2012 Preakness Post Positions: Horses That Will Cash in on Favorable Draw

The 137th Preakness Stakes is right around the corner. The track at Pimlico will be littered with expectations and horses waiting to meet them.

A horse's success can be impacted drastically by his post position. The higher the starting number is, the less likely a horse is to reach the front of the pack. 

Certain horses made out like bandits in the post positions for this year's Preakness.

Post	Horse	Jockey	Odds
1.	Tiger Walk	K. Desormeaux	20-1
2.	Teeth of the Dog	J. Bravo	20-1
3.	Pretension	J. Santiago	25-1
4.	Zetterholm	J. Alvarado	20-1
5.	Went the Day Well	J. Velazquez	12-1
6.	Creative Cause	J. Rosario	8-1
7.	Bodemeister	M. Smith	3-1
8.	Daddy Nose Best	J. Leparoux	N/A
9.	I'll Have Another	M. Guitierrez	3-1
10.	Optimizer	C. Nakatani	12-1
11.	Cozzetti	J. Lezcano	20-1

*Post positions according to nj.com

*Odds via vegasinsider.com

Let's take a look at what horses will cash in on their favorable draw.

Daddy Nose Best

Daddy Nose Best drew the No. 8 post position for the 2012 Preakness Stakes. Bernardini won the 2006 Preakness from that spot, and War Emblem did the same in 2002.

Poll positions do not matter as much on Pimlico's short track but history does not lie. Since 2000, only one other pole spot (No.4) has seen two horses through to victory. 

Daddy Nose Best finished 10th in the Kentucky Derby after entering the race as one of a handful of considered favorites. 

He is an established sprinter with favorable odds heading into the second leg of the triple crown trifecta.

Daddy Nose Best will make noise in this year's Preakness. Getting jockey Julien Leparoux back in the saddle is another added benefit.

Zetterholm

Going with what I said earlier about the No. 4 post, Zetterholm is in a very favorable spot. Red Bullet won the race from the No. 4 spot in 2000 and Curlin did in 2007. 

Zetterholm has finished first in three straight races. Most recently, he took first in the Patsyprospect Stakes. 

He will be up against stiff competition and faces long-shot odds. However, he has an extremely favorable pole position. 

If he can fire out of his gate and put himself into the middle of the pack, Zetterholm could surprise people at Pimlico on Saturday.

Bodemeister

Bodemeister drew the No. 7 position for the 2012 Preakness Stakes. Big Brown won the race in 2008 from the same position. Before that, Silver Charm was the position's most recent winner in 1997.

Bodemeister finished second in the Kentucky Derby after I'll Have Another's epic close. He will not have those same struggles on a shorter Pimlico track.

He entered the Kentucky Derby as the favorite. He enters the Preakness with the same lofty expectations.

Bodemeister's post position should inspire confidence in his winning chances as we move toward Saturday's race.