Santa Anita Picks

There are so many angles to consider when it comes to finding a winner at Santa Anita Park. Luckily for you, our expert team of US horse racing handicappers has got all the bases covered. We call upon sports betting analysts like Matt Bernier and other premier handicappers such as Andrew Champagne who have had their picks and insights published by leading media outlets and sportsbooks through the years. You can lean on their combined years of handicapping expertise at Santa Anita to find the best Santa Anita handicapping picks that are not only profitable long-term but free to access.

All RacingPicks users can get access to free selections on all of these headline races, as well as well as the more modest daily race meetings staged at the dozens of racetracks across the US. These selections have been put together by experienced horse racing handicappers and pundits that have expert knowledge of the sport’s leading horses, jockeys and the attributes required to win around certain racetracks.

When it comes to the most successful jockeys around Santa Anita Park, no-one compares to Mike Smith. The 55-year-old became the oldest winner of the Triple Crown at 52 and his form around Santa Anita is unrivalled, with an average win rate of 25% in 1,111 races. Frenchman Flavien Prat is not far behind Smith in the win rate percentage stakes, recording a 24% win ratio from his 701 starts. The top performing trainers around the hallowed Santa Anita turf and dirt tracks include Bob Baffert, who is the undisputed king of Santa Anita Park. The 67-year-old has a win ratio of 27% from 1,301 entries. Richard Mandella is also one to watch, registering a 24% win rate with 129 wins from his 667 entries. Our expert analysts use this available data and more to help provide free horse racing picks at Santa Anita Park. In-form jockeys and trainers are an important metric to help find value odds ahead of any major race meeting at Santa Anita Park. We do the legwork, so you don’t have to.

Santa Anita is home to some of the most prestigious flat race meetings in US horse racing. The Arcadia racetrack, currently owned by the Stronach Group, schedules its own Santa Anita Derby and Santa Anita Handicap races annually, which are two of the most popular Grade 1 flat races to bet on. The Santa Anita Derby is a nine-furlong race, dating back as far as 1935. It is regarded as one of the most effective tests of a thoroughbred’s character on their journey to racing in the iconic Kentucky Derby. In fact, the Derby has been an official fixture in the “Road to the Kentucky Derby” points system since 2013, with the winner of the Derby picking up 100 points and a large chunk of the race’s $400,000 purse. In fact, ten winners of the Santa Anita Derby have eventually been crowned Kentucky Derby winners. Seven other Santa Anita picks have raced in but failed to win the Derby before going on to win the Kentucky Derby, so the race is definitely a good proving ground. The Santa Anita Handicap was also first staged in 1935 and was once considered the most influential handicap race during the US winter racing calendar. The Grade 1 event is reserved exclusively for thoroughbreds aged four and older, with the ten-furlong race also carrying a lucrative $600,000 purse. Santa Anita Park has also staged the Breeders’ Cup on many occasions since the 1980s, with the two-day event last hosted here in 2019. It was the tenth time the cup has come to Arcadia, surpassing the nine meetings staged at Churchill Downs. As it is such a prominent racetrack in the US horse racing season, you can be sure that RacingPicks will offer expert Santa Anita picks for both the Santa Anita Derby and the Santa Anita Handicap. Our expert picks are always based upon detailed analysis of the formbook, saving you time and money in the long run!