Hawthorne cancels Friday card due to expected rainstorm

Hawthorne has canceled its Friday racing program in anticipation of heavy rain, according to a track news release.

Hawthorne also has called off training Friday morning, saying 1 1/2 inches of rain were forecast for the area starting Thursday night.

The release said racing was expected to resume Saturday.

Hawthorne is experiencing an acute horse shortage. After four racing days of the spring meeting, average field size on eight-race cards stood at just 5.78 runners.