The successful Melbourne spring campaign of South Australian trainer Phillip Stokes continued at Flemington on Saturday with his four-year-old mare Molto Bene winning the Headquarters Tavern Stakes.

Last week, the Stokes-trained Eclair Big Bang won the Caulfield Guineas Prelude at Caulfield, and with Dom Tourneur aboard again, Molto Bene's ($10) flashed home to beat British General ($6) by a length.

"She has really come on from her first-up run," Stokes said.

Stokes is now tossing up whether to start Molto Bene in the Group One weight-for-age Myer Classic on Derby Day.

"On that effort, I might have to up my sights with her. She might be a Myer Classic horse," he said.

Tourneur said the win was impressive considering the slow tempo and some interference 200 metres out from Nikita McLean's mount Beltonic.

"Nikita's horse came out abruptly to get a clear run and just half chopped me - probably stopped me in my tracks for a minute but she picked herself back up," Tourneur said.

"I didn't think the tempo would be that great but I wanted to ride her to a pattern - it suits her that way.

"Flemington was always going to suit her with the long straight and she swallowed them up."

Goldslick ($15) ridden by Luke Nolen was third a short head away from British General.