Exciting filly Verona Rose puts her unbeaten tag on the line when she takes on Treasurethe Moment in the Group 1 Vinery Stud Stakes

A booming win in the Kembla Grange Classic has prompted trainer Gary Portelli to give unbeaten filly Verona Rose a shot at the Group 1 Vinery Stud Stakes on her way to the ATC Oaks.

Trainer Gary Portelli could sense the latent talent in one-time “problem child” Verona Rose but even he is surprised the filly is unbeaten going into the Group 1 $750,000 Vinery Stud Stakes (2000m) at Rosehill Gardens on Saturday.

Portelli is a master horseman and identified Verona Rose’s potential almost from the moment he put her into training but she missed her entire two-year-old season before finally making her debut last November in a Kembla Grange maiden.

“When Verona Rose had her first start, I was at Caulfield with Kimochi who had just won her Group 1 (Sir Rupert Clarke Stakes),” Portelli said.

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“We were having a celebratory drink in the committee room when I said I wanted to watch the next at Kembla Grange with Verona Rose.

“They asked me if they should have a bet on the filly and I said ‘no, she is still learning her trade’.

“She had only had the one barrier trial over 800m, she was on debut at 1300m in a strong race and was 20/1.

“I just wanted to see her run well but she bolted in. They all looked at me like I had three heads!”

Portelli wasn’t tempted to push on with Verona Rose, spelling the three-year-old immediately and telling her excited owners: “This is our Oaks filly!”

'CANTANKEROUS' ROSE BLOSSOMING AT RIGHT TIME

Trainer @GaryPortelli could sense the latent talent in one-time "problem child" Verona Rose but even he is surprised the filly is unbeaten going into the Vinery Stud Stakes at Rosehill. Story: @RayThomas_1 👇https://t.co/5mB0xXthB6pic.twitter.com/HsknMEpLqq

— Racenet (@RacenetTweets) March 27, 2025

Verona Rose has a stayer’s pedigree being by Arrowfield Stud’s boom young stallion Castelvecchio out of the French mare Minayma, who is closely related to triple Group 1 winner Manighar.

But the filly was small in stature as a yearling and Portelli was able to purchase her for just $40,000 at the Inglis Classic Sale two years ago.

“She was immature as a yearling, she was like a little filly on stilts,” he said. “But she has just developed preparation after preparation and she’s quite a strong filly now.”

Portelli has trained many outstanding racehorses during a career spanning nearly 30 years and has always felt Verona Rose was well above average.

“I’ve been quite excited by this filly for a long time,” Portelli said.

VERONA ROSE wins the Kembla Grange Classic!

A big win from the @GaryPortelli filly who makes it three from three as she arrives in time under @KPMcEvoy to take the Group 3 at @kemblaraces over a wall with Inevitable Truth second and Brigidine Gal third. @tabcomaupic.twitter.com/szczWB2Kyp

— Racing NSW (@racing_nsw) March 14, 2025

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“For a while now I’ve felt she was my next Group 1 horse. They are hard to find, so you don’t say that lightly.

“Group 1 horses just don’t walk up the driveway here, particularly when I only have 50 in work, and 70 on my books.

“There was a time when 50 in work was a big team for Sydney racing but now I feel like the corner shop against Woolworths sometimes.

“But I know my demographic, the average Mums and Dads who want a horse with a bloke who is going to look after their horse, give them value for money and a good time.

“We have got to still address the fact this is entertainment. Of course, it is business but not everyone can go home a winner but hopefully we can entertain them and give them an enjoyable experience.”

Portelli revealed it was never his intention to push Verona Rose to the races as a two-year-old, believing the filly would benefit with time to mature and develop.

But the trainer didn’t have to make a decision about racing last season due to the filly’s sometimes errant ways and a frustrating series of unfortunate setbacks.

“I remember her first few weeks in training she was quite cantankerous,” Portelli revealed.

“There were some mornings when she just refused to go out for trackwork. We find that with fillies, in particular.

“It was just all a bit too much for her so we pulled up and sent her to back to the spelling paddock.”

Verona Rose launched down the outside to win on debut at Kembla. Picture: Bradley Photos

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When Verona Rose came into training later in the season, that’s when things really started to go awry.

“We put her back into work and she was sore in the shoulders,” Portelli said.

“So, we gave her a break and when she came back in, she went shin sore and we had to spell her.

“Then she got cast in her box, injured her pastern and once again we had to turn her out.

“This meant she was no chance of going to the races as a two-year-old or early three-year-old and I think that was a good thing.”

Portelli remembers contacting Verona Rose’s large syndicate of owners to try and temper their disappointment.

“Most of the owners had shares in other horses in work so when this filly was going in and out of the stable all the time, I said to the owners to concentrate on their other horses,” Portelli said.

“But I told them all the setbacks this filly was having might be a blessing in disguise.

“It has been a blessing because she is now ready to fire at the right time of her career – and she has leapfrogged all those other horses.”

After Verona Rose’s impressive debut win last spring, she enjoyed a summer spell before returning to win at Wyong first-up before producing a scarcely believable effort to win the Group 3 Kembla Grange Classic.

Portelli had been thinking of going to the Oaks through the Adrian Knox Stakes but Verona Rose’s fast-finishing effort was so good at Kembla Grange she demanded her chance in the Vinery Stud Stakes.

Treasurethe Moment makes it six wins in a row! 🔥@[e-mail]/IDTI3k7QCz

— 7HorseRacing 🐎 (@7horseracing) March 8, 2025

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“It was a big win last start,” Portelli said.

“She had drawn awkwardly and Kerrin McEvoy was a bit cautious about how he was going to ride her. All I told him was to make sure she was hitting the line.

“In the back of my mind, I still thought she could win as she has a great turn of foot.

“Kerrin got into a lovely spot out the back, followed them to the 600m and from there I just wanted to see her accelerate and she certainly did that.

“She has a massive set of lungs on her and she recovers quickly. She is a classy filly.”

Verona Rose goes into Saturday’s Group 1 fillies classic at Rosehill protecting her unbeaten record – and a perfect example of the potential rewards for patience and perseverance.

Portelli’s filly is at $12 in latest TAB Fixed Odds betting for the Vinery Stud Stakes behind Melbourne’s wonder filly Treasurethe Moment at $1.65 favourite and the Chris Waller-trained duo of Movin Out and Declichy Boulevard at $7.

The Matt Laurie-trained Treasurethe Moment is on a six-race winning streak, having dominated the fillies classics in Melbourne this season, reeling off wins in the Wakeful Stakes, VRC Oaks, Armanasco Stakes and Kewney Stakes in successive starts.

“Saturday’s race will be a good challenge for my girl,” Portelli said.

“We have a lot of respect for the horse from Melbourne, Treasurethe Moment but you can never go into a race thinking you are going to get beat.

“Verona Rose has to step up again but every time we put a bar in front of her, she gets over it in style.”

Originally published as Exciting filly Verona Rose puts her unbeaten tag on the line when she takes on Treasurethe Moment in the Group 1 Vinery Stud Stakes