One horse will become a Grade 1 winner for the first time when the starting gate opens in the 2022 Santa Anita Handicap on Saturday at Santa Anita Park. The John Shirreffs-trained Express Train is the 8-5 morning-line favorite in the 2022 Santa Anita Handicap odds. The Ed Moger-trained Stilleto Boy is 5-2 in the eight-horse 2022 Santa Anita Handicap field, while the Brad Cox-trained Warrant is 4-1. Post time for the $650,000 race is 8 p.m. ET. 

With several accomplished Santa Anita Handicap 2022 horses, you NEED to see what racing reporter and analyst Michelle Yu has to say before making any Santa Anita Handicap 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 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.

This year, her SportsLine picks hit the exacta in the Sham Stakes and El Camino Real Derby.

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

One surprise: Yu's top pick is not Express Train, even though he is the 8-5 morning-line favorite. "So far, he is 0-for-3 in his career at 10 furlongs," she told SportsLine. Yu prefers two horses over Express Train.

Instead Yu's top pick is an "ultra-consistent" horse. She also is high on a double-digit long shot who is coming off multiple strong outings! She is including these horses in her 2022 Santa Anita Handicap 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 Handicap? And what double-digit long shot is a MUST-BACK?... Join SportsLine right now to get the top 2022 Santa Anita Handicap picks and bets, all from the well-connected racing reporter who nailed last year's Kentucky Derby!