“I just love this horse”

Supreme harness racing driver Kate Gath and pacer Tough Tilly continued their strong alliance with another Group 1 victory in the $210,000 APG Bullion Final at Menangle tonight.

Gath has driven the daughter of Captaintreacherous in all of her 11 victories to date as the pair race towards a special crusade of curing Epidermolysis Bullosa (EB) – a skin condition that largely impacts young children.

“I’m running in the New York Marathon this year for EB Research,” said Gath after the win.

“Any money we can raise to find a cure for these poor children, we’ll do whatever we can.”

Tough Tilly is raced by Benstud Standardbreds along with Cure EB and wears specially designed silks with a butterfly, the logo of EB Research, every time she races.

Breeder Craig Judd of Benstud Standardbreds donated a 25 per cent share in Tough Tilly as part of a fundraising auction for EB Research.

The winning bid went to a syndicate of 28 including Corey Wilkes, a Director of EB Research Partnership and father of Tilly Wilkes, who was born with EB and who Tough Tilly is named after.

“I met the Judd family at the Royal Children’s Hospital when my wife Kelly and I were taking our daughter Tilly to the EB clinic for treatment. Their daughter, Kendall, also suffers from the same condition as Tilly,” Wilkes once said.
Tough Tilly has now pocketed $476,633 in stakes following tonight’s success.

And as her name suggests, the four-year-old had to do it tough outside the leader, her stablemate Joanna.

That was not enough to stop Tough Tilly who won the feature by a neck over her other stablemate and race favourite Ladies In Red.

The mile rate was 1:53 and the quarters were 27.5, 30.8, 28.7 and 26 seconds.

“I just love this horse,” said Gath.

“Her best is just super.

“She has been jogging in 26 quarters and to do that against these horses is a huge thrill.

“Full credit to Emma (Stewart) and Clayton (Tonkin), she had a few little issues and she has come out and produced this.”

Trainer Emma Stewart obtained the trifecta in the race with Joanna holding on for third place.

A race later Stewart won the Group 1 APG Bullion Four-Year-Old Entires and Geldings Final with Beyond Delight.

To view the results from Menangle on Saturday night click here.

By Amanda Rando for Harnesslink