Florida Derby Handicapping Picks
Horse racing gamblers are you looking for 2021 Florida Derby Free Pick & Handicapping Odds…plus some predictions? Need some advice on who to take? The 2021 Florida Derby is set for March 27 at Gulfstream Park in Hallandale Beach, Flroida. Here’s a preview of our top contenders.
Florida Derby Preview and Prediction
- Race: Florida Derby
- Purse: $750,000
- Track: Gulfstream Park
- Date: March 27
- Post Time: 6:40 PM (ET)
- Live: Florida Derby Odds: Click Here
2021 Florida Derby Handicapping
The winding road to the 2021 Kentucky Derby takes another swing through south Florida on Saturday with the running of the (G1) Florida Derby, one of 10 stakes races on the Gulfstream Saturday racing card.
Run at a distance of 1 1/8 miles on the Gulfstream dirt, over the past 65 years the Florida Derby has produced 15 winners of the Kentucky Derby, including back-to-back winners Nyquist in 2016 and Always Dreaming in 2017.
Odds listed here are the morning line odds from the Gulfstream Park track handicapper.
2021 Florida Derby Free Pick & Handicapping: Greatest Honour Race Odds: 6-5
The deserving morning line favourite, Greatest Honour comes into the race as the winner of the two Gulfstream preps for this event, the (G3) Holy Bull Stakes and the (G2) Fountain Of Youth.
In both of those he employed much the same tactics, loping along near the back of the pack early before swinging wide with powerful move around horses off the turn to sweep to the lead down the stretch.
Trainer Shug McGaughey won the Florida Derby and then the Kentucky Derby with Orb in 2013. Jose Ortiz is the rider.
2021 Florida Derby Free Pick & Handicapping: Spielberg Race Odds: 4-1
California-based Spielberg ships east to try and pick up Derby qualifying points off a runner-up finish in the (G3) Southwest Stakes at Oaklawn Park. There he was 4 1/4 lengths back of 2020 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile winner Essential Quality, one of the current Kentucky Derby favourites.
Prior to that he was fourth in the (G3) Robert Lewis Stakes at Santa Anita, after closing out 2020 with a win in the (G1) Los Alamitos Futurity.
Two-time Triple Crown winning trainer Bob Baffert tries to win the Florida Derby for the first time, with Javier Castellan getting the call to ride.
2021 Florida Derby Free Pick & Handicapping: Known Agenda Odds: 5-1
Lightly raced Known Agenda has only five previous starts, and last out scored a confidence-boosting 11 length win in an allowance-level race at Gulfstream, also at the 1 1/8 miles distance.
Prior to that he was a no-factor fifth in the (G2) Sam F Davis Stakes at Tampa Bay Downs, after running third in the (G3) Remsen at Aqueduct, but only a neck back of the winner.
Todd Pletcher is a five-times winning trainer of the Florida Derby, while leading rider at the track Irad Ortiz Jr. gets the mount.
2021 Florida Derby Free Pick & Handicapping: Collaborate Race Odds: 6-1
After breaking a bit slow in his career debut, Collaborate finished fifth in that race but could have just as easily won, as he was less than a length behind the winner when they hit the wire.
He showed that effort wasn’t a fluke next out when he scored his first lifetime win going wire-to-wire and putting away the rest of the field by more than 12 lengths racing one mile. He should be involved in the early pace here, but is stepping up to a much tougher test.
He’s trained by Safie Joseph Jr., Tyler Gaffalione is the jock.
Here’s My 2021 Florida Derby Free Pick.
All week long we’ve been hearing a knock on Greatest Honour in that he hasn’t shown a lot of overall speed in his races so far. And I’ll admit that his late-running style is not usually something I like in a horse and typically doesn’t work in the Kentucky Derby.
But slow speed figures or not, he gets to the wire first and as the race distances get longer it can only help with his late kick. He’s won three in a row at Gulfstream, has already beaten several he’ll be facing here again and is the sensible win pick.
I am a bit wary of Known Agenda as a colt that is improving in his three-year-old season, and who has that last-out win at the track and distance, so I’ll box him with Greatest Honour in the exacta.
Full Field: Florida Derby Betting Odds
- Greatest Honour 6-5
- Spielberg 4-1
- Known Agenda 5-1
- Collaborate 6-1
- Nova Rags 12-1
- Pepetu 15-1
- Quantum Leap 20-1
- Soup and Sandwich 20-1
- Jirafales 30-1
- Southern Passage 30-1
- Sigiloso 30-1
What do you think of our 2021 Florida Derby Race Odds & Predictions? Weigh in below with a comment. We welcome your feedback.
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