Tiztastic has a pedigree, trainer and jockey with a history of winning entering the 2025 Kentucky Derby on Saturday. Tiztastic is the son of Tiz the Law, a star 3-year-old in the 2020 horse racing circuit. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Tiz the Law won the Belmont Stakes in the first Triple Crown race in the middle of a four-race winning streak that included taking the Florida Derby and Travers Stakes before the Kentucky Derby ran in September. Tiz the Law finished second at Churchill Downs. Tiztastic’s mother, Keesha, is fathered by Tapit, one of the highest-earning sires of all time. Still, Tiztastic is priced at 20-1 in the latest 2025 Kentucky Derby odds, so should you include him in 2025 Kentucky Derby bets?
Tiztastic will be jockeyed by Joel Rosario, who won the 2013 Kentucky Derby, while his trainer, Steve Asmussen, is the winningest trainer in North America. Is this power team behind Tiztastic enough to take out 2025 Kentucky Derby horses like Journalism (3-1), Sovereignty (5-1) and Sandman (6-1) to capture the 2025 Kentucky Derby on Saturday? Before making any 2025 Kentucky Derby picks, be sure to see the horse racing predictions and futures bets from SportsLine’s elite horse racing expert Jody Demling.
A fixture in the horse racing world who has been writing about, talking about and betting on races for years, Demling has nailed the Kentucky Oaks-Derby double 11 times in the last 16 years. He also predicted the winner of the Belmont Stakes four of the last seven years and called 10 of the last 20 Preakness winners, including in 2023, when he hit the winner, exacta, trifecta and superfecta, as well as the trifecta in 2024. Anyone who has followed him on those picks on betting sites like FanDuel Racing, TwinSpires and 1/ST BET is up huge.
Now, with the 2025 Kentucky Derby post positions set and odds on the board, Demling is sharing his 2025 Kentucky Derby betting picks and 2025 Kentucky Derby predictions over at SportsLine. Go here to see them.
Top 2025 Kentucky Derby predictions
One of Demling’s surprising 2025 Kentucky Derby picks: He is fading Sandman, even though he’s one of the top favorites at 6-1 and just won the Arkansas Derby. Though he proved victorious at Oaklawn Park, Sandman has never won in three tries at Churchill Downs. Lifetime, he has made eight starts, with three wins and three other finishes inside the trifecta.
Hall of Fame trainer Mark Casse will try for his first Kentucky Derby win with Sandman, who was purchased for $1.2 million last March. However, Demling believes the horse is “too immature to win the Derby” and while talented, isn’t worth playing at his short price. Jockey Jose Ortiz will likely have to eat up ground late with the talented, yet inconsistent colt on Saturday. See which other 2025 Kentucky Derby horses to avoid at SportsLine.
Another stunner: Demling is high on Luxor Cafe, even though he is a 15-1 longshot in the Kentucky Derby odds 2025.Luxor Cafe arrived at Churchill Downs on April 23, giving him plenty of time to acclimate to his surroundings.
Luxor Cafe is the 3-year-old son of 2015 Triple Crown winner American Pharoah, so he has the pedigree needed to compete at Churchill Downs. Luxor Cafe is trained by Hori Noriyuki and is coming off a comfortable victory in his last race. He won by five lengths in the concluding leg of the designated series in Japan, the Fukuryu Stakes at Nakayama on March 29. He’s won each of his last four starts, making him a valuable longshot wager to include in Kentucky Derby bets. See which other horses to back at SportsLine.
How to make 2025 Kentucky Derby picks, bets
Demling is especially high on a colossal double-digit longshot who is “generating buzz on the backside.” Demling is sharing which horse it is, along with his entire projected 2025 Kentucky Derby leaderboard, over at SportsLine.
Which horse wins the Kentucky Derby 2025, and which huge double-digit longshot is a must-back? Check out the latest 2025 Kentucky Derby odds below, then visit SportsLine to see Demling’s picks for the Kentucky Derby, all from the expert who has nailed 11 Derby-Oaks doubles.
2025 Kentucky Derby odds, post positions
2025 Kentucky Derby horses, program numbers
1 Citizen Bull | 2 Neoequos | 3 Final Gambit | 4 Rodriguez | 5 American Promise | 6 Admire Daytona | 7 Luxor Cafe | 8 Journalism | 9 Burnham Square | 10 Grande | 11 Flying Mohawk | 12 East Avenue | 13 Publisher | 14 Tiztastic | 15 Render Judgment | 16 Coal Battle | 17 Sandman | 18 Sovereignty | 19 Chunk of Gold | 20 Owen Almighty
