Santa Anita Derby 2022 – Preview and Betting Odds

Last Updated on April 6, 2022 9:12 pm by Erwin Noguera

The Santa Anita Derby is an American grade 1 horse race for three-year-old Thoroughbred horses; male or female, held annually in April at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California. The Santa Anita Derby runs a distance of 1 1/8 miles and has a prize pool of $1 million. This race is one of the last prep races in the official Road to the Kentucky Derby.

Since its inception in 1935, the Santa Anita Derby has been the biggest Kentucky Derby prep race of the year. Also, since 2013, has been part of the Road to the Kentucky Derby. In its 87-year history, 10 winners at Santa Anita have gone on to take the Kentucky Derby crown that same year.

The races in preparation for the Santa Anita Derby are, the San Rafael Stakes, San Miguel Stakes, Sham Stakes, San Vicente Stakes, San Pedro Stakes, Robert B. Lewis Stakes, and San Felipe Stakes, all of which are at the Santa Anita Park.

This weekend the wait for the last 3 Kentucky Derby prep races will end and the Santa Anita Derby is one of them. This event will be next Saturday, April 9, 2022.

For this race, we have a top favorite to take the victory Messier, sired by Empire Maker. He managed to take an excellent victory against the favorite of the Santa Anita Derby; Forbidden Kingdom, is the only confrontation they have had before this race. Forbidden Kingdom, a racer sired by American Pharoah, will go to great lengths to get revenge. He and Messier are the horses likely to be in contention to finish first in this Santa Anita Derby.

Betting odds for each of the horses that will participate in this Santa Anita Derby 2022.

Messier, the Canadian horse now trained by Tim Yakteen, owned by Starlight Racing, is ready to go in search of the 100 points that the Santa Anita Derby G1 awards.

Despite having a lot of prominences to come from trainer Bob Baffert’s stable, Messier will have to measure forces against the prospect Forbidden Kingdom, son of American Pharoah who has a record of three wins in five races, winning the two competitions in which he has participated in the current campaign.

Without a doubt, these are the two horses to follow in this race, but, since this is a race where only the best participate, we cannot miss the rest of the horses that could give the surprise and be crowned in this Santa Anita Derby.