Royal Ascot: Hardwicke Stakes

The Hardwicke Stakes, held on the final day of the Royal meeting, is a Group 2 race over 1 mile 3 furlongs and 211 yards and is open to horses aged four years or older. The race is named in honour of the 5th Earl of Hardwicke, the Master of the Buckhounds in Benjamin Disraeli’s government from 1874 to 1880. The race was named in his honour in 1879, but he was an inveterate gambler who had huge debts with Agar-Robartes Bank and had to try to sell his Wimpole Hall Estate in Cambridgeshire in 1891. However, it failed to sell at auction and Lord Robartes, chairman of the Bank, had to accept the Estate in settlement of the debt.
Early history:- The inaugural running of the Hardwicke Stakes over a mile and a half of the Swinley Course took place on Friday 13th June 1879 with £2000 added prize money and a massive 168 subscribers at 10 sovereigns each. The race was won by Lord Bradford's Chippendale, beating Lord Falmouth's Silvio and Mr W Crawfurd's Lancastrian by a head and 10 lengths in 2 minutes 56 seconds.
Hardwicke Stakes 2000 Stakes 1 1/2 miles
Pos. Horse Jockey Trainer Owner
1 FRUITS OF LOVE Olivier Peslier Mark Johnston Mr M Doyle 9/2
2 YAVANA'S PACE Darryll Holland Mark Johnston Mrs Joan Keaney 25/1
3 BLUEPRINT Pat Eddery Sir Michael Stoute HM The Queen 11/4 fav
4 MUTAMAM Willie Supple Alec Stewart Hamdan Al Maktoum 16/1
5 GREEK DANCE Johnny Murtagh Sir Michael Stoute Lord Weinstock 9/2
6 GOLD ACADEMY Dane O'Neill Richard Hannon Mr George Teo 16/1
7 MUTAFAWEQ Richard Hills Saeed Bin Suroor Godolphin 4/1
8 STATE SHINTO John Velazquez Saeed Bin Suroor Godolphin 12/
9 URBAN OCEAN Mick Kinane Aidan O'Brien David Tsui & Mrs J Magnier 25/1
The Hardwicke Stakes over a mile and a half of the Swinley Course was on Friday 23rd June 2000 and the winner, a bay horse by Hansel out of Vollee Secrete won a first prize of £81,000 (equivalent to £139,000 in 2020). Over round 111%
Hardwicke Stakes Group 2 1 mile 4 furlongs 1879
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