Tampa Bay Derby Handicapping Picks
Horse racing gamblers are you looking for 2021 Tampa Bay Derby Free Pick & Handicapping Odds…plus some predictions? Need some advice on who to take? The 2021 Tampa Bay Derby is set for March 6 at Tampa Bay Downs in Tampa Bay, Florida. Here’s a preview of our top contenders.
Tampa Bay Derby Preview and Prediction
- Race: Tampa Bay Derby
- Purse: $400,000
- Track: Tampa Bay Downs
- Date: March 6
- Post Time: 5:25 PM (ET)
- Live: Tampa Bay Derby Odds: Click Here
2021 Tampa Bay Derby Handicapping
The second of two East Coast Kentucky Derby qualifying races – the other being the Gotham Stakes at Aqueduct – the Tampa Bay Derby awards Kentucky Derby qualifying points to the top four finishers on a 50-20-10-5 scale.
Open to horses age three, the Tampa Bay Derby is run at 1 1/16 miles on the dirt track, and has drawn a full field of 12 starters. Last year, the 2020 Tampa Bay Derby produced a huge upset, when King Guillermo roared down the stretch to win at odds of 47-1.
Odds listed here are from the Bovada racebook.
2021 Tampa Bay Derby Free Pick & Handicapping: Candy Man Rocket Race Odds: 5-2
Undefeated in two lifetime starts so far, Candy Man Rocket also has a graded-stakes win at the track and distance, as he was the last-out winner of the (G3) Sam F. Davis Stakes at Tampa Bay one month ago.
He ran a perfect stalking trip in that one, sitting just a length off the leaders before making a three-wide move at the top of the stretch to go on and win by a length. Prior to that he blew away the field to win by more than nine lengths, racing six furlongs at Gulfstream Park.
Trainer Bill Mott won the Tampa Bay Derby in 2019, as well as way back in 1997. Junior Alverado will be in the saddle.
2021 Tampa Bay Derby Free Pick & Handicapping: Hidden Stash Race Odds: 5-1
A close up third in the Sam F. Davis, Hidden Stash spent most of the race near the back of the pack before swinging four-wide off the turn and showing good energy down the lane to finish just a neck out of the second-place spot.
One of the more experienced runners in the field, he has two lifetime wins and two third-place finishes in five starts. He closed out 2020 with a hard-fought allowance-level win at Churchill Downs.
The trainer is Victoria Oliver, Rafael Bejarano is the jock.
2021 Tampa Bay Derby Free Pick & Handicapping: Promise Keeper Race Odds: 11-2
After finishing more than 10 lengths back of Candy Man Rocket in his debut race, Promise Keeper showed good improvement last out when scoring his first lifetime win.
Racing one mile at Gulfstream, he took the lead right from the gate and never looked back, eventually cruising to a five-length win in a very solid time. In doing so he improved his Equibase speed figure 20 points over his first start.
Trainer Todd Pletcher has won the Tampa Bay Derby four times in the last eight years. Luis Saez will be in the irons.
2021 Tampa Bay Derby Free Pick & Handicapping: Helium Race Odds: 12-1
Like Candy Man Rocket, Helium is also unbeaten in his two lifetime starts, with both those wins coming on the all-weather surface up at Woodbine in Toronto.
The second of those was a stakes win as he raced just off the pace before sweeping to the lead and taking the Discovery Stakes by 4 1/4 lengths. He’ll be making his first start since that race back in October, as well as his first start in the dirt surface.
He’s trained by Mark Casse, who won the race in 2012. Veteran jockey Jose Ferrer picks up the mount.
Here’s My 2021 Tampa Bay Derby Free Pick.
Despite his 2-for-2 record, I think Candy Man Rocket is a vulnerable favourite here, and I’m going to try and beat him at a bit better price with Promise Keeper. He looks like an improving horse who could move forward once again his third career start. And clearly Pletcher knows how to win this race.
I’ll look for Hidden Stash to again make a big move from off the pace and put him underneath in the exacta.
Full Field: Tampa Bay Derby Betting Odds
- Candy Man Rocket 5-2
- Hidden Stash 5-1
- Promise Keeper 11-2
- Unbridled Honor 6-1
- Helium 12-1
- Sitting On Go 12-1
- Awesome Gerry 12-1
- Moonlite Strike 12-1
- Super Strong 16-1
- King Of Dreams 16-1
- Boca Boy 16-1
- My Liberty 33-1
What do you think of our 2021 Tampa Bay Derby Race Odds & Predictions? Weigh in below with a comment. We welcome your feedback.
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