The last major prep race on the road to the 2022 Kentucky Derby takes place on Saturday when the West Coast's top three-year-olds leave the starting gate in the 2022 Santa Anita Derby at Santa Anita Park. Robert B. Lewis Stakes winner Messier is even-money favorite in the 2022 Santa Anita Derby odds. San Felipe Stakes winner Forbidden Kingdom is 6-5 in the six-horse 2022 Santa Anita Derby field, while Taiba is 4-1. Post time for the Santa Anita Derby 2022 is 5:45 p.m. ET. 

With very little separating the top two choices on Saturday, you NEED to see what racing reporter and analyst Michelle Yu has to say before making any 2022 Santa Anita Derby picks.

Few people in racing are as 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.

She also has tremendous handicapping chops. In the 2011 Kentucky Derby, she correctly tabbed Animal Kingdom to win at a hefty 21-1. In the 2017 Breeders' Cup, she nailed 11-1 long shot Wuheida to win the Filly and Mare Turf. Last year, in a wide-open Kentucky Derby, she gave out Medina Spirit, who crossed the finish line first, as the winner at 12-1.

And since joining SportsLine in November, her picks have cashed in six of 12 races, including the exacta in the Breeders' Cup Classic.

Now, Yu has handicapped the 2022 Santa Anita Derby field, made her picks and constructed her bets. 

One surprise: Yu is high on Taiba, even though he's an underdog and untested. "He could be an absolute freak," she told SportsLine. Yu is including Taiba prominently in her 2022 Santa Anita Derby bets.

Moreover, Yu's top pick is a horse who is "turning the mental corner at the perfect time and has talent to back it up." She also is high on a long shot who "has been training like a horse on the [rise]." She is including these horses in her 2022 Santa Anita Derby bets, and so should you. You ABSOLUTELY need to see her picks before locking in any of your own!

So who wins the 2022 Santa Anita Derby? And what long shot is a MUST-BACK?... Join SportsLine right now to get the top 2022 Santa Anita Derby picks and bets, all from the well connected racing reporter who nailed last year's Kentucky Derby!