A loss in the Florida Derby on March 31 did not prevent Union Rags from being the favorite in Churchill Downs’ final Kentucky Derby Future Wager pool of 2012. But it has left everyone including Kentucky Derby Tours participants wondering who will win the 2012 Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs. One things that hasn’t changed is the frenzy for 2012 Kentucky Derby tickets! The coveted 2012 Kentucky Derby tickets are still in high demand!

Union Rags closed as the 9-2 betting choice after his third-place finish behind Take Charge Indy and Reveron at Gulfstream Park. Close behind in the Derby Future betting finale was the mutuel field, which includes all 3-year-olds other than the 23 individual horses in Pool 3, and a pair of 8-1 shots in Hansen and Creative Cause.

Total wagering in the three 2012 KDFW pools stood at $1,470,019 when Pool 3 betting closed at 6:30 p.m. on April 1. The total is the fourth largest in the history of the bet that was first offered in 1999 and reflected an increase of 7.9% over 2011’s three-pool total of $1,362,101. This year’s total is the largest since the current three-day, Friday-through-Sunday format for Kentucky Derby Future pools was adopted in 2010.

While his defeat in the Florida Derby did not knock Union Rags out of the top spot on the Kentucky Derby Future Wager, the prices on several horses tumbled after trainer Michael Matz’s son of Dixie Union suffered his second career setback. Odds on the “All Others” interest closed at 6-1, the price that had been pegged by Mike Battaglia in his morning line odds. The field option received boosts from weekend victories by Daddy Long Legs in the UAE Derby and Hero of Order, who provided a 109-1 shocker in the Louisiana Derby.

Hansen, briefly favored during Friday’s opening day of betting, edged Creative Cause to be the overall third choice despite a late flurry of betting on the latter during the pool’s final hour.

Odds on Florida Derby winner Take Charge Indy, a 73-1 risk early Saturday, had dropped to 15-1 when wagering concluded. Other individual horses with final odds well below their morning line prices included the D. Wayne Lukas-trained Otimizer, a 50-1 morning line risk who closed at 22-1, and Vinery Racing Spiral winner Went the Day Well, who closed at 19-1 after opening Pool 3 at 30-1. Kentucky Jockey Club winner Gemologist, 20-1 in the morning line, was the overall fifth choice at 12-1.

Final Odds
1 Alpha 21-1
2 Bodemeister 29-1
3 Creative Cause 8-1
4. Daddy Nose Best 20-1
5. Dullahan 23-1
6. El Padrino 24-1
7. Gemologist 12-1
8. Hansen 8-1
9. Howe Great 57-1
10. I’ll Have Another 21-1
11. Liaison 49-1
12. Mark Valeski 34-1
13. Midnight Transfer 80-1
14. My Adonis 73-1
15. News Pending 152-1
16. On Fire Baby 80-1
17. Optimizer 22-1
18. Prospective 42-1
19. Sabercat 45-1
20. Secret Circle 30-1
21. Take Charge Indy 15-1
22. Union Rags 9/2
23. Went the Day Well 19-1
24. All Other 3YO’s 6-1