How to watch the 2018 Kentucky Derby

Whip out those fancy hats and mint juleps because the 2018 Kentucky Derby will be held Saturday evening at Churchill Downs. The 144th edition of the Run for the Roses will pit the world’s top 3-year thoroughbreds in a 1 1/4-mile heat to determine who will begin a quest toward the Triple Crown.

The Kentucky Derby is run annually on the first Saturday of May to help ring in the summer. It’s a chance to kick back and enjoy the weekend … at least until two of the most intense minutes in sports. The Derby is always a thrill, and this year should be no different.

Justify, trained by four-time Derby winner Bob Baffert, enters the field as the favorite with 7-2 odds. Magnum Moon, Audible and Bolt D’Oro, jockeyed by 2015 Triple Crown victor Victor Espinoza, are also considered prime contenders to take the top spot. The complete list of post positions for the field is included at the bottom of the post.

Television coverage from Churchill Downs will begin on NBC at 1:30 p.m. CT. The official post time for the race is 5:34 p.m., and it’s expected that the race will actually begin at 5:46 p.m. The action will be over just minutes after that.

How to watch 2018 Kentucky Derby

Time: 5:34 p.m. post time, 5:46 p.m. estimated start time

TV: NBC

Live stream: NBC Sports Live

Post positions

1. Firenze Fire
2. Free Drop Billy
3. Promises Fulfilled
4. Flameaway
5. Audible
6. Good Magic
7. Justify
8. Lone Sailor
9. Hofburg
10. My Boy Jack
11. Bolt d’Oro
12. Enticed
13. Bravazo
14. Mendelssohn
15. Instilled Regard
16. Magnum Moon
17. Solomini
18. Vino Rosso
19. Noble Indy
20. Combatant