Racing: Filly shows some ticker at Te Rapa

Let Me Roar wins at Te Rapa. Photo / Trish Dunell

Let Me Roar did much more than keep her unbeaten record in the right place with her Te Rapa win on Saturday.

She displayed more talent than in any of her three previous victories.

Perhaps talent is the wrong word. The Cambridge filly showed something more important than mere ability - ticker.

Horses can win with sheer ability, but a much lesser number win when the chips are down. The great Jack Dempsey said it best: "The champion is the one who, when he can't get up, gets up." Let Me Roar didn't earn the champ tag on Saturday, but don't underestimate a filly that wins four from four on all types of footing and in the last of them carries 59kg against older horses.

At least twice the filly looked beaten on Saturday, but rallied each time under her big weight and was totally defiant in the closing stages. Perhaps missed by some is the fact afterwards she was the last horse to pull up down the back straight. "That shows us she should run a middle distance next time in," said co-trainer Andrew Forsman.

That would be no surprise. She is a half sister to Victoria Derby winner Lion Tamer and her great grandam is Blue Denim, Auckland Cup winner and the greatest ever certainty beaten in a Melbourne Cup when second to Robert Sangster's Belldale Ball.

Despite her upright, athletic frame there is not yet a lot to Let Me Roar and the spell she now heads to could see her furnish into something magnificent.

In keeping with the last few seasons we are suddenly seeing horses going for spells at this time of year that could come back and be stars with six months development. There is no question Let Me Roar is one if them.

"We weren't really too sure how she would cope on Saturday as she still has a lot of maturing to do and she was carrying a decent weight for any filly," noted Forsman.

"She still looks like a spring three-year- old and not the rising four-year-old that she is. To get away with the win was very pleasing and does give you plenty of reasons to look forward to next season where she should come back a far more powerful individual."

Positioned beautifully just off the early speed by rider Matthew Cameron, Let Me Roar looked momentarily to be in some trouble when asked for her effort at the top of the home straight. Looks can be deceiving though as she found top gear in a handful of strides and dashed to a clear advantage with 200 metres to run.

Runner-up Maestro Tom made a determined bid in the shadows of the winning post but the filly had him covered as she held out his challenge by a long neck to the relief of punters who installed her as the $1.70 favourite for the event.

"She didn't really cope with the track so it was her class that got her home," said Forsman.

"They did get close to her but even when they were pulling up nothing could get past her so she is a filly with plenty of ticker.

"Her breeding suggest that she will only improve as she matures so we do think she will be just as competitive when she steps up to a mile or further."