It’s Santa Anita Derby, Blue Grass and Wood Memorial Week, the 4-week outpost until the 2021 Kentucky Derby. Between now and next week’s Arkansas Derby, the field for the first Saturday in May will take much of its shape.

Our resident historians and handicappers with 1/ST BET and Xpressbet check back in with their mid-March Top 10 contenders for the Kentucky Derby, Preakness Stakes and Belmont Stakes. We’ve included the projected next start for each horse in parentheses (subject to change).

Jeff Siegel | @jsiegelracing

#1 Essential Quality (Blue Grass)
#2 Concert Tour (Arkansas Derby)
#3 Known Agenda (Kentucky Derby)
#4 Hot Rod Charlie (Kentucky Derby)
#5 Medina Spirit (Santa Anita Derby)
#6 Risk Taking (Wood Memorial)
#7 Greatest Honour (Kentucky Derby)
#8 Prevalence (Wood Memorial)
#9 Rock Your World (Santa Anita Derby)
#10 Helium (Kentucky Derby)

Jon White | @posttimejon

#1 Essential Quality (Blue Grass)
#2 Concert Tour (Arkansas Derby)
#3 Hot Rod Charlie (Kentucky Derby)
#4 Known Agenda (Kentucky Derby)
#5 Medina Spirit (Santa Anita Derby)
#6 Greatest Honour (Kentucky Derby)
#7 Midnight Bourbon (Kentucky Derby)
#8 Keepmeinmind (Blue Grass)
#9 Risk Taking (Wood Memorial)
#10 Dream Shake (Santa Anita Derby)

John DeSantis | @XBJohnnyD

#1 Concert Tour (Arkansas Derby)
#2 Essential Quality (Blue Grass)
#3 Greatest Honour (Kentucky Derby)
#4 Hot Rod Charlie (Kentucky Derby)
#5 Known Agenda (Kentucky Derby)
#6 Medina Spirit (Santa Anita Derby)
#7 Midnight Bourbon (Kentucky Derby)
#8 Highly Motivated (Blue Grass)
#9 O Besos (Kentucky Derby)
#10 Risk Taking (Wood Memorial)

Jeremy Plonk | @HorsePlayerNow

#1 Concert Tour (Arkansas Derby)
#2 Essential Quality (Blue Grass)
#3 Known Agenda (Kentucky Derby)
#4 Greatest Honour (Kentucky Derby)
#5 Medina Spirit (Santa Anita Derby)
#6 Hot Rod Charlie (Kentucky Derby)
#7 Proxy (Kentucky Derby)
#8 Midnight Bourbon (Kentucky Derby)
#9 Prevalence (Wood Memorial)
#10 Risk Taking (Wood Memorial)