A typical Azawakh tops out around 25.9 mph in Fast CAT. The fastest one on record ran 29.88 mph. 3.2 mph faster than the typical dog (22.7 mph). The fastest Azawakhs outrun Usain Bolt's top speed by 2.1 mph.
Based on the best Fast CAT run of 36 Azawakhs, a typical Azawakh tops out at 25.9 mph, and half of them run faster than 27.1 mph. That makes the Azawakh the 10th fastest of the 226 breeds that have run Fast CAT.
Only 2 Azawakhs have ever broken 30 mph, and 23 have topped 25 mph.
Among the most popular Hound breeds, the typical Azawakh is faster than 5 of 8. The Greyhound is the quickest of the bunch at 32.9 mph, and the Rhodesian Ridgeback (24.7 mph) runs closest to the Azawakh. Over Fast CAT's 100 yards, the 7.0 mph gap to the Greyhound is about 1.68 seconds.
Naram Sin Du Haras De Crouz holds the fastest consistent run by any Azawakh: 29.88 mph at the Willamette Valley Basenji Club in Washington on September 30, 2018. That's 100 yards in 6.85 seconds.
AKC's results also show Kel Simoon Ramisi 'N Sambala at 32.47 mph, but that dog's next-best run is 28.77 mph. A jump that big is usually a timing or typing error, so we flag it rather than crown it.
Oklahoma has the most Azawakh runs, 59 of them, followed by Washington, Wisconsin, Connecticut. The fastest Azawakh run in Oklahoma is 29.30 mph.
Azawakhs are sighthounds, built for exactly this: a straight sprint after a lure. Most catch on in a run or two. Any AKC-registered Azawakh over 12 months old can enter, and the only real training is a reliable finish: have someone your dog will run to waiting past the line.
Fast CAT rankings · How fast is a dog?
Speeds from AKC Fast CAT results. Photographers: spotted your work? Tell us at [email protected] and we'll credit it or take it down.