Hawtin Racing

About

Te Awamutu Father-And-Son Trainers

Story

Keith Hawtin inherited or absorbed his love of racing from his father, Don Hawtin, a butcher by trade whom this somewhat ancient writer remembers owner-training at Matamata and winning a few races with a Marco Polo II horse named Marco Form. About 50 years ago!

Keith was a school lad then and, after working before and after school for the late Hori McGovern - “Hori had some good horses then, especially Dandeinee” - he headed not long after for Australia, where he had two stints, about 10 years all up, working for Angus Armanasco.

“Angus was especially known as a first-rate trainer of two-year-olds, but he was a good trainer all round. When I was with him he had horses like Full On Aces, Turf Ruler and The Judge – all sires as well as top racehorses.”

Then Hawtin had a 25-year association with international trainer Graeme Rogerson, as his New Zealand partner for perhaps 10 years and then managing the Rogerson stables first in Dubai, then in Sydney and finally in Melbourne.


In 1994 Brendon started working full time for Graeme Rogerson and stayed in that role for the next two years.

He then headed to America where he spent 18 months working for Ben Cecil in California

On returning home he enjoyed a season at Highview Stud.

Late 1998 he went overseas again this time to Singapore where he spent 14 months at Bukit Timah in Singapore under the guidance of Paddy Busuttin.

In 2000 he arrived back in Australia where he did another two years with Graeme Rogerson, both in Sydney and in Melbourne.

In 2002 Dubai was calling so for the first 12 months up there he assisted his father who held a trainers’ licence. He then spent 12 months working for John Saddler who was very successful whilst training in the Middle East.

In 2004 Brendon had a short stint in Melbourne with the Lloyd Williams operation before making the call to head home and start training with his father and formulating Hawtin Racing Stables.