Lawman is a bay horse bred by Petra Bloodstock Agency and foaled on 9 May 2004. He was sired by Invincible Spirit, a sprinter who won the Duke of York Stakes and Haydock Sprint Cup in 2002. Since retiring from racing he has become one of Ireland's leading stallions, siring Fleeting Spirit, Kingman, Mayson, Moonlight Cloud and Vale of York. Lawman's dam is Laramie, a daughter of Gulch who raced in two maiden races, finishing seventh and fourth. Lawman was purchased as a yearling for €75,000 and was trained in France by Jean-Marie Béguigné.
Racing career
Lawman made his racecourse debut on 12 November 2006 in 1600-metre contest for unraced two-year-olds at Saint-Cloud. He won the race, which was his only start as a two-year-old, beating Vespucci by two lengths. Lawman's first race as a three-year-old was the Prix Machado, a 1600-metre race run at Longchamp on 29 March 2007. He finished the race in third place, two and a half lengths behind winner Chichi Creasy and one length behind runner upBrooklyn Boy. However the second and third placing were reversed, moving Lawman up to second place. In the Prix de Fontainebleau, Lawman was held up at the rear of the field by jockey Olivier Peslier. He ran on in the final 300 metres and took fourth place near the finish, with the race being won by Chichi Creasy. In the Prix de Guiche on 9 May 2007, Lawman set the pace and quickened clear in the finishing straight to win easily by two and a half lengths from Holocene, who just beat Chinese Whisper and Hurricane Fly to finish second. Lawman's easy win in the Prix de Guiche made him one of the favourites for the Prix du Jockey Club on 3 June 2007, when he was ridden for the only time by Frankie Dettori. As in his previous he led from the start and was driven along by Dettori 300 metres from the finish. He ran on well to win the race by one and a half lengths from second placed Literato. Shamdinan and Zambezi Sun finished just behind the runner-up in third and fourth place respectively. Lawman was ridden by Olivier Peslier again when he stepped back down in distance for the Prix Jean Prat on 8 July. As in his previous two races, Lawman was sent into an early lead by Peslier. He quickened clear 300 metres out and won easily by three lengths from Stoneside. Golden Titus was one and a half lengths behind Stoneside in third place, with pre-race favourite Astronomer Royal finishing fourth. In the Prix Jacques Le Marois about one month later, Lawman was near the front of the field for much of the race, but was out of contention with about 300 metres still to run. He eventually finish last of the six runners, approximately 13 lengths behind winner Manduro. Lawman was then being aimed at the Irish Champion Stakes and Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe, but got an infection, causing his liver enzymes to rise, and was retired.
Assessment
Lawman was awarded an official rating of 120 for his win in the Prix Jean Prat, ranking him as the joint 34th best racehorse in the world in 2007.
Stud career
Upon retirement, Lawman was purchased by Ballylinch Stud and syndicated into 45 shares, with Ciampi and Marzocco retaining part ownership. He now stands as a stallion at Ballylinch Stud in Thomastown, County Kilkenny, Ireland for a stud fee of €25,000. His most notable progeny to date are:
Most Improved – a bay horse foaled in 2009 who, after finishing third in the Dewhurst Stakes as a two-year-old, went on to win the St. James's Palace Stakes as a three-year-old. He now stands as a stallion at Coolmore Stud for a stud fee of €6,000.
