Hillsborough a Curtain Call for Classy Hawksmoor

All great performers deserve a curtain call, and, thanks to her connections, multiple graded stakes winner Hawksmoor will get one more chance to strut her stuff when she goes to post in the $225,000 Hillsborough Stakes (G2T) March 9 on the Tampa Bay Downs turf.

The final start for Hawksmoor, owned by Roy and Gretchen Jackson's Lael Stables, had been scheduled for the Feb. 9 Lambholm South Endeavour Stakes (G3T) at Tampa Bay, but after the 6-year-old Irish-bred daughter of Azamour won by a half-length and came out of the race ready for more, her connections decided she had earned a chance to run one more time. 

After Saturday's race, she'll be retired from racing and bred to Kitten's Joy .

"She came out of her last race bouncing and kicking," said her trainer, Arnaud Delacour. "We had originally planned on retiring her after that race, and also normally wouldn't come back against top company on four weeks rest, but we talked it over and said she deserved to do her thing one more time."

Hawksmoor will be making her 24th start. One word that typifies her career? Consistency. She has won or placed in 16 of her 23 races while racing almost exclusively in group/graded stakes. She has three graded stakes wins in her past 12 races and has finished first or second in eight of those starts. In Europe, she won the German One Thousand Guineas (G2) at 3. 

In short, she has always answered the call.

Delacour took over Hawksmoor's training when she was sent to the U.S. following her 3-year-old campaign in Europe. He could tell the first time he laid eyes on her she was something special.

"She's not the biggest horse in the world, but she's a very athletic-looking specimen, and she's always had that presence, that 'look' the good ones seemed to have," Delacour said. "She's always been an aggressive type, she trains with vigor, she eats with vigor, and she's very fussy about her surroundings. She can be a little edgy at times, but not in a bad way. She's really a very nice horse."

Hawksmoor will retire a millionaire as she comes into her final start with career earnings of $1,117,739, earned in a division where she often has competed against runners from trainer Chad Brown, who has assembled one of the best stables of turf distaffers in the world.

Saturday's Hillsborough is no exception. Brown has two mares entered: morning-line favorite Rymska and Flower Bowl Stakes (G1T) runner-up Onthemoonagain. Delacour said it's no easy task competing against a particular strength of champion trainer Brown, and he's proud of the record Hawksmoor has compiled against top competition. 

"She's faced the best around and has never disgraced herself," Delacour said. "She's been dead honest and dead game throughout her career, and expect nothing less on Saturday. She's trained up to the race very well, and, of course, we'd love to see her go out a winner. She certainly deserves it."