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By Ray Hickson

Trainer Matt Dale won’t be afraid to throw emerging filly Martini Mumma into stakes grade if she passes what he sees as a stern test in Saturday’s TAB Highway (1100m) at Rosehill.

Trainer Matthew Dale (Pic: Bradley).

The grey has put big gaps on small fields in her two runs, both over 1000m, since a spell and while there’s no doubts from Dale that she’s a talent, he says she’s a talent that still needs to be harnessed.

“She’s been super impressive and Saturday is still a big step up,’’ he said.

“The margins she has put on them have been impressive, they just don’t do that generally two times in a row. She’s not the complete furnished product, she’s quite a highly strung, raw, filly.

“It’s the right race for her next step but it is a decent step up, with that she gets the nice weight drop.

“I’d like to think she can run really well but there’s that one caveat in that it’s a big jump in pressure. The ability I have no problems with.”

Martini Mumma, $2.80 with TAB on Thursday, races in the same colours as stablemate Penthouse who as a two-year-old went to Scone and placed behind In Secret at Listed level and returned there last year to run fourth behind Red Card in the Listed Denise’s Joy.

That’s the race Dale is considering for this filly if she steps up to the plate.

He said the draw favours her, he didn’t want right on the inside, and he loves the 5kg drop in weight on her six length win at Goulburn back on March 24.

“She should be winning a Highway quite well I would think but the question is whether it’s now,’’ Dale said.

“That all comes down to maturity, we’ve had to give her a five week gap between races with the timing of the Highways coming back.

“She is still quite raw but she’s been dominant and she carried weight last start.

"It looks the right race to tell us where she sits for this preparation, and whether she warrants a trip to Scone or not.”

Dale said he has given Martini Mumma a jump out at Goulburn, wearing ear muffs, and she won that in good style to bridge the gap between her last start and Saturday.

Meanwhile, Dale said Front Page appears to have come through his unplaced run on testing ground in the Hall Mark Stakes at Randwick last week.

Martini Mumma wins at Goulburn on March 24

It’s likely the dual Kosciuszko winner will race in the next two weeks and Dale said he’ll be nominated for the Wagga Town Plate next Thursday and the Victory Stakes in Brisbane on Saturday week.

But he could also wait until the Takeover Target Stakes at Gosford a week later or another race at the Gold Coast.

“He’d never been on a heavy track in his life and you don’t get much heavier,’’ Dale said.

“We’re letting him tell us if he comes through this week. It was a bottomless track that he did not handle.”

All the fields, form and replays for Saturday's Rosehill meeting