Nighthawk Gold Corp. (“Nighthawk” or the “Company”) (TSX: NHK; OTCQX: MIMZF) is pleased to report the initial drill assay results from its 2022 Exploration Program, with encouraging results from its Colomac Main and Grizzly Bear Deposits.

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Figure 1 – Colomac Main Deposit Zone 1.0 Isometric View – Looking Southwest (Graphic: Business Wire)

Keyvan Salehi (Nighthawk President & CEO) commented, “Our goal for this year’s drill program was to continue to expand the open-pit mineralization at the Colomac Centre and the Satellite Deposits. The initial assay results are very encouraging. In the Colomac Main Deposit (Zone 1.0) and adjacent to existing pit shells, we encountered wide intervals of mineralization outside of the current Mineral Resource Estimate¹ pit shell. This is exemplified by drill hole C22-04 (shown on Figure 1), which intersected 1.91 g/t Au over 60.95 m, suggesting the potential expansion of the potential open-pit mineralization in that area. Similarly, we encountered mineralization outside of the current Mineral Resource Estimate¹ north pit shell at Grizzly Bear.”

“We have completed more than 25,000 m of drilling to-date. We have moved our drills to the high-potential Kim and Cass Deposits for the remainder of our exploration program drilling. We expect to update the markets as we continue to receive the drill assay results going forward.”

2022 Exploration Program

Drilling in 2022 targeted areas outside the 2022 MRE¹ pit shells. Nighthawk’s goal is to continue expanding the potential pit-constrained mineralization, particularly in the higher-grade areas. The initial set of drill assay results represents 5,616 m of drilling. Please refer to Table 2 for the Drill Assay Results Summary Table. To-date, the Company has completed more than 25,000 m of drilling (assay results are pending), with five drills currently operating at site. Nighthawk has begun receiving assay results and the Company will endeavour to provide more frequent updates on these results going forward. Please refer to Figure 2 for the Colomac Centre Location Map.

Colomac Main Deposit

2022 exploration drilling at Colomac Main is focused on the northern (Zones 1.0 and 1.5) and southern (Zone 3.5) areas of the deposit. The Company believes there is a high probability of expanding the potential open-pit mineralization in these areas. Drilling to-date has encountered wide intervals of mineralization, hosted in smoky quartz veining in quartz diorite. In particular, drill holes C22-03 and C22-04 (mineralization started at depth below surface of 85 m) intersected mineralization outside of the 2022 MRE¹ pit shells, demonstrating continuity of near-surface mineralization to the north. Please refer to Figures 1, 3, and 4 for the Colomac Main Deposit Zone 1.0 Isometric View, Colomac Centre Plan View, and Colomac Main Deposit Section View, respectively.

Grizzly Bear Deposit

2022 drilling at the Grizzly Bear Deposit focused on expanding mineralization around the north end of the deposit. Mineralization is hosted in smoky quartz veining in the felsic volcanic porphyry. Drill holes GB22-07 and GB22-08 intersected mineralization below the 2022 MRE¹ pit shell at Grizzly Bear. Please refer to Figures 5 and 6 for the Grizzly Bear Plan View and Section View of the highlighted drill holes, respectively.

Technical Information

The pit shell outlines in Figures 1 to 6 are from the 2022 MRE¹ and were completed by InnovExplo Inc. and are defined by a US$1,600/oz gold price assumption.

Nighthawk has implemented a quality-control program to comply with best practices in the sampling and analysis of drill core. Drill core samples were transported in security-sealed bags for analyses at ALS Global Assay Laboratory in Vancouver, BC (“ALS Global”). ALS Global is an ISO/IEC 17025 accredited laboratory. Halved drill core is stored on site and pulps are returned and stored for record.

As part of its QA/QC program, Nighthawk inserts external gold standards (low to high-grade), blanks and duplicates every 20 samples in addition to the standards, blanks, and pulp duplicates inserted by ALS Global.

Qualified Person

John McBride, MSc., P.Geo., Vice President of Exploration for Nighthawk, who is the "Qualified Person" as defined by NI 43-101 for this project, has reviewed and approved of the technical disclosure contained in this news release.

About Nighthawk

Nighthawk is a Canadian-based gold exploration company with 100% ownership of more than 930 km² of district-scale land position within the Indin Lake Greenstone Gold Belt, located approximately 200 km north of Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, Canada. The Company is advancing several highly prospective exploration targets. The Colomac Centre and Satellite deposits currently has a Mineral Resource Estimate¹ of 58.2 million tonnes grading 1.44 g/t Au for 2.69 million ounces in the Indicated category and 19.7 million tonnes grading 2.10 g/t Au for 1.33 million ounces in the Inferred category. Nighthawk’s experienced management team, with a track record of successfully advancing projects and operating mines, is working towards demonstrating the economic viability of its assets and rapidly advancing its projects towards a development decision.

Forward-Looking Information

This news release contains "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. Forward-looking information includes, but is not limited to, information with respect to the Company’s mineral resource estimates, potential expansion of pit-constrained mineralization, potential expansion of mineral resource estimates, the potential for higher-grade assay results, continued exploration and drilling initiatives and having the necessary funding required to complete these initiatives, the prospectivity of exploration targets, the potential economic viability of the assets, and the advancement of projects towards a development decision. Generally, forward-looking information can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as “add” or “additional”, “advancing”, “anticipates” or “does not anticipate”, “appears”, “believes”, “can be”, “continue”, “demonstrating”, “estimates”, “encouraging”, “expand” or “expanding” or “expansion”, “expect” or “expectations”, “forecasts”, “forward”, “goal”, “increase”, “intends”, “justification”, “support”, “plans”, “potential” or “potentially”, “prospective”, “prioritize”, “reflects”, “scheduled”, “suggesting”, “updating”, “will be” or “will consider”, “work towards”, ,or variations of such words and phrases or state that certain actions, events or results “may”, “could”, “would”, “might”, or "will be taken", "occur", or "be achieved".

Forward-looking information is based on the opinions and estimates of management at the date the information is made, and is based on a number of assumptions and is subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results, level of activity, performance or achievements of Nighthawk to be materially different from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking information, including risks associated with the exploration, development and mining such as economic factors as they effect exploration, future commodity prices, changes in foreign exchange and interest rates, actual results of current exploration activities, government regulation, political or economic developments, impact of inflation, impact of the war in Ukraine, risks associated with the COVID-19 pandemic, environmental risks, permitting timelines, capital expenditures, operating or technical difficulties in connection with development activities, employee relations, the speculative nature of gold exploration and development, including the risks of diminishing quantities of grades of reserves, contests over title to properties, and changes in project parameters as plans continue to be refined as well as those risk factors discussed in Nighthawk’s annual information form for the year ended December 31, 2021, available on www.sedar.com. Although Nighthawk has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no assurance that such information will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such information. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. Nighthawk does not undertake to update any forward-looking information, except in accordance with applicable securities laws.

¹For more information on the Mineral Resource Estimate (“2022 MRE”) please refer to the March 8, 2022 news release and in the Company’s NI 43-101 technical report entitled “NI 43-101 Technical Report and Update of the Mineral Resource Estimate for the Indin Lake Gold Property, Northwest Territories, Canada” and dated March 31, 2022 (“Technical Report”), which is available on SEDAR www.sedar.com and on the Company’s website at www.nighthawkgold.com. John McBride, Vice President of Exploration of Nighthawk, who is the “Qualified Person” as defined by NI 43-101, has reviewed and approved of the scientific and technical disclosure contained in this news release.

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The initial assay results are very encouraging...This is exemplified by drill hole C22-04 (shown on Figure 1), which intersected 1.91 g/t Au over 60.95 m, suggesting the potential expansion of the potential open-pit mineralization in that area.