Hawkbill pleasing ahead of International date Charlie Appleby is thrilled with the condition of Hawkbill as he heads into Wednesday's Juddmonte International at York. The Coral-Eclipse winner has emerged victorious on each of his three outings this season and was following up a Royal Ascot win at Sandown. Having had his final piece of serious work ahead of a clash with Postponed, Appleby believes everything is in place for another big run. "He went through the gears nicely, and I was pleased with him. It was nice building work," Appleby told www.godolphin.com. "He is the same body weight as he was going into the Eclipse, which is surprising because visually he appears heavier. The scales say he is exactly the same, though. "I would say that he is strengthening and still maturing physically. "As for the ground at York, he can handle soft, as we saw at Ascot and Sandown, and if it is sound underfoot, it would not worry him either. Being by Kitten's Joy, he would probably appreciate a sounder surface, anyway. "He stepped up again from Ascot to Sandown, and with The Gurkha (second in the Coral-Eclipse) coming out and winning the Sussex Stakes at Goodwood, the form is very solid."
