Making just her third race day appearance, the Phillip Stokes trained Astern filly Ferivia made the step to black type racing with ease, winning $200,000 Group 3 MRC Quezette Stakes on Saturday at Caulfield.
Form analysts would’ve noted that the Lachlan Neindorf ridden filly finished second last start behind Express Class (Exceedance), with that gelding running on strongly in the race prior to finish third in the Group 3 Vain Stakes.
With Written Tycoon fillies Signature Scent and Scenic Point starting the favoured runners in the ten-horse field, it was the Yulong bred and raced Signature Scent who went forward to lead, trying to add a third race win to her record in as many starts.
Although the Waterhouse and Bott trained Group 3 Widden Stakes The Playwright (Written By) maintained her position on the rail, forcing Signature Scent to track slightly wide, the Ciaron Maher trained filly still had enough to kick once the field headed into the home straight.
Still in the lead with about 100m to travel, Signature Scent was starting to feel the pinch as Ferivia and the John McArdle trained My Gladiola (I Am Invincible) were both making their runs down the outside.
While many would’ve felt the Group 3-winning My Gladiola would run past Ferivia, it wasn’t to be as the daughter of Astern took the prize by a little under a half length margin with the Mark and Levi Kavanagh trained Thanks Gorgeous (Peltzer) continuing her solid form to finish third.
Although Stokes was very pleased to see how far the filly has come in such a short space of time, he's still unsure if she is a sprinter or she will get further.
"Is she a sprinter, is she going to get up further in trip?" Stokes said.
"When we get to 1400 (metres), that usually sorts them out, so we'll see how she pulls up and make a plan."
Ridden by Neindorf in all her three starts, the now Melbourne based jockey was full of praise for the stable.
"Full credit to Phil and the team as she's quite a hot filly," Neindorf said.
"I wasn't confident that she would be able to see out a big preparation.
"I thought she might taper off because she is so hot, but Phil got the pony on her at trackwork and every run that she had has, she has got better and developed and matured as a professional racehorse.
"That's going to take her a long way."
"She has good qualities about her. She knows when to switch on and switch off," Neindorf said.
"She listens to the rider, and I love horses that do that because they are not one dimensional.
"She's got a lovely big stride on her and I always thought she had the scope to get 1400 (metres) to a mile even though she is from a Streetcar family that don't normally stretch out, but I think she can be on a (Thousand) Guineas path."
Bred by Queensland’s Mr D Brook, Ferivia is the first stakes winners and one of three winners out of the Not A Single Doubt mare Streetcar Express.
From the extended family of stakes winners Streetcar Magic, Streetcar Isabelle, Streetcar Stranger and Paprika, Streetcar Express foaled a Castelvecchio filly the following season followed by a colt by Rich Enuff. The mare is currently in foal to Blue Gum Farm’s Flying Artie with the foal due this spring.
Ferivia is one of 16 stakes winners for the former Darley stallion Astern headed by Group 1 winners Golden Mile and Affaire A Suivre, with the Group 1 Golden Rose-winning son of Medaglia d’Oro exported early this year to stand at stud in Turkey.
