Promising filly Novel Dancer will make her metropolitan racing debut in the 2014 Quezette Stakes at Caulfield on Saturday and has impressed trainer Shea Eden with her trackwork heading into the Group 3 event.
Vlad Duric has been booked to ride Novel Dancer in the Quezette Stakes at Caulfield on Saturday. Photo by: Race Horse Photos Australia
Novel Dancer made her racing debut with a sixth length demolition of the rest of the field in the Echuca Toyota Plate (1109m) on May 4 and proved that was no fluke when she took out the Melbourne Truck Centre Handicap (1200m) at Mornington on May 28.
Eden told Racing Ahead that he gave Novel Dancer a brief freshen-up after her win at Mornington and he believes that the daughter of Written Tycoon has taken plenty of benefit from the break from racing heading into the Quezette Stakes.
“She is really well and I am really happy,” Eden said.
“She had a short let-up after her win at Mornington and she has come back really well.
“She went to Caulfield on Tuesday and had a look around there.
“I was really glad that I did that because she really opened her eyes up and it was good for her to have the trip down and her work was very strong.”
Novel Dancer showed plenty of natural speed when she took up the running and dominated in her two race starts to date, but Eden believes that she also has the ability to settle in the early stages of her races.
Consistent jockey Vlad Duric has been booked to ride Novel Dancer in the Quezette Stakes and Eden said that he will leave it up to Duric to access the early tempo of the race and then decide where he would like to position the three-year-old in the early stages of the race.
“London Lolly has drawn eight and I imagine it would roll forward and our horse drawing ten, we should be able to get a nice cart across with it,” Eden said.
“I know that she has led her first two starts, but she is a very easy going filly and if the pace is really strong than she can back off.
“She is very tractable.”
Novel Dancer is currently available at 2014 Quezette Stakes odds of $8 and she is available at $26 in the 2014 Thousand Guineas betting market with Ladbrokes Australia.
Eden is chasing his first win at Group level after Apollo’s Choice finished third behind Paximadia in the Group 2 Sandown Guineas (1600m) during the 2013 Spring Racing Carnival.
