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Chicago: Hawthorne sale approved, spelling the end of horse racing

Wednesday, July 29, 2026 1:24 PM
Photo: Hawthorne Race Course photo
  • Marcus Hersh, Daily Racing Form

A federal bankruptcy court judge has approved the sale of Hawthorne Race Course to a company that will cease racing operations and develop the property.

ALLIMAC 2023 LLC, an opaque, recently incorporated Delaware-based entity, is buying Hawthorne for $90 million. The sale is expected to close at the end of July. Horses and humans still residing on the Hawthorne backstretch – several hundred people and animals – must vacate the property by 4 p.m. on Aug. 31.

Judge Timothy Barnes signed the order approving the sale on Monday, pulling the curtain down on horse racing in Chicago, the third-largest city in the United States.