Two reigning Eclipse champions will square off when Letruska and Ce Ce leave the starting gate in the 2022 Apple Blossom Handicap on Saturday at Oaklawn Park. The six-year-old Letruska is coming off a year in which she won six times, including last year’s Apple Blossom, and was named the champion older female. Ce Ce won four times last year, including the Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Sprint, and was named champion female sprinter. Letruska is the 7-5 favorite in the 2022 Apple Blossom Handicap odds, while Ce Ce is 2-1 in the five-horse 2022 Apple Blossom field.
Post time for the Apple Blossom Handicap 2022 is 3:18 p.m. ET. With very little separating the top two contenders on Saturday, you’ll want to see what racing insider and Beyer Speed Figure maker Bob Weir has to say before making any Apple Blossom picks of your own.
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, with the Tampa Bay score returning $1,414. Those were just some of his scores in 2021.
This year, he has hit the superfecta in the Blue Grass Stakes ($1,678), the trifecta in the Pegasus World Cup, Louisiana Derby and Jenny Wiley Stakes, the exacta in the Fountain of Youth Stakes and Tampa Bay Derby ($660) and multiple Pick 4s, among other scores.
Now, he has handicapped the 2022 Apple Blossom Handicap field, made his picks and constructed his bets. You can only see them here.
Top 2022 Apple Blossom Handicap predictions
One surprise: Weir’s top pick is not Letruska, even though she is arguably the most accomplished horse in the field. Trained by Fausto Gutierrez, Letruska has 18 wins, one second and one third in 24 career starts. In February, she returned from a 3 1/2-month layoff to easily win the Grade 3 Royal Delta Stakes.
But older mares often regress quickly, and Weir believes there’s a rival in the Apple Blossom who has more upside than Letruska. “She’s now a 6-year-old; at some point there could be some regression,” Weir told SportsLine.
How to make 2022 Apple Blossom Handicap picks
Weir’s top pick is a horse who could be “poised for a big season.” Weir is including this horse in his 2022 Apple Blossom Handicap bets and exotics, and so should you. He’s only sharing which horses to back at SportsLine.
So who wins the Apple Blossom Handicap 2022? And how has Weir constructed his wagers? Check out the latest Apple Blossom Handicap odds below, then visit SportsLine to see Weir’s picks for the Apple Blossom Handicap, and find out.
