Last year, in one of the more thrilling Breeders’ Cup races at Santa Anita, Lady Eli was edged a nose by the European Queen’s Trust in the Filly and Mare Turf. The loss denied Lady Eli a second Breeders’ Cup triumph, following a score in the Juvenile Fillies Turf in 2014.

When the Filly and Mare Turf is renewed Nov. 4 at Del Mar, once again Lady Eli is likely to face challengers from abroad. Already, two European fillies, Ashiana and Hydrangea, have earned free berths by winning Breeders’ Cup Challenge races, and another, Birdie Gold, did so by winning a stakes race in Peru.

Capla Temptress is a 2-year-old filly on the go these days.

An Irish-bred, Capla Temptress was sent from England to Canada for last Sunday’s Grade 1 Natalma Stakes at Woodbine. She performed brilliantly, closing from seventh in a field of nine to win for the third time in four starts.

On Tuesday, she was vanned to trainer Bill Mott’s stable in New York. At the end of October, if all goes well, Capla Temptress will be sent to Del Mar for the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf on Nov. 3.

ELMONT, N.Y. – In 2015, trainer Dale Romans and owner Dennis Albaugh finished third in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile with Brody’s Cause. Last year, that same trainer-owner combination finished second in the Juvenile with Not This Time.

“The pattern says we win this year,” Romans said. “You got to think positive.”

The outlook for the $1 million Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Sprint could be shaped largely by the upcoming performance of one horse: Unique Bella.

If, as expected, the star 3-year-old runs well in her eagerly awaited return to action Oct. 8 in the L.A. Woman at Santa Anita, she could be a solid favorite for the seven-furlong Filly and Mare Sprint on Nov. 4 at Del Mar – and if not, well, throw this thing wide open.

:: BREEDERS’ CUP 2017: See DRF’s top contenders

“Bring on Ribchester!” might be the rallying cry from the camp of World Approval, who cemented his position as North America’s top turf miler with a dominant victory last Saturday in the Woodbine Mile. With Group 1 victories this year in the J.T. Lockinge, the Queen Anne, and most recently in the Prix du Moulin de Longchamp, Ribchester ranks as the best miler in Europe.

But whether Ribchester brings his considerable talent to the Breeders’ Cup Mile on Nov. 4 at Del Mar remains an open question.

Not to put too fine a point on it, but the North American 2-year-old male turf horses of 2017 are slow.

In fact, to this point in the year, and using Beyer Speed Figures as a measure, they are historically slow, and the lack of standout performances makes evaluating the prospective cast for the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf a tricky process.

It also leads one to believe that European shippers, often formidable in this race in any case, might be even more potent this fall.

On to the specifics.

The Breeders’ Cup was conceived as a season-ending event that would bring top horses from all jurisdictions together to settle divisional championships on the racetrack. That goal may again be realized in this year’s Juvenile Fillies, which in its early stages is assembling a far-flung cast of characters.

ETOBICOKE, Ontario – The diminutive Capla Temptress used her impressive turn of foot to capture Sunday’s Grade 1, $265,900 Natalma Stakes, a Breeders’ Cup Win and You’re In contest at Woodbine.

Capla Temptress ($13.40) bided her time at the rear of the nine-horse field as 13-1 shot Dixie Moon set honest fractions in the one-mile turf route for 2-year-old fillies. Capla Temptress began to make up ground early in the stretch and split rivals inside the eighth pole en route to a three-quarter-length tally. The winning time over firm turf was 1:35.12.

ETOBICOKE, Ontario – Untamed Domain punched his ticket to the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf at Del Mar with a well-timed victory in Sunday’s Grade 2, $208,400 Summer Stakes at Woodbine.

Untamed Domain ($8) rallied wide from about four lengths off a slow pace to collar the favored Hemp Hemp Hurray in the final strides of the one-mile turf route. He scored by a neck in 1:34.73 over the firm ground.

Admiralty Pier came along on the rail from a stalking position to finish another half-length back in third, and Count Alexander was a prominent fourth in the eight-horse field.

Caravaggio and Happily won group stakes at The Curragh in Ireland on Sunday to earn automatic berths in Breeders’ Cup races at Del Mar on Nov. 3-4. They were two of three group stakes winners on the eight-race card for trainer Aidan O’Brien.

Caravaggio won the Group 2 Flying Five Stakes at five furlongs to earn a berth in the BC Turf Sprint at the same distance Nov. 4. Happily won the Group 1 Moyglare Stud Stakes for 2-year-old fillies at seven furlongs to earn a spot in the BC Juvenile Fillies Turf at a mile Nov. 3.