Kentucky Derby 2019: Start time, how to watch and stream

Viewers turning in to watch the 145th Kentucky Derby Saturday afternoon on NBC will hear a familiar voice calling the famed two-minute race.

Larry Collmus, who has been calling thoroughbred horse racing for more than 34 years, is returning to call his ninth Kentucky Derby for NBC. Collmus is known as the voice of the Triple Crown, and has called some of the most historic races in recent years, including horse racing’s first-ever Grand Slam win by American Pharoah in 2015 (“A horse of a lifetime!"). But for Collmus, nothing matches the thrill of calling the Kentucky Derby.

“It is absolutely the race,” Collmus said during a conference call with reporters this week. “The thrill of 20 horses standing in the starting gate and you’re looking at them through your binoculars with sweaty palms in complete anticipation, there’s just no other feeling.”

Prior to joining NBC in 2011 (succeeding legendary broadcaster Tom Durkin), Collmus had a long stint calling races at Monmouth Park in New Jersey. In 2010, he became a YouTube sensation after calling a otherwise obscure race featuring two horses — one named Mywifenosevrything and Thewifedoesntknow.

“Mywifenosevrything! Thewifedoesntknow! They’re one-two! Of course they are! Mywifenosevrything in front, to the outside, Thewifedoesntknow! Mywifenosevrything! Thewifedoesntknow! Mywifenosevrything... more than Thewifedoesntknow! Whew."

“I’d prefer to be known as the guy who called the Triple Crown and Breeders’ Cup and all these great races,” Collmus told the New York Times in 2015, “not some race between two wife horses.”

When: Saturday, May 4

Where: Churchill Downs, Louisville, Ky.

Post time: 6:50 p.m. (Race 12)

Hosts: Mike Tirico and Rebecca Lowe

Race caller: Larry Collmus

TV: NBC

Streaming: NBC Sports app, NBCSports.com/LiveExtra (require authentication), Hulu + Live TV, YouTube TV, Sling TV, Playstation Vue, DirectTV Now, Fubo TV (all require a subscription).

Before NBC switches over to its live Kentucky Derby coverage at 2:30 p.m., the network will air two and a half hours of pre-event coverage on NBCSN, beginning at noon. Among other things, the coverage will include eight early Churchill Downs races.

NBC’s live coverage of the Derby will feature Tirico and Lowe — making her Kentucky Derby debut — navigating the history, splendor, and the quirks associated with the annual event (mint juleps, anyone?).

With five hours of broadcast time to fill, Tirico and Lowe will be joined by a cadre of announcers and personalities, including hockey analyst and longtime handicapper Eddie Olczyk, retired NASCAR superstar Dale Earnhardt Jr., and Denver Broncos linebacker Von Miller (who will act as a lifestyle correspondent). Even celebrity chef Bobby Flay will make an appearance, joining Lowe for a cooking segment.

Leading up to the Derby (technically the 12th of 14 races on Saturday), NBC will show four other races, including the Old Forester Turf Classic, with a purse of $1 million.

1. War of Will (15-1)

2. Tax (20-1)

3. By My Standards (15-1)

4. Gray Magician (50-1)

5. Improbable (5-1)

6. Vekoma (15-1)

7. Maximum Security (8-1)

8. Tacitus (8-1)

9. Plus Que Parfait (30-1)

10. Cutting Humor (30-1)

11. Haikal (scratched)

12. Omaha Beach (scratched)

13. Code of Honor (12-1)

14. Win Win Win (12-1)

15. Master Fencer (50-1)

16. Game Winner (9-2)

17. Roadster (5-1)

18. Long Range Toddy (30-1)

19. Spinoff (30-1)

20. Country House (30-1)

21. Bodexpress (30-1)

For more details, my colleague Ed Barkowitz has a breakdown of each horse, complete with their jockeys, career earnings, and 2019 stats.

• Preakness Stakes: Saturday, May 18, 5 p.m., Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore (NBC)

• Belmont Stakes: Saturday, June 8, 4 p.m., Belmont Park in Elmont, N.Y. (NBC)