The Kentucky Oaks 2017 schedule arrives just a day before horse racing fans will get to see the annual Kentucky Derby from the historic Churchill Downs. The Oaks event brings a series of Horse Races with plenty of strong contenders featured as a warm up event for fans. So Friday, May 5th won't just be "Cinco de Mayo" for many celebrants but also a day to enjoy a full slate of racing for horse bettors and spectators.

Here's a look at the schedule of race times and how to watch it live on television or stream online.

Kentucky Oaks race schedule

The Kentucky Oaks' full schedule contains a total of 13 horse races with the Oaks race the main event. The first of the day's races begins at 10:30 a.m. Eastern Time with the second coming at 10:58 a.m. ET, the third at 11:26 a.m. ET, the fourth at 11:59 a.m. ET and the fifth at 12:35 p.m. Eastern Time. That fifth race is the $300,000 Grade-1 La Troienne race, an early one to keep an eye on.

Starting at 1:17 p.m. Eastern Time on the Kentucky Oaks event schedule is the $400,000 race, the Grade-2 Alysheba race.

It will be followed by Race No. 7, the $150,000 Grade-3 Twin Spires Turf Sprint at 2 p.m. ET. Race No. 8 will be worth a prize of $200,000, as the Grade-2 Eight Belles begins at 2:53 p.m. ET.

That leaves five more races to fill out the slate of horse racing. The ninth race on the schedule will be at 3:53 p.m. ET, with race No. 10 coming at 5:04 p.m. ET, approximately. That tenth race is valued at $150,000 purse and is the Grade-3 Edgewood race. Race No. 11 is a big one, as it brings with a $1 million purse. It's the Grade-1 Kentucky Oaks race itself, scheduled for 6:12 p.m. Eastern Time.

The Oaks race features three-year old fillies racing with a prize purse of $1 million. Paradise Woods will be the favorite with Miss Sky Warrior, Abel Talsman, Salty, and Farrell among the other top contenders there.

Two other horse races finish out the day's events coming at 6:48 p.m. and 7:23 p.m. ET. Once those are over, it will give fans a bit of a breather until the next day's main event: the 143rd Run for the Roses at Churchill Downs.

How to watch it live

While the first few races of the Kentucky Oaks' schedule aren't televised or live streaming, a good portion of the day's action will be. Television coverage begins at noon Eastern Time on the NBC Sports Network channel and continues until 3 p.m. Eastern Time. The coverage picks back up from 5 to 6:30 p.m. Eastern Time.

Beginning at 12 p.m. Eastern Time, cable and satellite subscribers can begin watching a live stream online from Churchill Downs on the NBC Sports Live Extra website or mobile apps. To use this online feed viewing service, viewers need to have a valid cable or satellite account log-in to access the website or apps.