Fillies and mares will compete for a “Win and You’re In” berth into the Maker’s Mark Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Turf in Saturday’s Grade 1 E. P. Taylor Stakes going 1 ¼ miles on turf at Woodbine. The E. P. Taylor drew an international field of eight ready to compete for a purse of $750,000 Canadian dollars.
The big-name invader in the E. P. Taylor is #4 Diamond Rain, who will take her shot in this race for the second year in a row after just missing by a head when second in the 2025 E. P. Taylor. She then went on to finish third in last fall’s Maker’s Mark Filly & Mare Turf, and she clearly has the chops necessary to win this race as a deserving favorite. Diamond Rain is trained by Charlie Appleby, who has had plenty of past success in stakes races at Woodbine and even more so in the Breeders’ Cup, but he somehow has not won the E. P. Taylor Stakes and is 0-for-4 so far this year with his shippers to Woodbine. Will Diamond Rain be the one that gets him off the schneid? Perhaps, but her win odds will be low, and she is coming off of a period of more than a year where she was winless in a streak that was broken only by a victory last time in a minor English stakes race against four overmatched opponents. Let’s use Diamond Rain in our wagers but look elsewhere for an upset to win.
Among the four European shippers in the field, perhaps #3 Jancis has the best chance of them all at the best price. She has been competing mainly at one mile in her recent races but gave her best effort of the year back in May in the one race where she stretched out beyond a mile to win the Group 2 Dahlia Stakes at Newmarket going 1 1/8 miles. In both of her last two races she’s been beaten by Blue Bolt, a multiple Group 1 winner who is one of Europe’s best fillies in 2026. Jancis finished a solid second to Blue Bolt two races ago in a 15-horse field in the Group 2 Duke of Cambridge Stakes at Royal Ascot and finally gets out from under Blue Bolt’s shadow on Saturday.
The E. P. Taylor has attracted all three of the top finishers from last month’s Grade 2 Beverly D. Stakes at Colonial Downs, including the winner #1 Gimme a Nother, who narrowly edged #2 Achieve and #5 Somethinabouther, who were second and third respectively. This race should be a fascinating rematch amongst the trio. Gimme a Nother has been one of the hottest horses in the filly and mare turf division with two straight graded stakes wins this season, and she also owns a solid second-place finish by a head to Ready for Shirl in her only prior trip to Woodbine for the Grade 2 Canadian Stakes in May 2025. She is unbeaten ever since then. Of the three horses exiting the Beverly D., let’s stick with Gimme a Nother who was finishing strongest at 1 3/16 miles that day. She has the best chance to benefit from this slight stretchout to 1 ¼ miles.
The final horse to mention is the local heroine in the field, #7 Sultana, who has a shot to at least hit the board at 20-1 odds. She’s managed by two-time E. P. Taylor-winning trainer Kevin Attard (Full Count Felicia in 2024, Starship Jubilee in 2019) and owns a good turf win earlier this year at Gulfstream Park in the Grade 3 Orchid Stakes. Since then, she ran third in the too-short Grade 2 Nassau Stakes at one mile and then got beat by the boys last time in Woodbine’s Niagara Stakes. This is a tough spot, but actually it’s a much better fit for Sultana than either of those last two races.
The wagering strategy for the E. P. Taylor will be to bet on #3 Jancis to post the upset and use her along with the favorites #4 Diamond Rain and #1 Gimme a Nother in exactas and/or trifectas. We’ll also put #7 Sultana into some bets in case she makes an impact as a big longshot:
Wagering Strategy on a $12 Budget:
$1 exacta box: 1,3,4 ($6)
What to say at the betting window: Woodbine, race 10, $1 exacta box 1,3,4
$1 trifecta box: 1,3,4 ($6)
What to say at the betting window: Woodbine, race 10, $1 trifecta box, 1,3,4
Wagering Strategy on a $30 Budget:
$6 win on #3 Jancis ($6)
What to say at the betting window: Woodbine race 10, $6 to win on 3
$1 exacta box: 1,3,4,7 ($12)
What to say at the betting window: Woodbine, race 10, $1 exacta box 1,3,4,7
$.50-cent trifecta box: 1,3,4,7 ($12)
What to say at the betting window: Woodbine, Race 10, $.50-cent trifecta box 1,3,4,7
Good luck and enjoy the race!
