Kentucky Derby 2012: Who Are the Experts Picking?

The 2012 Kentucky Derby's talented field has experts picking different horses for every position. The open field leads to these picks being very diverse.

The 138th running of the Kentucky Derby will have the audience at Churchill Downs on the edge of their seats, and we could easily see a photo-finish on Saturday.

Read on to see which horses the experts are picking for the 2012 Kentucky Derby.

John Asher

Asher has covered 30 Kentucky Derbies, not missing a single one since his first as a radio journalist in 1982. He has been the vice president of racing communications since 1999.

Position	Win	Place	Show
Horse	Union Rags	Creative Cause	Dullahan

Jill Byrne

Byrne is the official handicapper at Churchill Downs, and a regular contributor to the TV shows Pursuit of the Crown and Pursuit of the Cup. She has been part of the horse-racing world for all of her life.

Position	Win	Place	Show
Horse	I'll Have Another	Union Rags	Gemologist

Ed DeRosa

DeRosa was a writer and editor with Thoroughbred Times before becoming the director of marketing for Brisnet.com, the official data source of the Kentucky Derby and TwinSpires.com.

Position	Win	Place	Show
Horse	Union Rags	Take Charge Indy	I'll Have Another

James Scully

Another writer for Brisnet.com, Scully is the editor of the Handicapper’s Edge and Bloodstock Journal daily newsletters for the site. He was also featured as one of the panelists at the Churchill Downs-hosted Breeders’ Cup Handicapping Summit in 2010. He attended his first Kentucky Derby in 1981.

Position	Win	Place	Show
Horse	Bodemeister	Dullahan	Union Rags

Merv Huber

As brand development and licensing manager for Churchill Downs, Huber is also an avid handicapper. Merv won the Road to the Roses Fantasy Challenge, comprising over 13,000 handicappers, despite being only 13 years old.

Position	Win	Place	Show
Horse	Gemologist	Dullahan	Creative Cause

Caroline Kamer

A two-time world championship winning rider, Kamer has had a passion for horses since the age of five. She is also the brand development and marketing coordinator at Churchill Downs.

Position	Win	Place	Show
Horse	Union Rags	Gemologist	Dullahan

Courier-Journal's Media Poll

The poll from the Louisville Courier-Journal features a combination of picks, featuring nine people from different realms of the horse-racing world.

Position	Win	Place	Show
Horse	Union Rags	Creative Cause	Gemologist

My Picks

I'm not an expert when it comes to horse racing, and I'll be the first to admit it. However, these are my picks for this year's Kentucky Derby.

Position	Win	Place	Show
Horse	Bodemeister	Gemologist	Dullahan

Expert Consensus

The following is a consensus of the expert picks. My picks do not count toward this ranking. Being picked to win accrues five points for a horse; a place gets the colt three; and a show earns the participant a point.

Finish	Horse	Points (# of wins)
Win	Union Rags	24 (4)
Place	Gemologist	10 (1)
Show	Dullahan	8
4	I'll Have Another	6 (1)
5	Bodemeister	5 (1)
6	Creative Cause	4
7	Take Charge Indy	3

Clearly, Union Rags is the experts' top choice. He is head and shoulders above Gemologist, who is projected to place, while Dullahan is predicted to show despite not having a single expert pick him to win.

Leave your predictions for finishes below and I'll incorporate the fan votes periodically. Just leave your predictions to win, place and show and your name will be added to a contributors' list below.

Contributors List: Mark Elliot, Joey BeerBelly, Jackie Beverly, Pete Tallardy

Place	Horse	Points (# of wins)
1	Union Rags	10 (1)
T-2	Dullahan	6 (1)
T-2	Take Charge Indy	6 (1)

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