International scouting reports for 2018 Belmont Oaks: Athena, Capla Temptress, Chipolata

Mirroring the Belmont Derby (G1), Saturday’s $1 million Belmont Oaks Invitational (G1) pits a European raiding party against a strong home defense. Team Valor’s Capla Temptress is the most accomplished of the invading trio, but Aidan O’Brien’s Athena and Christophe Clement’s new recruit Chipolata have their own claims.

CAPLA TEMPTRESS

The Marco Botti pupil is already familiar to fans on this side of the pond from her two North American starts last fall, so this is more an update on her original scouting report from the Breeders’ Cup.

If her third in her Sweet Solera (G3) stakes debut doesn’t look as interesting 11 months later, Capla Temptress’s victory in Woodbine’s “Win and You’re In” Natalma (G1) has stood up well. Remember that she beat two next-out stakes winners who’ve followed up this season – runner-up Dixie Moon has since captured the Woodbine Oaks, and third-placer Wonder Gadot, who missed narrowly to Monomoy Girl in the Kentucky Oaks (G1), just romped over the boys in the Queen’s Plate.

Capla Temptress, who joined Bill Mott ahead of the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf (G1), didn’t have as straightforward a time at Del Mar. Forced to check before the first turn, she chugged on for a non-threatening seventh to Rushing Fall.