© Provided by CBS Sports

Jockey Kent Desormeaux urges Silver Tree past Giant Wrecker for a win by a neck in the Oceanport Stakes at Monmouth Park in West Long Branch, New Jersey on Haskell Invitational Day. Silver Tree clipped .36 seconds off the track record previously held by Giant Wrecker for the 1 1/16 miles course. (Photo by Scott Serio/Icon SMI/Icon Sport Media via Getty Images)

At Churchill Downs on May 1, the 147th running of the historic Kentucky Derby will take place. This is your Kentucky Derby reference page, examining the history, New York horse betting options, the road to the Derby and handicapping variables for the Fastest Two Minutes in Sports. The Kentucky Derby, dating back to 1875, assembles 20 of the nation’s top 3-year-old thoroughbreds. Breeders' Cup Juvenile winner Essential Quality is the 7-2 favorite in the early 2021 Kentucky Derby odds, followed closely by Life is Good at 4-1 and Greatest Honor at 6-1. The field, or every.

Thoroughbred connections already have their eyes set on the 2021 Kentucky Derby. Strong performances in 2021 Kentucky Derby prep races will earn valuable points towards entry for the 145th Run for the Roses. Over the weekend, Helium upset the field at the Tampa Bay Derby as a 15-1 long shot and now has his sights set on the Kentucky Derby 2021 on May 1. Also over the weekend, Weyburn took down the Gotham Stakes as a mammoth 46-1 underdog, while Life is Good, trained by Bob Baffert, won the San Felipe Stakes. Which horses should be part of your 2021 Kentucky Derby bets?

Breeders' Cup Juvenile winner Essential Quality is the 7-2 favorite in the early 2021 Kentucky Derby odds, followed closely by Life is Good at 4-1 and Greatest Honor at 6-1. The field, or every other horse not listed, is going off at 10-1. With so much to consider, you'll want to see what SportsLine's Jody Demling has to say before entering any 2021 Kentucky Derby picks and predictions of your own.

Best Place To Bet On Kentucky Derby

A fixture in the horse racing world who has been writing about, talking about and betting on races for years, Demling enters the 2021 Kentucky Derby on a major heater: At one point last year, he picked the winners of six straight races: the Saudi Cup, Gotham Stakes, Rebel Stakes, Louisiana Derby, Florida Derby and Belmont Stakes.

This is the same handicapper who hit the Derby-Oaks double at Churchill Downs nine times in the last 12 years. That means he held a ticket with the winners of both the Kentucky Oaks and Kentucky Derby all but three times in his last 12 tries.

He opened last season's Triple Crown schedule on a heater too. At last year's Belmont, Demling said Tiz the Law was clearly the class of the field, and Barclay Tagg's horse pulled away for a convincing 3 3/4-length victory. Anyone who has followed him is up huge.

Bet On The Derby Online

Now, with the 2021 Kentucky Derby lineup taking shape, Demling is sharing his picks and predictions at SportsLine. Go here to see them.

Top 2021 Kentucky Derby predictions

One shocker: Demling is fading Essential Quality, even though that horse is going off as one of the top Vegas favorites and won the Breeders' Cup Juvenile. In fact, he says Essential Quality doesn't even crack the top five. It isn't so much that the horse doesn't show promising signs, but Demling points out that 'anything in single-digit odds is just too low two months out.' The son of Tapit out of Delightful Quality, Essential Quality is trained by Brad Cox and owned by the Godolphin LLC group.

Essential Quality only knows the winner's circle so far in his young career, winning his maiden special weight debut at Churchill Downs last September, taking the Breeders' Futurity and Breeders' Cup Juvenile at Keeneland, and winning the Southwest Stakes last weekend. Still, there's plenty of other value to consider in the 2021 Kentucky Derby lineup.

Another curveball: Demling is high on Medina Spirit, even though he's a massive 30-1 long shot. He's a target for anyone looking for a huge payday.

The Bob Baffert-trained colt started the year with a strong second-place run in the one-mile Sham Stakes on Jan. 1. He then stretched out to 1 1/16 miles at the Robert B. Lewis Stakes on Jan. 30 and held off fellow 2021 Kentucky Derby contenders Roman Centurian and Hot Rod Charlie to pick up the win in 1.46.26.

That run caught Demling's eye. He told SportsLine that Medina Spirit 'could be the best of the Baffert bunch' and 'might have the best odds' at this point with several 2021 Kentucky Derby prep races still to come. At 30-1, Medina Spirit is a complete steal, making him one of the horses you should be all over in your 2021 Kentucky Derby bets.

How to make 2021 Kentucky Derby picks, bets

Demling is especially high on a long shot who is 'hard not to play' at his current price. Demling is sharing which horse it is, along with his entire projected leaderboard, over at SportsLine.

Which horse wins the Kentucky Derby 2021? And what huge long shot does Demling say contends? Check out the latest 2021 Kentucky Derby odds below, then visit SportsLine to see Demling's picks for the Kentucky Derby.

Horse	Odds
Essential Quality	7-2
Life is Good	4-1
Greatest Honour	6-1
Caddo River	15-1
Mandaloun	15-1
Concert Tour	20-1
Highly Motivated	20-1
Prevalence	20-1
Proxy	20-1
Spielberg	20-1
Candy Man Rocket	30-1
Collaborate	30-1
Dream Shake	30-1
Freedom Fighter	30-1
Hot Rod Charlie	30-1
Keepmeinmind	30-1
Medina Spirit	30-1
Midnight Bourbon	30-1
Risk Taking	30-1
Hush of a Storm	50-1
Roman Centurian	50-1
Rombauer	50-1
The Great One	50-1
Field	10-1

Essential Quality 7-2

Life Is Good 4-1

Greatest Honour 6-1

Caddo River 15-1

Mandaloun 15-1

Concert Tour 20-1

Highly Motivated 20-1

Prevalence 20-1

Proxy 20-1

Spielberg 20-1

Candy Man Rocket 30-1

Collaborate 30-1

Dream Shake 30-1

Freedom Fighter 30-1

Hot Rod Charlie 30-1

Keepmeinmind 30-1

Medina Spirit 30-1

Midnight Bourbon 30-1

Risk Taking 30-1

Roman Centurian 50-1

Hush of a Storm 50-1

Rombauer 50-1

The Great One 50-1

Field 10-1

Places To Bet On The Kentucky Derby Today

Horse betting online is a great way to find betting lines on horses. Navigating through online horse betting websites can be difficult. Especially if you are an American player. Good thing, the world is morphing into a more online, electronic interface. Making online horse betting easier to navigate.

Betting Online on Horse Races

Horse betting online took rise in the 1980s. Before that horse gambling had to take place on the tracks. As the internet developed, so did online betting horses. Now, almost all major race tracks have their betting platform. Allowing bettors to place live bets from anywhere in the world.

Welcome Bonuses

Because of the variety of betting websites. Serious racebooks will use incentives to catch your attention. These sites won't hesitate to match your first deposit by 50 or 100%. Encouraging you to place better or more bets.

Advantages of betting online

Betting online is a convenient way to bet on horse racing. It can be done anywhere, and at any time. If you schedule doesn't allow you to make a trip to the track, online is perfect.

• Betting online can earn you bonuses and rewards not offered at the race track.
• It gives you the freedom to be more selective on what you bet on.
• It allows you to analyze past performances to select the winner.

What are the best online horse betting sites?

Finding the best horse racing gambling site is a personal choice. Everyone has a different incentives that attract them. Every betting website will offer different bonuses and rewards.

Make sure you bet on the Kentucky Derby. That's because betting on the Kentucky Derby is a great way to get a good return on investment

Here, are the best online horse racing betting sites, based on research:

BovadaIntertopsBetOnlineMyBookieSportsBetting.ag

So how do you place bets online?

1. Sign up, or log into your favorite site
2. Select the race you wish to bet on
3. Place your bet. This is where you can choose to do a single wager or an exotic wager
4. Pick how much you want to bet
5. You'll get a confirmation
6. Watch the race.

Is horse race betting Legal in the US?

The the instatement of the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act in 2006. It stopped Poker, Casinos and Sportsbooks from accepting US wagers. However, Horse racing betting sites got a carve-out.

They did this by only allowing pari-mutuel pools. This loophole allows any state to place an online horse racing bets

Is US horse betting legal online in my state?

38 states allow bidders to place online bets for horse races. They are:

• Alabama
• Arkansas
• California
• Colorado
• Connecticut
• Delaware
• Florida
• Idaho
• Illinois
• Indiana
• Iowa
• Kansas
• Louisana
• Maine
• Maryland
• Massachusetts
• Michigan
• New Jersey
• Minnesota
• Montana
• New Hampshire
• New Mexico
• North Dakota
• New York
• Ohio
• Oklahoma
• Oregon
• Pennsylvania
• Rhode Island
• South Dakota
• Tennessee
• Vermont
• Virginia
• Washington
• West Virginia
• Wisconsin
• Wyoming

Online horse racing betting is a great way to get your bet out there. Allowing even a bettor with a business schedule to place a bet. Doing your research to the find the right website for you. Will help you get the most rewarding experience. Allowing you to thoroughly enjoy betting horse racing as a rewarding past time.