For an Aidan O'Brien runner, she was unfavoured in the betting at 6/1, perhaps due to the application of blinkers on her first racecourse outing. The filly was slowly out of the stalls for jockey Ryan Moore but made good headway in the early part of the race and sat in second behind Back Down Under. She was encouraged to make a bid one furlong out and went on to comfortably score by three-quarters of a length to Joseph O'Brien's Grand Job.
In a post-race interview, Aidan O'Brien cited laziness as a reason for the blinkers and mentioned the Albany Stakes at Royal Ascot as a potential target.
Matrika is out of Muravka (High Chapparal), an unraced half-sister to Tolpuddle (College Chapel) who won the Irish Lincolnshire and two other Listed contests before switching codes to score over hurdles. Further back in the pedigree, Muravka's dam Tabdea (Topsider) was a half-sister to Poule d'Essai des Poulains winner Ta Rib (Mr Prospector). Although the page may not shout sprinter, Muravka has been responsible for multiple six furlong winners when mated with speed-focused stallions – during her stud career, she has visited Starspangledbanner, Caravaggio and No Nay Never.
Her 2011 pairing with Starspangledbanner produced The Wow Signal, winner of the Group 2 Coventry Stakes at Royal Ascot and the Group 1 Prix Morny. The colt, trained by John Quinn, raced only four times, and was retired to Haras de Bouquetot in 2016 before commencing his Classic season. He suffered from poor fertility and died in 2018 with only eight yearlings on the ground.
The success of The Wow Signal and Listed winner Miss Infinity (Rock Of Gibralter) drew plenty of attention to Muravka when she went to the Goffs November Breeding Stock Sale in 2017 and the proven Black Type producer was sold to Barronstown Stud for 950,000 euros. Her page would be boosted by the success of 2016 foal Unicorn Lion, a full-brother to Matrika, who placed at Grade 1 level in Japan and won the Grade 3 Naruo Kinen at Chukyo.
Matrika's broodmare prospects have recently been enhanced by the exploits of Make Me King (Dark Angel) in France. Trained by Andre Fabre, the colt is the first raced foal of Matrika's half-sister Miss Infinity and placed second in the Group 3 Prix Thomas Byron as a juvenile.
