Blue Grass Stakes Handicapping Picks
Horse racing gamblers are you looking for 2026 Blue Grass Stakes Free Pick & Handicapping Odds…plus some predictions? Need some advice on who to take? The 2026 (G1) Blue Grass is set for April 4 at Keeneland Race Course in Lexington, KY. Here’s a preview of our top contenders.
Blue Grass Stakes Preview
- Race: Blue Grass Stakes
- Purse: $1.25 million
- Distance: 1 1/8 miles
- Track: Keeneland Race Course
- Date: April 4, 2026
- Post Time: 6:22 pm ET
- Live: Blue Grass Stakes Odds: Click Here
Before we can give you our expert 2026 Blue Grass Stakes free pick, we have to break down the entries! In fact, we’d love to hear from you after you’ve given this post a read to see if you see an angle that we don’t!
Past 10 Blue Grass Stakes Winners
- 2025 – Burnham Square
- 2024 – Sierra Leone
- 2023 – Tapit Trice
- 2022 – Zandon
- 2021 – Essential Quality
- 2020 – Art Collector
- 2019 – Vekoma
- 2018 – Good Magic
- 2017 – Irap
- 2016 – Brody’s Cause
2026 Blue Grass Stakes Handicapping
We’ve almost hit the finish line in qualifying races for the 2026 Kentucky Derby. But it’s not quite over yet, as this weekend will see three major prep races offering qualifying points on a 100-50-25-15-10 scale.
Among those is the (G1) Blue Grass Stakes at Keeneland. Historically the Blue Grass has been a fairly significant race for horses taking to the Triple Crown trail. In 2024, winner Sierra Leone went on to finish second by a nose in the Derby and third in the Belmont Stakes. Zandon won the 2023 Blue Grass and ran third in the Derby.
The previous-year winner, Essential Quality, was the ML favourite for the Derby and ran third, and then went on to win the Belmont Stakes. Good Magic won the Blue Grass in 2018 and then ran second in the Derby behind eventual Triple Crown winner Justify.
With two scratches, the 2026 Blue Grass is expected to draw a field of seven starters. They’ll race 1 1/8 miles on the Keeneland dirt course.
Odds listed here are provided by the Keeneland track oddsmaker.
2026 Blue Grass Stakes Free Pick & Handicapping: Further Ado Race Odds: 8-5
It took Further Ado three starts to get his maiden win last summer, but he did so with style, beating a field of 12 others by 20 lengths going 1 1/16 miles on this same Keeneland track.
From there he stepped up to graded-stakes company and won the (G2) Kentucky Jockey Club Stakes at Churchill. That race was in late November, and after three months off he came back to run second in the (G3) Tampa Bay Derby. The winner of that race came back to run second last weekend in the (G1) Florida Derby.
2026 Blue Grass Stakes Free Pick & Handicapping: Reagan’s Honor Race Odds: 5-2
After coming to the races late in 2025, Reagan’s Honor didn’t show much on debut in December, but has now made two starts in 2026 and has won both in gate-to-wire fashion.
Last out he made a huge step forward speed wise. After getting away with mild fractions through the first half of the race, he poured it on late, pulling away to win by 6 3/4 lengths and scoring a 105 Equibase speed figure, tied with Further Ado for tops in this field.
All three of his lifetime starts have come at Fair Grounds Race Course.
Class President Race Odds: 7-2
After breaking his maiden first out at Gulfstream Park in December, Class President has been in two Stakes races, finishing second two back in the Swale Stakes at Gulfstream, and then winning the (G2) Rebel at Oaklawn Park.
In the Rebel he showed a real willingness to battle. After stalking the pace in second throughout he got to the lead as they hit the top of the stretch. In deep stretch it looked like he was headed twice by a hard-charging Silent Tactic but managed to repel that foe to win by a nose.
Silent Tactic had previously won the (G3) Southwest Stakes, and last weekend ran second in the Arkansas Derby.
Note: Class President has been scratched from the race.
Great White Race Odds: 15-1
Great White has made all three of his career starts on the all-weather track at Turfway Park, but earns a shot here on dirt after claiming victory in the John Battaglia Memorial Stakes.
Although the pace in that 1 1/16 mile race was fairly slow he was able to run down the leader and get the win by a neck over Fulleffort, who next out won the (G2) Jeff Ruby Steaks and punched his own ticket into the Derby gate.
Here’s My 2026 Blue Grass Stakes Free Pick
While this is probably not the strongest version of the Blue Grass we’ve seen in the past few year’s, I think it shapes up to be a very interesting and competitive race.
On paper Further Ado looks like a deserving favourite off three good races in a row and he’s flattered by The Puma’s runner-up finish last weekend in a very strong Florida Derby. That being said, I’m not convinced he beat much in his previous two starts, and at low odds I’ll try to beat him.
Reagan’s Honor is the speed here, and he if he replicates his last start he could take them wire-to-wire. That’s a pretty big if, since he took such a huge jump in speed figures – from 88 in his second last race to 105 last time – he’s a candidate to bounce. And even more than Further Ado, I’m not sure of the competition he’s been facing in the maiden and allowance ranks at the Fair Grounds.
I’m hoping his tough run in the Rebel didn’t take too much out of him, and I’m going to play Class President for the win. He’s an improving horse who seems to find himself in a good stalking trip each time out and I love the way he fought down the lane in the Rebel win over a quality rival.
The logical play is Class President on top with Further Ado in the exacta, but I’m intrigued by Great White and would like to find a way to use him at big odds. There’s a fair amount of speed signed on here, and if he handles the switch to dirt – and his most recent workout at Keeneland would indicate he can – he could be flying late and pick up a piece as they tire in front.
Note: This article was written and posted prior to the scratch of Class President. The revised pick is Further Ado to win, with Great White used in the exacta.
Full Field: 2026 Blue Grass Stakes Odds
By post position
- #1 – Talkin 10-1
- #2 – Class President (scratched)
- #3 – Great White 15-1
- #4 – Reagan’s Honor 5-2
- #5 – Creole Chrome 8-1
- #6 – Further Ado 8-5
- #7 – Ocelli (scratched)
- #8 – Moonstrocity 30-1
- #9 – Ottinho 20-1
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