Cox's Late Audible Pays Off With Key of Life

Being "a horse for the course" never hurts when your trainer makes a last-minute race decision. That's exactly what happened when Brad Cox opted to send the brilliantly fast Key of Life  up against her stiffest test yet in the April 16 $400,000 Beaumont Stakes (G2) at Keeneland.

The deciding factor between a good and bad decision came down to a mere neck at the finish.

Key of Life had never stretched her speed beyond 6 1/2 furlongs, and after forcing a blistering early pace up front, the Mo Town   filly drove to the wire with everything she had to fend off the late closing rush of Interpolate  for the victory.

"I was really concerned (when I saw :44 for the half) and at the eighth pole I honestly thought she was going to give in," Cox said.

But she didn't, and Cox's late audible paid off.

The pair of Flavien Prat and Key of Life whisked away from the seven-horse field with a shotgun start, motoring to a :22.24 first quarter and :44.87 half-mile all while facing a 19mph headwind. Although her commanding 2 1/2-length advantage dwindled with every yard of the Keeneland stretch, Key of Life ($2.94) persevered for her first graded stakes score, stopping the timer in 1:27.32 for the unique seven-furlong and 184-foot distance.

"She really dug in (when Interpolate came to her outside in the stretch)," Prat said of Key of Life. "But as soon as the other horse got close, she really dug in and gave me another gear to get us to the wire."

Interpolate, an Into Mischief   filly shipping in from the New York barn of trainer Chad Brown and racing in midpack early on, rallied gamely over a track that hasn't been playing the kindest to closers throughout the current spring meet. She was 6 1/4 lengths clear of fellow New York invader Stonewall Star  in third.

Campaigned by Flurry Racing Stables, who secured the 3-year-old for $350,000 at last year's Ocala Breeders' Sales Company Spring Sale of 2-Year-Olds in Training, and Hoffman Family Racing, Kentucky-bred Key of Life became the first black-type winner for her dam, the Harlan's Holiday mare Longride to Wisdom .

Sunday's tally made the filly a perfect three-for-three over the Keeneland oval. She had previously registered two facile wins over the Lexington track last fall in the Myrtlewood Stakes and in an allowance optional claiming event.

"(Key of Life) likes Keeneland a lot. I like Keeneland and she likes Keeneland," Cox said, which only spurred the conditioner's confidence in saddling the filly in the Beaumont. "I wish the Breeders' Cup was here again this fall (for her)."

Held at Santa Anita Park this year, the Breeders' Cup could be a long-range goal for Key of Life, but the next stop on the agenda could come up as soon as Preakness Stakes (G1) weekend.

"I don't really know how far she wants to go," Cox said. "(The Miss Preakness Stakes [G3, May 19 at Pimlico Race Course] was my original plan, but after getting a feel for how this race was shaping up we elected to run her here."

The Miss Preakness, four weeks away from the Beaumont, could still be the likely target for Key of Life. Bet down as the 2-5 favorite in the Beaumont, she could be hammered down at the windows even harder come Preakness weekend when she returns to her preferred six-furlong distance. Despite earning 10 points in what was the final contest in the Road to the Kentucky Oaks (G1) points series, Key of Life will not be one of Cox's fillies routing 1 1/8 miles on Oaks day, leaving that challenge up to her stablemates Wet Paint , Punchbowl , The Alys Look , and Botanical .

Video: Beaumont S. Presented by Keeneland Select (G2)