2026 Rebel Stakes odds, horses, field: Racing insider offers best bets, top picks for Sunday's Kentucky Derby prep race

Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert can add to his record number of wins in the Rebel Stakes when he sends out Litmus Test in the 2026 Rebel Stakes on Sunday at Oaklawn Park in Hot Springs, Ark. The 73-year-old Baffert has won the race a record eight times, most recently with Concert Tour in 2021. On Sunday he sends out Litmus Test, who is coming off a victory in the Grade 2 Los Alamitos Futurity on Dec. 13. Litmus Test has been installed as the 7-2 second choice in the 2026 Rebel Stakes odds. The Kenny McPeek-trained Blackout Time is the 8-5 favorite among the 10 Rebel Stakes horses. Post time for the Rebel Stakes 2026 is 6:23 p.m. ET, with the forecast calling for 70 degree weather and no precipitation. 

With several talented horses entering the starting gate on Saturday, you NEED to see what racing reporter and insider Michelle Yu has to say before making any 2026 Rebel Stakes picks.

Few people in racing are as well-connected as Yu. An on-air host and reporter who has provided racing analysis for TVG, HRTV and the Breeders' Cup, Yu has spent a lifetime in racing. Prior to her television career, she worked for trainers Steve Asmussen and Ron Moquett. She also is married to Santa Anita-based trainer Ryan Hanson.

Yu also has tremendous handicapping chops. She started off 2025 by correctly going all-in on Citizen Bull to win the Robert B. Lewis Stakes, and she also predicted Forever Young's win in the Saudi Cup, Journalism's win in the San Felipe Stakes, Sandman's win in the Arkansas Derby and Mindframe's win in the Churchill Downs Stakes. She also hit the exacta in the Kentucky Derby.

And in August she hit the Fierceness-Journalism exacta in the Pacific Classic.

For the 2026 Rebel Stakes, Yu has made her picks and constructed her bets. One surprise: She is completely fading Blackout Time, even though he is the 8-5 favorite. "He's only five works into his comeback, and while he is a deserving favorite, I would probably think twice before unloading my life savings here," Yu told SportsLine. She is not using Blackout Time in any of her wagers.

However Yu's top pick is a horse who has "room to grow." She also is high on a double-digit longshot who "has been working super well." She is including these horses in her 2026 Rebel Stakes bets, and so should you. You ABSOLUTELY NEED to see her picks before locking in any of your own.

So which horse wins the 2026 Rebel Stakes? What double-digit longshot is a must-back? And how has Yu constructed her wagers? ... Join SportsLine right now to get Michelle Yu's 2026 Rebel Stakes picks and bets, all from the racing insider who nailed the Kentucky Derby exacta!