SUNDAY CONVO: Steve & Amazing Filly Final Exit

The year 2012 was heralded as the Year Of The Super Filly. Err, make that Super Fillies.

The crop of three year old super fillies this season was indeed superb, and SIMSTERS were jumping on and off their bandwagons as each big race went by the boards in the early part 2012 season.

There was Street Etiquette. All she did was win the Breeders’ Bowl Juvenile Fillies and the Grade 1 All Saints Derby Lock Prep down in Louisiana–against the boys.

Then there was Giant Zen, who won the Grade 2 Miss Bonnie and finished second in the Grade 1 Wooden Indian Derby Lock Prep–against the boys.

There was Tolleson, the brilliant juvenile who took down the Grade 1 Getaway and the Grade 1 Frickazee. There was Estrada, who won a couple of huge Grade 2’s as a juvenile, before she scored in the Grade 1 Los Vinegrettes. There was Incredible Show, who won the Grade 1 Walnut Tree. There was Storm Saga, who was a perfect 7-7 and won the Grade 1 Movieland Starlet. There was Wonderful Dream, who won the Grade 2 Sell The Queen and the Grade 1 Vermont Is 4 Lovers. And there was Secret Shuffler, a newcomer to the Super Filly whispers when she scored a huge upset in the Bluegrass Oaks.

And then there was Final Exit.

The three year old daughter of Dynaformer dominated a super group of fillies in the Grade 1 Darley last season, and people started whispering her name as The Chosen One to watch in 2012‘s group of Wonder Fillies.

But when Final Exit finished third in the Breeders’ Bowl Juvenile Filly behind Street Etiquette and then followed that up with an off the board finish in the Grade 1 Movieland Starlet, Final Exit suddenly dropped off the Super Filly watch list, it seemed.

The girls were still going to dominate the talk in Derbyfever in 2012. There was never a doubt about that. Not many people were disputing that at all. The only problem SIMSTERS were having was trying to pick which filly was going to dominate–and which major Triple Crown race that particular Super Filly would pick to beat the boys. You knew it was going to happen. You just didn’t know which Super Filly would do it and in which Triple Crown race it would happen.

Street Etiquette had her chance two weeks ago. After a super three year old campaign, she lost against the boys in the Bluegrass Derby.

But still, you just knew that sooner or later, somewhere in this crop of Super Fillies in 2012, there was a filly who was going to beat the boys at their own game on the big stage in Kentucky or Maryland or New York.

And it finally happened this weekend, in Maryland, when Final Exit took down the $1,000,000 Grade 1 Middle Jewel Stakes, using a stalking trip and pulling away at the wire to win by 2 ½ lengths over Dynakaze and by 4 ¼ lengths over Ras El Hanout, who won the Bluegrass Derby two weeks ago.

Steve, who runs Dixiedotco Stables and is the owner of Final Exit, is the subject of this week’s Sunday Convo, and he’s got a lot to talk about after Final Exit won the second leg of the Triple Crown, joining You See LA as one of only two fillies in Derbyfever history to win a Triple Crown race.

“It’s a special feeling to know that she is in the record books,” said Steve. “You See LA was a dynamite three year old filly who not only won the Middle Jewel but ran second in the (Bluegrass) Derby. To be in her company is pretty impressive. It’s rare to see the girls take down these major, major events. So, when it does happen, it’s something to appreciate.”

The big moment was definitely not lost on Steve when he was in the winner’s circle with his star filly after the race in Maryland Saturday.

“I don’t pay much attention to times, but it’s nice to see that her win is not cheap by any means,” said Steve, when he was told his filly had just matched the winning time of last year‘s Middle Jewel winner, Seek Irish Roots. “This is a very strong group of three year olds, one of the strongest in recent memory, as far as I’m concerned. We knew she’d have to run fast to beat the boys, and she did it.”

And run fast she did. Final Exit’s winning time of 1:54 flat in the 9.5 furlong Middle Jewel not only matched the time of last year’s winner, Seek Irish Roots, but it was also 1/5 of a second off the Middle Jewel Stakes record times of You See LA (2010) and Unbridled Fury (2002).

Final Exit’s storybook rise to the top of this super group of three year old fillies in 2012 began oddly enough half a world away in Dubai, when she scored in the Grade 3 Dubai 1000 Guineas. After that win, following her debacle in the Movieland Starlet, Final Exit began to get a little respect back. But she wasn’t quite there, as far as the Super Filly whispers went.

Momentum began to build for Final Exit, after she scored wins in the Grade 2 Louisiana Oaks and the Grade 1 lool Oaks, and there were more than a few who thought she should join Street Etiquette in the group facing the boys in the Bluegrass Derby. She had enough points to run in the Bluegrass Derby, but Final Exit would end up running in the Bluegrass Oaks and finishing second to Secret Shuffler.

When Final Exit came out of the Oaks in great shape, Steve said he wasn’t worried about running her back in two weeks in the second leg of the Triple Crown against the boys.

“As long as she was sharp, there was nothing to worry about, as far as that goes,” said Steve. “The (Middle Jewel) race seemed to be much different as far as race shape compared to the Derby, and the Oaks as well, for that matter. There didn’t appear to be nearly as much pace this weekend. She got a little further back in the Oaks than I anticipated, but that can happen when there’s a 20-horse field and a ton of pace. The fact that she ran her race anyway just shows how easily she can adapt.”

When the field took off in the Middle Jewel Stakles this weekend, Final Exit took off like a rocket out of the ten post. There was only one problem. Steel Shanks was just a little bit faster early on, and the entry from Checkmate Racing Corporation would be the rabbit in this year’s Middle Jewel. Well, maybe not a rabbit. Let’s just say, Steel Shanks was the pacesetter, and leave it at that.

Steel Shanks ran for the front early, but he wasn’t exactly burning it up on the front end. Steve was right about that. The early pace would not be fast in this year’s Middle Jewel.

Steel Shanks wasn’t crawling on the front end, but his fractions of 47.09 for the four furlongs and 1:11.12 for the six furlongs weren’t exactly something to write home about, compared to past Middle Jewel Stakes.

“With the smaller field and less early burners in this one, I thought she might get a nice stalking trip since she does have plenty of natural speed,” Steve said. “Watching the race, it unfolded even better than I thought it might. She was tracking the pace in hand, and was well clear of the horses behind her. She seemed to always be going well, and once I knew she had the front runners in her sights, I started worrying about the many quality closers behind her.”

The closers were there, all right, for Steve and his filly to worry about. There was the Bluegrass Derby winner, Ras El Hanout. There was Skitzoid, who came from dead last to finish second in the Bluegrass. And there was Chicago Derby winner Ominous News. He was a late-closing type too. There was Lucky’s Franklin, who closed late in the Derby.

“I kept waiting for something to come flying, but luckily she had plenty left in reserve,” said Steve.

A few of those came flying late, to be sure, after Final Exit collared Steel Shanks on the turn for home. But Final Exit held her ground against the boys late, and she ended up making it a very impressive win in the Black Middle Jewel.

Steve surprisingly almost passed on the Middle Jewel, and the history books, he said after the race Saturday.

“Actually my first instinct after the Oaks was to wait five weeks and run in the Chestnut, which would then set her up for the Sister Hen three weeks after that,” said the owner of Dixiedotco, one of the game’s most prestigious stables. “But after thinking about it for a little while, I didn’t want to back her up to a mile, even though she does love that distance as well. She had run so well at nine furlongs in the Oaks, and looked like she could be best at or around that distance. Since she came out of the (Oaks) race in such good shape, I said to myself that I would point her for the Middle Jewel, and if she was sharp, I’d try her. If not, I could back off and go with my original plan.”

It’s pretty sweet that Final Exit came out of the Oaks in great shape, and it‘s also pretty sweet that she took advantage of her chance to get her name in the history books, too, alongside that of You See LA’s name. The more Steve thought about running Final Exit in the Middle Jewel, the more it made sense to him.

“The distance was definitely in her favor. With the way the race set up, I thought she would be able to get an easy trip that could get her the 9.5 furlong,” he said. “Some of the more impressive Derby runners were those that seemed to really relish the 10 furlong distance. With a less frantic early pace, and a little less distance, I thought she had a chance to take advantage of the situation. Pretty much half the field scared me going in. Obviously, Ras El Hanout, the Derby winner, was very imposing, as was Skitzoid, who ran second in the Derby and was a grade 1 winner at the distance. Even some of the less notable horses like Dynakaze and Ominous News looked dangerous with their pedigrees and the way they had been improving lately. This was no easy spot for sure.”

Steve and Final Exit could write some more history, if she were to run in the Grade 1 New Yorker, the third leg of the Triple Crown, and win that race. If she should run and win there, she would become the only filly in the history of the game to win TWO Triple Crown races. You See LA ran in two Triple Crown races, but she won only one. Just before her Middle Jewel Stakes win, she finished second in the Bluegrass Derby.

Will Steve be tempted to take Final Exit and try for some more history and go to the longest, most grueling leg of the Triple Crown, the 12-furlong New Yorker? Steve wasn’t saying yes, nor was he saying no, at least not now.

“That’s undecided at this point,” said the veteran trainer. “As tempting as it would be to try and make history and win two legs of the Triple Crown with a filly, I also don’t want to risk ruining her for the rest of her campaign. Earlier in the year, I was questioning whether she would even be able to go nine furlongs. There’s a big difference between 9.5 furlongs and 12 furlongs. In my experience, a different type of horse wins the New Yorker than those that win the other legs. The dam’s side of her pedigree will catch up to her at some point. Also, jamming her back in three weeks after seeing her run her eyeballs out twice in two weeks scares me. So as of right now, I would say it’s likely she won’t run there, but not impossible. If she doesn’t, the Sister Hen is a logical next spot.”

The dam’s side of her pedigree is definitely going to be a big factor in the decision to run her in the third leg of the Triple Crown.

Heaven’s Gate, Final Exit’s dam, has been SIM royalty in the shed. And she wasn’t so bad on the track either.

“She’s pure class,” said Steve.

The daughter of Seeking Gold, who has Northern Dancer back there in her pedigree, won over $600,000 on the track in her career.  And her nine foals have won nearly $5.3 million on the track, if you throw in the little over $2 million that Final Exit now has in the bank.  Heaven’s Gate was also a grade 2 stakes winner at seven furlongs, and it’s probably that part of her pedigree that has Steve worried about taking Final Exit to the 12-furlong graveyard that is the Grade 1 New Yorker in three weeks.

“Heaven’s Gate was a super nice mare,” said Steve. “I had it in my head that she was a router for about two years until common sense kicked in, and I realized she was a sprinter. Lots of missed opportunities there. Oops. She was fast, classy, and consistent. That she was able to pick up a check against the boys in the Breeders’ Bowl Sprint was impressive. As good as she was on the track, she’s even better in the broodmare shed. Five stakes winners, three of them graded. All of them were tough horses who had long careers as well. Until Final Exit, Panhandling was probably her best. He almost won the Breeders’ Bowl Dirt Mile as a three year old. Arbor Day is a hard knocking turf sprinter. And I have high hopes for her two year old, Next Level, who won very impressively first out last month.”

When Steve saw the kinds of quality foals Heaven’s Gate was tossing in the shed, he thought Dynaformer would be a nice fit for his super mare and maybe give the foal from that coupling some much needed stamina to get it past the mile barrier.

“Her previous foals had been mostly sprinters and milers,” said Steve. “In my opinion, Dynaformer seems to be the one dependable stamina source in the SIM that can also produce quality dirt horses, as well as turf horses. With the female side of the pedigree, I wasn’t looking for a turf horse, but I wanted a little extra stamina that could push the resulting foal past that mile barrier. Dynaformer seemed like a perfect fit, and he has been really hot lately on top of it.”

Steve said he always had hopes that Final Exit would be a special filly.

“There was always hope that she was a special filly after her first two easy wins,” the Dixiedotco owner said. “But you never really know. She had won so convincingly those times, but she had yet to run particularly fast. The Darley was the true test. Not only did she win, but she destroyed some really nice fillies that day. When she was able to do that, and in just her third start? That was a sign that this could be a really good filly.”

Final Exit’s career so far has exceeded Steve’s wildest expectations. “Her career thus far has been more than I could ever expect. She’s shown a consistency rarely seen in the SIM. To think that she could run an ‘off‘ race and still run third in the Breeders’ Bowl? Amazing. The one poor showing in the Movieland Starlet is a toss.  She came back bad from that race, and it obviously affected her performance. This year has gone perfectly with the exception of the loss in the Oaks.  The Oaks winner came back to get buried in the Black Middle Flower on Saturday.  Not saying the Oaks was a fluke, but that filly (Secret Shuffler) ran the race of her life that day, and those things just happen. I’m pretty confident in thinking my filly is the best there is right now.”

And Steve might not be far off the mark in thinking that Final Exit might just be the best of the best in 2012, the year of the Super Fillies.