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Defending champion Hawks Bay heads the weights for the $185,000 Darwin Cup (2000m) on August 6 with a crushing 64kg adding to the challenge he faces to become the fourth dual winner in 50 years.

Hawks Bay, trained at Kyneton in Victoria by Neil Dyer, is into his fourth Darwin Cup campaign. He finished second in the Darwin Cup in 2009 and 2010 before last year's deserved breakthrough carrying 62kg.

The six-year-old has become an icon of Darwin racing as he has won seven races at Fannie Bay including the Darwin Guineas and NT Derby in 2009 and the Metric Mile in 2011. He is unbeaten this campaign with wins in the ROANT Gold Cup and Chief Minister's Cup at his last two starts.

The winner of 13 of his 50 starts including victories at Flemington, Caulfield and Morphettville, has amassed more than $700,000 prizemoney. He will carry 65kg when he completes his Darwin Cup preparation on Saturday in the $50,000 Metric Mile over 1600m at Fannie Bay.

Only three horses have been able to win successive Darwin Cups since Wood won four times straight in the early 1960s where the race was in its formative years.

The dual winners have been Lord Tiny (1975-76); Kerr Street (1983-84) and Lothaway County who dead-heated for first in 1995 after his first win in 1994.

There were no surprises among the entries for the Darwin Cup (2000m) with all but one of the runners having had a start at Fannie Bay during this year's carnival.

The Darwin newcomer is Sea Skye, the winner of six races trained at the Gold Coast by Bevan Laming. The last start winner over 1600m at Morphettville on June 30 is nominated for Saturday's Metric Mile.

Dyer is also represented in the Darwin Cup by last year's runner-up Palmyra Boy while the other entries include Blackbriar, third in 2011, former Sydney winner Syreon and the 2008 Darwin Cup winner Club Liquid.

DARWIN CUP WEIGHTS: Hawks Bay (Neil Dyer) 64.5; Blackbriar (Melinda Booth) 59.0; Bolton (Stephen Brown) 57.0; Syreon (Jason Manning) 57.0; Palmyra Boy (Neil Dyer) 57.0; The Third Baseman (Malcolm Carson) 54.5; Glare (Louis Paech) 54.5; I Am Magic (Kerry Petrick) 54.0; Into The Sun (Malcolm Carson) 54.0; The Ruffian (Sheila Arnold) 54.0; Sea Skye (Bevan Laming) 54.0; Club Liquid (Dick Leech) 54.0; Chieftain Jack (David Bates) 54.0; Bacchus Eagle (Stephen Brown) 54.0; Granzig (Mick Whittle) 54.0; Sheahan (Stephen Brown) 54.0.