Victoria Derby Tips, Best Bets, Odds, Field & More 2026

The Victoria Derby is one of the best and biggest races on the Australian calendar. The race takes place in the middle of Melbourne’s Spring Racing Carnival and is raced on the Saturday before the Melbourne Cup. Group One races don’t really get much bigger than the Victoria Derby.

Best Victoria Derby Betting Sites

There are some quick facts about the Victoria Derby that you should know to get you started:

The Victoria Derby is always hosted right in the thick of the Spring Racing Carnival in Melbourne. Also known as Derby Day, it is one of the biggest Saturdays of racing on the calendar. The distance of 2,500m presents a difficult challenge for all 3YOs that compete.

The race is one of just two “Derby” races in Australia that are run over the distance of 2,500m, with the other being the South Australian Derby. In Australia, there are also the Australian Derby and the Queensland Derby, which are both run over a distance of 2,400m.

The Victoria Derby has a long history, with the race first being run all the way back in 1856, and it has featured some of the most well-known horses as well. The track record of the Victoria Derby currently sits at 2:33.60, which was set in 1991 by Star Of The Realm.

The favourite doesn’t have the best record in the Victoria Derby in recent years. We have seen many double-digit runners win the race in recent times, including the likes of Manzoice, Johnny Get Angry and Prized Icon.

The team at Australianbettingsites.net.au will offer horse racing tips for the Victoria Derby each year. If you’re looking for more than just Victoria Derby tips, then you’re in luck because we actually provide horse racing tips every day of the week.

For our Victoria Derby tips (and tips for other races, like Melbourne Cup tips and The Everest tips), though, you’ll have to wait until a couple of days before the big race to get your hands on our tips. We look into every single runner in the field before putting forward our selections.

We want to make your Victoria Derby betting experience as enjoyable as possible, so here are some betting tips:

• Consider the Odds - The odds will tell you how likely that runner is to win the Victoria Derby (according to the bookies). You should consider the favourite, but also not blindly ignore other runners. Take a measured approach when looking at the odds.
• Previous Form - When picking the next winner of the Victoria Derby, looking into previous form is one of the most important things you can do. Some races provide reliable form indicators for the Victoria Derby, so make sure you check out those races.
• Use Promotions - For big races like the Victoria Derby, all the best horse racing bookies will have promotions available. Make sure you take advantage of any promotions to get the most value possible. The type of promotion will vary depending on which bookie you are betting with.
• Don’t Overbet - It’s important to have a budget of how much money you are willing to spend on any given day of horse racing betting. Make sure you stick with your budget as well. For example, if you have a budget of $100, it isn’t a good idea to place a bet of $75 first up.

Looking for  new betting sites to bet on the Victoria Derby? Well, you have come to the right place! There are so many great horse racing betting sites in Australia, but they aren’t all created equally. We have gone through and found five of the best and explained why they are so great in this section.

It’s always good to have options, and when it comes to betting on the Victoria Derby, you have plenty! There is a whole raft of bet types available to bet on the big race, but it is important you fully understand what you are betting on. 

We have put together a list of some of the most common betting markets available for the Victoria Derby:

With a race that holds as much prestige as the Victoria Derby, we always see a field filled to the brim with quality. The final field for the Victoria Derby is confirmed a couple of days before the event. When the final field is confirmed, so is the barrier draw, and in larger fields, the barrier draw can have a somewhat major influence on the race.

Not only should you look at the final field at face value, but you should also take a deeper dive into the form of runners coming into the race. Career statistics and recent performances are important to check out to gauge each runner’s chances of success. Other aspects like the jockey/ runner relationship and trainer form play their part as well.

Here are all the runners that took part in the most recent Victoria Derby:

Something we are all striving to do - find the best odds going around for the Victoria Derby! Well, if you have a little bit of extra time before you place your bets, we recommend you start shopping around so you can lock in the best odds for the market you wish to bet on. 

Some may spend hours searching for the best odds, but it doesn’t have to take that long. Just choose a handful of the bookies you are comfortable with and already have an account with, as this will speed up the process. Doing this means you can check the odds in a matter of minutes.

You can also take advantage of odds comparison tools, but they might not list the odds of all the bookies you like. A lot of the time, different bookies will offer different odds for the same runner/ market, which is why we recommend shopping around before finalising your bets.

A little bit of easy value here and there can really add up in the long run. This is especially the case if you’re choosing to bet on roughies or exotic markets, where the odds are usually a bit higher. We also recommend sticking with bookies that have a reputation for offering competitive odds.

After winning the Moonee Valley Vase, Observer came into the Victoria Derby as the $2.45 favourite. The colt managed to sault for all those favourite backers out there, winning the Victoria Derby by 0.75L. Arcora, who jumped from barrier 11, finished in second place, and the colt was paying a massive $61 to win the race before the jump.

Wrapping up the final minor placings was Deal Done Fast, who was ridden by Daniel Stackhouse. Deal Done Fast jumped from barrier one and ended up 1.5L behind Observer. In the end, there was a total of 15.66L that split the first and last runners across the finishing post, and the race was run in a time of 2:37.28.

See which position each runner in the Victoria Derby finished in here:

See how the most recent edition of the Victoria Derby unfolded here:

The Victoria Derby has a very long history, and over the years we have seen some of the biggest names in the industry win this race, including:

Do you still have a couple of questions about the Victoria Derby? Well, you have come to the right place. We have answered several of the most commonly asked questions about one of the biggest races on the calendar in this section.