Wez Hunter will consider dropping Smokin' Joey back in distance after a last-stride Carlyon Cup at Caulfield.

Last year's Group One Goodwood winner, Smokin' Joey stepped up to 1600m in Saturday's Group Three race and arrived in time to end Jacquinot Bay's winning run.

It provided West Australian apprentice Chris Parnham with his first Group winner in Melbourne.

Hunter was confident Smokin' Joey could win the Carlyon but admitted he thought his horse had been narrowly denied.

"I thought he had run a good second," Hunter said.

"I think he got a little tired the last 50 metres and got the wanders. But it was a good effort."

Hunter has a Group One target in mind for Smokin' Joey's next race but he will have to train his stable star to cope with a reduced distance in the weight-for-age Futurity Stakes (1400m).

"He might come back to the Futurity but we'll just see how he comes through this and go from there," Hunter said.