Santa Maria Stakes 2022 predictions, odds, expert picks, contenders: Horse racing insider reveals best bets

Six of the West Coast’s top older fillies and mares will square off when the starting gate opens in the 2022 Santa Maria Stakes on Saturday at Santa Anita Park. The Grade 2 race with a $200,000 purse has attracted a short, but well balanced field, as five of the six entrants are 5-1 or shorter. The 2022 Santa Maria Stakes field is led by the speedy Private Mission, who won the Grade 2 Zenyatta Stakes at Santa Anita and at this distance last year. She is the 9-5 favorite in the 2022 Santa Maria Stakes odds. Blue Stripe is 5-2 in the 2022 Santa Maria Stakes lineup, while Lady Mystify is 3-1. Post time is 7:08 p.m. ET. With an accomplished field set to enter the starting gate on Saturday, you’ll want to see what racing insider and Beyer Speed Figure maker Bob Weir has to say before making any 2022 Santa Maria Stakes picks.

A Saratoga Springs-based racing insider and Beyer Speed Figure maker, Weir is a two-time qualifier for the prestigious National Horseplayers Championship in Las Vegas. He has produced multiple five-figure days at the track over the years, including a $60,000 Pick 6 at Del Mar in 2014. Last year, he was on fire. He hit the exacta in the Sam F. Davis Stakes, Tampa Bay Derby and Peter Pan Stakes, the trifecta in the Risen Star Stakes, Blue Grass Stakes and Pennsylvania Derby and the superfecta in the Belmont Stakes.

This year, he has been red-hot in the Triple Crown prep races, hitting the superfecta in the Blue Grass Stakes, the trifecta in the Louisiana Derby and exactas in the Fountain of Youth Stakes and Tampa Bay Derby. He also has hit the 19-1 winner of the Man o’ War Stakes, the trifecta in the Pegasus World Cup, the superfecta in the Met Mile and multiple Pick 4s, including May 14’s at Belmont for $1,851. Anyone who has followed him is way up.

Now, he has handicapped the 2022 Santa Maria Stakes Stakes lineup, made his picks and constructed his bets. You can only see them at SportsLine.

Top 2022 Santa Maria Stakes predictions 

One surprise: Weir is down on the chances of Private Mission, even though she is the 9-5 favorite. Previously trained by Bob Baffert and now trained by Sean McCarthy, the 4-year-old Private Mission has won more than $277,000 in her career. She went on a roll between June and October of last year, winning three straight races, highlighted by the Grade 2 Zenyatta Stakes.

However since then, she has lost three straight races by more than 51 lengths combined. “If she can return to her runs from last fall, she could be long gone, but that’s a big if,” he told SportsLine. “I have enough doubts that I will be trying to beat this morning-line favorite.” Weir prefers three 2022 Santa Anita Stakes horses over Private Mission.

How to 2022 Santa Maria Stakes picks 

Moreover, Weir’s top pick is a horse who “could be poised for a big effort” on Saturday. He also is high on another horse who could have plenty of upside. Weir is including these horses in his 2022 Santa Maria Stakes bets, and so should you. He’s sharing which horses to back only at SportsLine.

So who wins the Santa Maria Stakes 2022? Which horse is a must-back? And how has Weir constructed his wagers? Check out the latest 2022 Santa Maria Stakes odds below, then visit SportsLine to see Weir’s picks for the Santa Maria Stakes.

2022 Santa Maria Stakes odds, post positions