Flying Fred remains in contention for a cheeky tilt at the Gr.1 Queensland Derby after he went within a whisker of claiming an Australian win last Sunday.

The Evan and JJ Rayner-trained Fully Fledged gelding went down by a nose over 1600m at the Sunshine Coast after making a sweeping run from last, encouraging his trainers after flopping at the Gold Coast at his previous start on Australian debut.

"We thought he had it for a bit. He had a rough run but he got home really well," JJ Rayner said.

"He's quite a smart horse and he is nominated for the Derby. He'll step up to 2100m at Ipswich next Wednesday and Larry Cassidy is staying on. He'd have to do something pretty special to get in the Derby, but we'll just see what happens."