The road to the Kentucky Derby continues on Saturday with the first of the 170-point prep races, the 2021 Louisiana Derby at the Fair Grounds in New Orleans. The Brad Cox-trained Mandaloun is the 8-5 morning-line favorite in the latest 2021 Louisiana Derby odds. Post time is 6:44 p.m. ET. 

Before you make any Louisiana Derby picks, you NEED to see what racing insider Bob Weir has to say.

Based in Saratoga Springs, N.Y., Weir has been handicapping and following horse racing since reading Andy Beyer's landmark handicapping book "Picking Winners" in the late 1980s. Weir is highly invested in the Beyer Speed Figure, a number assigned to every race run by a horse that measures how fast the horse ran. He uses the figure as the backbone of his handicapping. In fact, thanks to his proficiency with speed figures and top-tier handicapping, he landed one of just eight spots on Beyer's figure-making team in 2017, a position he holds to this day.

Weir's methodology has produced multiple five-figure days. In 2014, he hit a $60,000 Pick 6 at Del Mar. The following year, he nailed a $31,000 Pick 6 at Gulfstream Park. In 2016 and 2017, Weir qualified for the prestigious National Horseplayers Championship in Las Vegas!

Last year, his first for SportsLine, Weir was on fire. In June, Weir hit a $2 superfecta in the Ogden Phipps Stakes that paid a whopping $1,039. He crushed the exacta and trifecta in the Forego Stakes in August for $1,134.50. He hit the late Pick 4 at Belmont Park on June 18, June 19, June 25, July 2 and July 5, with the June 25 score returning a whopping $2,159.50.

And two weeks ago, he crushed the exacta in the Tampa Bay Derby for $1,414! Anyone who has followed Weir is way up.

Now, he has handicapped the 2021 Louisiana Derby field, made his picks and constructed his bets. 

One shocker: Weir is relatively high on O Besos, even though he is one of the longest shots in the entire field at 15-1! "He has a chance to improve in his second time routing," Weir tells SportsLine.

Weir's top choice is a horse who "continues to improve." He also is high on another double-digit long shot who could spice up your exotics! Weir is including these horses in his trifectas and superfectas, and so should you. You ABSOLUTELY need to see which horses they are before locking in any picks.

Who wins the 2021 Louisiana Derby? And which double-digit long shot is a MUST-BACK? ... Join SportsLine right now to get the top 2021 Louisiana Derby picks and bets, all from the racing insider who just nailed the Tampa Bay Derby for $1,414!