By Joe Bianca
A wide-open field of 13 will contest the 10 furlongs of the GI E.P. Taylor S. Presented by HPIbet, and without an especially strong American contingent, the conversation centers around the race's half-dozen imports, led by morning line choice Best In The World (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}).
Owned by Coolmore and trained by Aidan O'Brien–who also team up with GI Canadian International favorite Idaho (GB) (Galileo {Ire})–the bay sophomore earned a 12-1 upset of the G3 Irish Stallion Farms EBF Give Thanks S. Aug. 2 at Cork before running a narrow second as the chalk in the G2 Moyglare Jewels Blandford S. Sept. 11 at The Curragh.
Juddmonte Farms takes a shot with lightly raced Swiss Range (GB) (Zamindar). A winner of two out of three to start her career, the homebred checked in eighth in the G1 Prix de Diane Longines June 19 at Chantilly and was fourth in the G1 Qatar Nassau S. July 30 at Goodwood.
Parvaneh (Ire) (Holy Roman Emperor {Ire}) is another ascending 3-year-old shipping across the pond. Capturing the G2 T. von Zastrow Stutenpreis against elders Sept. 3 at Baden-Baden in Germany, the Darius Racing colorbearer finished a respectable fourth against males and elders in the G1 Preis von Europa Sept. 25 at Cologne.
The clear best shot for the U.S. appears to be Lael Stables' Rainha da Bateria (Broken Vow), who annexed the GII Canadian S. in preparation for this after running third by a head in the GI Diana S. July 23. While she is fast enough to win, the 10-furlong distance is a question for the 4-1 shot, as she has never been longer than 1 1/8 miles in 16 starts and barely held on in the Canadian.
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