Curvy Hits Pay Dirt in E.P. Taylor Stakes

A two-time group winner in England and Ireland, Curvy made the most of her second North American start, taking the $500,000 E.P. Taylor Stakes Presented by HPIBet (Can-IT) Oct. 18 at Woodbine.

Off as the 2-1 favorite in the field of 12, the 3-year-old Galileo filly trained by David Wachman raced in ninth, as many as 7 1/2 lengths back, early in the 1 1/4-mile turf test, as Rosalind set fractions of :25.08, :50.28, and 1:14.93 through six furlongs.

Still ninth after a mile in 1:39.63, Curvy surged on the outside in the stretch to win by 1 1/2 lengths under jockey Ryan Moore. The pair hit the wire in 2:02.88 on good turf. Talmada checked in second and Rosalind hung on for a game third-place effort.

"She has been a very impressive filly," Moore said. "She started the season off in handicaps and she has just progressed. She has kept on improving."

Owned by Michael Tabor, Mrs. John Magnier, and Derrick Smith, Curvy made her North American debut at Belmont Park Oct. 3, when she ran fifth in the Flower Bowl Stakes (gr. IT). Earlier this year she took the Airlie Stud Gallinule Stakes (Ire-III) and Ribblesdale Stakes (Eng-II).

Local favorite Strut the Course raced second-to-last in the 12-horse field through much of the E.P. Taylor and was blocked by a wall of runners at the top of the stretch, but found enough room to rally and finish fourth, followed by Button Down, Nakuti, Devonshire, Yaazy, White Rose, Eastern Belle, Uchenna, and Lacy, to complete the order of finish.

Curvy paid $6.90, $4.80, and $3.50 across the board. Talmada brought $9.80 and $6.30, while Rosalind returned $8.40 to show.

Bred in Great Britain by Norelands and Hugo Lascelles, out of the Inchinor mare Frappe, Curvy now has a 5-0-1 record from 11 starts with earnings of $555,392.