When a horse dominates a division like Whiskey Lou did in the 2023 Illinois Conceived and Foaled trotting filly class when she won 13 of 14 starts, including the Beulah Dygert final on Hawthorne’s Night of Champions, any of their rivals’ accomplishments run the risk of being overlooked.
Tag: Hawthorne Race Course
Hawthorne Open favorites look to continue dominance
All winning streaks eventually end, but the question always remains: When? Is Sunday (Jan. 12) the night the recent dominance in Hawthorne’s filly and mare Open Pace or its top-level trotting event comes to a close?
Another series sweep for Searle?
The last of Hawthorne’s Jingle Bell series events will wrap up Saturday evening (Jan. 11) with another Steve Searle-trained trotter looking for a series sweep.
Hawthorne features have indeed been ‘Open’
In past years, it was common to see horses that began to tower above others in Hawthorne’s Open Pace trigger the race office to take steps to make the top overnight event more competitive.
Illinois series for male pacers up for grabs
A trio of Illinois series champions will be crowned Saturday night (Dec. 14) at Hawthorne Race Course.And while there are a pair of clear-cut favorites in two of the series finals, a third looks to be wide open.
Who will cash in on the Cardinal Stakes?
The last of the year’s Illinois Conceived and Foaled (ICF) stakes will be presented this weekend at Hawthorne with the Cardinal Stakes for 2-year-old colts and geldings in the spotlight on Saturday night (Nov. 23) and freshman fillies taking over the limelight on Sunday evening (Nov. 24) with the Violet Stakes.
Top performances on Night of Champions at Hawthorne
Saturday night (Nov. 9) at Hawthorne was Night of Champions as 12 stakes finals were contested for a total of nearly $1.6 million in purses. Despite some brief afternoon showers, the skies cleared and the track was fast for the Saturday evening card.
Fox Valley Julian emerging in the Prairie State
Now that the dust has settled concerning Fox Valley Julian’s victory that ended Gorgeous Big Guy’s winning streak at 16, driver Casey Leonard provided some insight on the stunning development in the Illinois 3-year-old male pacing division.
Racing at Hawthorne returns
The 2024 Hawthorne harness racing meeting opens this weekend with leg three of its Night of Champions stake series. First post on both Saturday (Oct. 19) and Sunday (Oct. 20) is 7:10 p.m.
Illinois Racing Board approves 2025 racing dates
On Thursday (Sep. 19), the Illinois Racing Board met to consider the three applications for 2025 racing dates.