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Finnick The Fierce Retires From Racing, Could Point To 2022 Makeover With New Owner

Finnick The Fierce, the one-eyed chestnut gelding who captured many fans' imaginations ahead of last year's Kentucky Derby, has retired from racing and found a new home.

Jackie Barr, a long time fan of Finnick The Fierce, is the fan favorite's new owner and will be guiding his transition from the racing life to his next life.

“I followed his racing up until he was supposed to be in the Derby,” she said. “You just root for him, being an underdog. He's such a handsome horse.”

Finnick The Fierce had taken an extended break after being a late scratch out of the 2020 Kentucky Derby, returning to the races with an allowance win at Turfway Park in March of this year. Since then, however, Barr said his connections noticed he wasn't really competitive at the same levels he had been before, finishing third in his last outing at an allowance at Mountaineer Park. Although he was sound, co-owners Dr. Arnaldo Monge and trainer Rey Hernandez agreed it was best to let the horse find a new job. Monge's wife, Thena, knew Barr and learned she had been casually looking for her own horse.

Barr has previously ridden hunter/jumpers and fell in love with dressage while working at Hilltop Farm in Maryland. She also worked for Millennium Farms, and has recently been trying to figure out whether her time there overlapped with time Finnick may have been on the property as a weanling. Barr keeps track of several of her favorite Thoroughbreds from her time at Millennium and was excited to hear from Thena Monge at just the right time.

Finnick arrived at his new home at BTE Stables in Paris, Ky., earlier this week and will get some letdown time before Barr decides what his next move is. Her tentative goal for now is the 2022 Retired Racehorse Project's Thoroughbred Makeover, contingent on his progress and their admittance to the competition. Barr said that for now, all doors are open to them. She is inclined to point for dressage and/or competitive trail with Finnick, but is happy to take him in whatever direction he expresses interest in, even if that includes hunters or eventing.

“I don't want to push him too hard on anything; I'll just take it real easy and see how he likes being a sport horse,” she said. “We'll go from there. If he's enjoying it we'll keep going, and if he doesn't seem to, maybe he'll be a trail horse, who knows.”

Barr watches Finnick in the field. Photo courtesy Erin O'Keefe

Finnick's right eye was removed when he was young due to a rare congenital cataract in the eye. Barr said that he doesn't seem to have any residual anxiety due to his limited vision, romping and playing around his new paddock comfortably.

“It really is amazing,” she said. “I've met a couple horses that only had one eye and were spooky on that one side [where the eye was missing]. When I first met him, we were all standing on that side and he didn't mind us being there. He would turn his head so he could see people but he had no problem with it at all. He gallops with his head tilted a little bit, I think so he has a greater range of vision, but other than that you'd have no idea.”

Whatever comes, Barr said she's just happy to be a part of the story she had followed so closely as a fan.

“It's been really great — I've just posted on social media in the past hour or so and there are so many people who remember him,” she said. “It's so cool that he has this built-in fan base. It just shows that you owe it to the horse to make sure he has a good landing and to continue letting him have a good story.”

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Finnick The Fierce Diagnosed With Suspensory Strain, Expected To Fully Recover

Finnick the Fierce (Dialed In – Southern Classic, by Southern Image), who was scratched from the Kentucky Derby last Friday after appearing uneven in his on-track warm-up the day prior, has been found to have a minor strain of his upper suspensory ligament. The injury is not career-ending and requires 30 days of rest before the gelding can resume training.

“We sent Finnick to Dr. Larry Bramlage at Rood and Riddle and he found him to have a slightly enlarged proximal suspensory ligament with no fiber disruption. In layman's terms, it's a strain, not a tear, and his prognosis is good for a full recovery,” said Dr. Arnaldo Monge, DVM, who co-owns Finnick the Fierce with trainer Rey Hernandez.

The gelding is expected to resume full training in October and, if all goes well, his connections are hoping he will make his next start before the end of the year.

“Racing-fit horses don't lose much condition in 30 days, so we're hopeful he can make a start sometime in November or December,” said Monge. “That being said, it's not about a particular race or schedule – it's about the horse. The horse always comes first. That's why, as disappointing as it was to let go of that once-in-a-lifetime dream to run in the Derby, it was an easy decision, because it was about the horse and what's best for him.”

After breaking his maiden at first asking at Indiana Grand, Finnick the Fierce quickly became a fan favorite, running second in the Grade 2 Kentucky Jockey Club at Churchill Downs at age two and third in the G1 Arkansas Derby at Oaklawn Park this past May to stamp himself as a legitimate Kentucky Derby prospect in this untraditional year.

Monge, a veterinarian with Hagyard Equine Medical Institute with specialties in reproduction, chiropractic and acupuncture, first came across Finnick the Fierce as a patient when, as a foal, he was presented to Monge with a congenital cataract that was becoming increasingly advanced and needed to be removed.

Monge ended up purchasing Finnick the Fierce as a weanling for $3,000 from his breeder, Paige Gilster, who was a college student at the time, and had the compromised eye removed soon after. He later sold partial interest in the horse to trainer Rey Hernandez, who is often in the irons when the horse gallops in the mornings.

Because of his missing eye, Finnick the Fierce has always had an abnormal gait due to cocking his head to the right to see straight in front of him.

“Rey is a tremendous horseman and has developed Finnick into a smart horse that's confident and full of class. I think it says a lot when you can see the affection his horses have for him,” said Monge. “The injury was very hard to detect, both because it was so slight and also due to Finnick's altered way of going. Even back at the barn on Thursday after he came back from the track, we couldn't immediately identify it, as he cooled out and was walking sound around the shed row. All of us are incredibly thankful for not only Larry Bramlage and his team at Rood and Riddle for their work in diagnosing the suspensory strain, but also the KHRC regulatory veterinarians, who kept their eyes on him and took this so seriously.”

Finnick the Fierce was bred in Kentucky by Paige Gilster's Paige Jillian Blu Sky Stables and currently holds a record of 9-2-1-2 with $191,290 in earnings.

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Derby Scratch Finnick the Fierce Diagnosed With Leg Strain

Arnaldo Monge and Rey Hernandez’s Finnick the Fierce (Dialed In), a Friday scratch from last Saturday’s GI Kentucky Derby after appearing off during morning training, has been diagnosed with a minor strain of his upper suspensory ligament. The injury is not career-ending, and the one-eyed gelding must rest for 30 days before resuming training.

“We sent Finnick to Dr. Larry Bramlage at Rood & Riddle and he found him to have a slightly enlarged proximal suspensory ligament with no fiber disruption. In layman’s terms, it’s a strain, not a tear, and his prognosis is good for a full recovery,” said Dr. Arnaldo Monge, DVM, who co-owns Finnick the Fierce with his trainer Hernandez.

Third in a division of the GI Arkansas Derby in May, Finnick the Fierce most recently finished seventh in the GII Toyota Blue Grass S. in July. His connections hope a return to full training in October will allow him to make a start in November or December.

“Racing-fit horses don’t lose much condition in 30 days, so we’re hopeful he can make a start sometime in November or December,” said Monge. “That being said, it’s not about a particular race or schedule–it’s about the horse. The horse always comes first. That’s why, as disappointing as it was to let go of that once-in-a-lifetime dream to run in the Derby, it was an easy decision, because it was about the horse and what’s best for him.”

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Finnick the Fierce Withdrawn from Kentucky Derby

Arnaldo Monge and trainer Rey Hernandez’s Finnick the Fierce (Dialed In), a 50-1 shot on the morning-line for the GI Kentucky Derby, has been scratched from the 1 1/4-mile classic.

The one-eyed gelding, third in the GI Arkansas Derby, was seventh last out in the GII Toyota Blue Grass S. at Keeneland July 11.

“Because he’s blind on the right eye, he carries himself a little funny,” Monge said. “And we always knew that. But ever since he arrived, the vets have been keeping an eye on the horse and I’m telling Rey, ‘Well, they’re concerned about this’ and there might be a legitimate reason, but a regular vet doesn’t seem to think so. So we’re always trying to do the best for the horse so we made the decision [to scratch] because we don’t want to go tomorrow and we’re all excited and then he gets scratched at the post. So we always said this is a horse for the long term. It was an honor to be selected [for the Derby], but at the end of the day the most important thing is the horse. Maybe we are missing something I don’t know, but I think the plan is to do more diagnostics on him and if everything is OK, we’ll run another day. What can we do, that’s life.

Monge continued, “I didn’t notice anything, but it was always the right front. That’s the same side as his eye and it’s always been that way. Rey rides the horse and said, ‘This horse is fine’ and that he didn’t feel anything. I don’t know. I know horse racing is under scrutiny all the time so I understand not trying to risk that publicity.

“We’ll have to see what comes out of this next diagnostic test. Just to be on the up and up, we’ll probably send him to Rood and Riddle and get an independent opinion on the horse. If all is good, [the GI Preakness S.] could be a consideration. Maybe the Breeders’ Cup. Rey wanted to turn him out after the Derby anyway, but it will depend on how this comes out. It’s a bummer but we’ll be back.”

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