Response adds Group 1 for Charge Forward

Take a mare whose courage matches her speed, a jockey prepared to ignore his instructions and owners with a great history of success, and the result is Charge Forward ‘s second Group One winner, 4YO mare Response.

Winner of the VRC Matron S. G3 last season, Response resumed with two good seconds in Group company at Caulfield and Flemington, before taking her place in today’s $350,000 MRC Sir Rupert Clarke S. 1400m G1.

Jockey Craig Williams was instructed by trainers Matthew Ellerton and Simon Zahra to settle her midfield with cover, but he elected instead to drive her forward and set a strong pace in front. Response responded with generosity to the challenge and held her rivals at bay from start to finish, to win by a long neck to No Evidence Needed, with a short half-head back to Woorim – the finish is pictured, above. The time was 1.22.23, and Response’s performance earned a 113 rating from Timeform at Racing and Sports.

Response is proving as genuine and consistent as her Group One-winning sire: she has finished first or second in all but one of her eight starts, and has earned $457,275. She is a likely starter in the VRC Empire Rose S. 1600m G1 on Derby Day, with a tilt at a “straight six” Flemington sprint also possible.

Bred from the Group One-placed mare Live It Up by Freer Pty Ltd with Andrew & Laska Bowcock, Response was sold for $50,000 to Barry and Midge Griffiths at the 2008 Australian Easter Yearling Sale. The Griffiths’ pale blue and yellow checked colours have also been worn by Tawriffic (1989 Melbourne Cup), Mannerism (1992 Caulfield Cup), Azzurro (1992 Thousand Guineas) and Northwood Plume (1994 MRC Thousand Guineas & VRC Oaks).

Charge Forward is now second to Not a Single Doubt on the Australian 3rd Season Sires’ list, with prizemoney of $419,616 and eight winners. Response is his second Group 1 winner, and one of the four Group winners he has left in his first two crops, alongside G1 Headway, G3 Solar Charged, and G3 Shrapnel whose season debut has been delayed by unsuitable tracks.

Completing a great day for Charge Forward was 3YO filly Andromache (ex Mythical Play by Defensive Play) who ran third in the Canterbury JC Canterbury Belle S. 1200m LR in Christchurch, NZ.

The Group 1-winning son of Red Ransom and Sydney’s Dream stands at Arrowfield this season at a fee of $33,000 inc. GST.