Impressive Debut Win for Midnight Hawk
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Midnight Hawk, a son of Midnight Lute —Miss Wineshine, by Wolf Power, made an impressive career debut for trainer Bob Baffert in the fourth race at Betfair Hollywood Park Dec. 13 .
After breaking slowly under Mike Smith in the $45,250 maiden special weight, Midnight Hawk moved up quickly to take over the lead. He dropped back slightly while stablemate Wynhurst and Snuggley Bear battled, then cruised up outside that pair into the stretch and pulled clear in the final eighth of a mile to win by 6 1/4 lengths.
The 2-year-old colt, bred in Kentucky by Mike Pegram, is owned by a partnership that includes Pegram, Joel Quenneville, coach of the defending Stanley Cup champion Chicago Blackhawks, and Mike Tice, a longtime NFL player and former head coach of the Minnesota Vikings.
The 6-5 favorite in the six-horse field, Midnight Hawk paid $4.40, $2.80, and $2.40 while covering the 7 1/2 furlongs over Cushion Track in 1:29.26.
In the day's final race, Amelia Green, a 20-year-old English apprentice, picked up the first win of her career by guiding 7-2 third choice Twin Six to victory in the $8,000 claimer . It was Green's first mount in the U.S.