100 Prep Strong prep race Top4 Top-4 in last prep 2yo Raced as 2-year-old Ped Sire G1 route winner Post Post position OK Tac Tactical running style NoBnc Not bouncing (no late peak)
152nd Kentucky Derby · Post 6:57 PM ET

The 152nd Kentucky Derby is coming.

View Horses, build your shortlist, sketch your tickets. Twenty horses. Eleven theories. Ten furlongs at Churchill Downs. The numbers, on the table.

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