War Hawk

The standout moment came on 7 June 2025 at Epsom Downs, where War Hawk won a Class 2 race — one of the top races in Britain. That is a significant step up from where this horse usually competes. Most of War Hawk's races have come at Class 5 level, the everyday bread-and-butter end of the sport, where the win rate is 1 win from 5 races. To then go to Epsom, one of the most famous and demanding tracks in the country, and win at Class 2 is the kind of result that makes you sit up. It suggests there is more ability here than the routine record implies.

The distance is the key. Over 1 mile 3 furlongs to 1 mile 4 furlongs — a good long gallop that suits a horse that needs time to build momentum — War Hawk has won 3 from 9 races, a win rate of 33%, or roughly 1 in every 3. That is a completely different horse to the one you see over shorter trips. Drop below that range and the results dry up considerably.

War Hawk is trained by Simon and Ed Crisford at Newmarket, one of the heartlands of British racing. It is a yard in fine form — 78 winners already this season — and they clearly know how to place a horse to its best advantage. The first career win came at Lingfield Park on 1 April 2025, and the Epsom success followed just over two months later, suggesting the horse hit a real purple patch in the spring.

Since that Epsom win, however, the form has gone quiet. The last 6 races read 5-5-dash-3-4-dash, meaning two runs without completing the course and nothing better than third when finishing. That drought now stretches 14 months. War Hawk raced just yesterday, so the team clearly still believes there is another big day in the locker — the question is whether that Epsom form was a glimpse of the ceiling, or just a taste of what is possible.