Post positions for the 2024 Kentucky Derby were drawn on Saturday. The drawing took place in the evening at Churchill Downs in Louisville, a week before the 150th running of the first leg of horse racing’s Triple Crown, which is scheduled for next Saturday.
The position of the posts in the race corresponds to the stalls in the starting gate, with the No. 1 post located closest to the rail on the inside of the track.
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Fierceness, who drew the No. 17 post, was listed as the morning line favorite with 5-2 odds after the drawing.
Below is the lineup for the 2024 Kentucky Derby, featuring the horses’ post positions and their corresponding odds:
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- Dornoch (20-1)
- Sierra Leone (3-1)
- Mystik Dan (20-1)
- Catching Freedom (8-1)
- Catalytic (30-1)
- Just Steel (20-1)
- Honor Marie (20-1)
- Just a Touch (10-1)
- Encino (20-1)
- T O Password (30-1)
- Forever Young (10-1)
- Track Phantom (20-1)
- West Saratoga (50-1)
- Endlessly (30-1)
- Domestic Product (30-1)
- Grand Mo the First (50-1)
- Fierceness (5-2)
- Stronghold (20-1)
- Resilience (20-1)
- Society Man (50-1)
The 1 1/4-mile race is open to a maximum of 20 3-year-olds. In the event that a horse withdraws from the race prior to Friday at 9 a.m. EDT, Epic Ride and Mugatu are the potential candidates to fill the vacant spots in the field.
Most of the horses arrived at the Derby by accumulating points in the Road to the Kentucky Derby, a series of races that commenced in September with the Iroquois Stakes and concluded with the Lexington Stakes on April 13. Points were awarded to the top five finishers in each of the 36 races.
T O Password earned an invitation to the Derby by triumphing in the Fukuryu Stakes in Japan last month. With enough points to secure the top spot in the four-race Japan Road to the Kentucky Derby, T O Password’s performance warranted a place in the prestigious event.
In a recent announcement, Churchill Downs revealed that the purse for the 2024 Derby would reach an unprecedented milestone, soaring to a record-breaking $5 million. This substantial increase in prize money, up from the previous $3 million offered since 2019, demonstrates the ongoing commitment to elevating the stakes and prestige of this renowned horse racing event.
The prize money of $5 million will be divided among the top five finishers in the Derby. The winner will receive $3.1 million, the runner-up will be awarded $1 million, third place will receive $500,000, fourth place will get $250,000, and fifth place will be granted $150,000.
The Kentucky Derby, famously known as the Run for the Roses, takes place on the first Saturday of May, officially kicking off the Triple Crown. Following the Derby, the Preakness Stakes in Baltimore serves as the midway point of the series, occurring two weeks later. Finally, the Belmont Stakes concludes the Triple Crown in Saratoga Springs, New York, as the original venue on Long Island is currently undergoing construction for a new Belmont Park.
