What Time Is Kentucky Derby 2017? Post Time, TV, Livestream, Horses, Odds, And Muddy Track Update


The 2017 Kentucky Derby is in it’s 143rd year and while the many colorful hats can be a distraction, the horses and their ability to run the muddy track at Churchill Downs has been the buzz all week leading up to this big event. If you own any electronic device with a screen, you have the ability to watch the Kentucky Derby today.

Google will field searches today for the many questions about the Kentucky Derby including,

“How long does the Kentucky Derby race last?” This is a race that takes about two minutes. Only two horses in the history of the race have finished under two minutes. Their names are listed in another question below.

“How long is the Kentucky Derby track?” The track is 1.25 miles long. The first Kentucky Derby back in 1875 was 1.5 miles long and continued with that distance for a little more than two decades. It was in 1896 that the race was shortened to 1.25 miles long, which is still the distance of this race today.

How many horses run in the Kentucky Derby?” There are 20 horses that run every year in the Churchill Downs event, according to the Kentucky Derby.com website.

“What horse was the fastest in the history of the Kentucky Derby?” That would be Secretariat, who back in 1973 ran the race in 1:59.4 minutes. Secretariat was the first horse of two to ever finish the Kentucky Derby under two minutes. Monarchos ran the race in 1:59.97 in the 2001 Kentucky Derby, which came close to Secretariat‘s time, but not close enough to break Secretariat’s record, according to Quartz Media.

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According to NJ.com Sports, “there is no clear favorite” for the Kentucky Derby this year. There are a few names being tossed around as a possible favorite, but this year there are four horses that are favored to win, depending on who is doing the reporting. They are Classic Empire, Always Dreaming, Irish War Cry and McCracken.

According to KSBW Local News, the Kentucky Derby 2017 still lacks a dominant runner in the hours leading up to the race. There’s a $2 million purse guaranteed for the Kentucky Derby. The horses will run 1.25 miles on a track where Secretariat still holds the record from back in 1973.

So, what time is the Kentucky Derby? What is post time for the horses and where can you watch one of the most famous horse races in the world when the gates open for the 2017 derby?

Kentucky Derby 2017:

Date: Saturday, May 6.

Post Time: 6:34 p.m. EST. (Events go on all afternoon and NBC will start their coverage at 2:30 p.m. on Saturday for the big event.)

TV Channel: NBC is airing the Kentucky Derby and their extended coverage spans from 2:30 p.m. – 7:30 pm. EST on Saturday. The commentators of this TV coverage will cover everything from the track condition, the elaborate hats, the updated odds, the celebrities in attendance as well as the updated favorite to win.

Livestream: NBC Sports Live will carry the Kentucky Derby 2017 starting at 2:30 p.m. today for all the pre-Derby activities leading up to the 6:34 p.m. post time and follow through with the post-race coverage.

According to Forbes News, the Kentucky Derby starting gate positions and the horses’ updated odds for today’s race are set and they are listed below.

No. 1 Lookin at Lee: 25-1

No. 2 Thunder Snow: 1-1

No. 3 Fast and Accurate: 33-1

No. 4 Untrapped: 60-1

No. 5 Always Dreaming: 4-1

No. 6 State of Honor: 46-1

No. 7: Girvin: 20-1

No. 8: Hence: 17-1

No. 9: Irap: 35-1

No. 10: Gunnevera: 9-1

No. 11: Battle of Midway: 38-1

No. 12: Sonneteer: 36-1

No.13: J Boys Echo: 42-1

No. 14: Classic Empire: 7-1

No. 15: McCraken: 6-1

No. 16: Tapwrit: 30-1

No. 17: Irish War Cry: 5-1

No. 18: Gormley: 24-1

No. 19: Practical Joke: 33-1

No. 20: Patch: 13-1

This week leading up the Kentucky Derby the talk was about the muddy track. The scramble was on to offer odds on the horses if they do indeed need to race on a muddy track. The morning news shows had commentators discussing how this horse or that horse will perform on a sloppy track if this was the case for the 2017 Kentucky Derby. So will the track be a muddy mess or will it be in good condition by post time?

According to Forbes, the track at Churchhill Downs was sloppy on Friday after the torrential rain, but the weather has since cleared up. The track forecast for Saturday’s running of the derby calls for minimal rain, so “it’s possible that the track will be fast by Kentucky Derby post time of 6:46,” reports Forbes.

Fox & Friends Weekend live on Saturday morning has Janice Dean at the Kentucky Derby and she is reporting that the people who take care of the track are “really good at making sure the track is in pristine condition for the race.” Janice also reports that the Brooklyn horse, Always Dreaming, is now the favorite to win. She does mention how Classic Empire is the horse people are eyeing if the track is somehow not up to par by race time from all the rain they’ve had.

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If on Saturday the horses do face a muddy track, the nine horses below have the off-track experience that it might take to win the Kentucky Derby, according to Forbes. They are the following.

No. 1: Lookin at Lee, No. 4 Untrapped, No. 8 Hence, No. 9 Irap, No. 10 Gunnevera, No. 11 Battle of Midway, No. 14 Classic Empire, No. 16 Tapwrit, and No. 18 Gormley

It looks like Classic Empire is the only horse out of the four that are favored to win with the experience under his reins of running off track. Does that give this horse a leg up for the Kentucky Derby if the track is still sloppy from the rain? Despite all the experts and their predictions, when that gate opens later today, it will take about two minutes for the real winner of the 2017 Kentucky Derby to emerge, give or take a few seconds.

[Featured Image by Garry Jones/AP Images]

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