Here is a Black Book Special that many professional breeders and buyers may have thought would have been “outside the realms of possibility” at the start of the 2YO Season in Europe.
Champion KINGMAN’S champion son PALACE PIER is off to a flying start as a Sire of precocious juveniles!
“Cop the Tip! His kids can run!”
Over the weekend the brilliant racehorse PALACE PIER has now revealed he may be an even better sire when he added his first stakes horse to his resume when his son SIRIUS A ran at Deauville France, finishing runner-up in the Listed Prix Roland de Chambure, L.
Whilst he added another two (2) debut winners to his resume last Friday when firstly, his son Pacifica Pier made a successful racecourse debut at Sandown, and that was followed later in the day by Golden Palace, who flew home at Beverley.
Pacifica Pier, trained by Charlie Appleby, settled off the early pace set early on in the seven-furlong (1400m) contest, before being shaken up by rider James Doyle with three furlongs (600m) left to run. Once asked to quicken, he accelerated in pleasing fashion to take the lead a furlong out and held off fast finishing Publish to win by half a length. A homebred for Godolphin, Pacifica Pier is out of the Stakes-winning Elusive Quality mare Discernable, making him a half-brother to Group winner Ideal Beauty. The dam is herself a full sister to G2 winner True Quality.
Later in the day at Beverley, to also win at the first time of asking, Golden Palace demonstrated a blistering turn of foot in the five-furlong (1000m) fillies' novice. She is out of Listed winner Rioticism, also dam of G2 winner Ladies Church.
Palace Pier in GB/IRE from 14 runners now has seven (7) individual winners (50% W:R) and 4 placegetters and a Stakes Horse in France – Palace Pier has a better strike rate than any other first-crop sire in Europe this season.
He is currently in Second position on the First Crop Sires Premiership by Winners.
Leading by volume of Winners is Starman who has sired 11 Winners from 43 Runners (26%).
Whilst in equal Third are Lope y Fernandez and A’Ali who both have 4 winners from 22 runners (18%).
PALACE PIER whilst unbeaten in 2 starts over 1400m as a 2yo, was a big, beautiful but slower maturing individual so was not tested against the best of his generation. However, he did win his Maiden on debut at Sandown by 3.8 lengths and his next start in a Novice by 4.5 lengths. Connections knew they had a good one but his 2yo season was about learning racecraft ahead of his classic year.
He was simply brilliant as a 3yo in his 4 race starts. He kicked off his 3yo season over 1600m in a Handicap at Newcastle winning by 3.3 lengths. That was used as a sighter for his next three appearances. Connections were ready, and Palace Pier was ready. So, no mucking about, it was straight to Gr1 level for the unbeaten colt and Palace Pier delivered on expectation.
He raced on 3 further occasions, all at Gr1 level, and all at a mile. He was crowned Champion 3YO in Europe after he won the St James’s Palace S (G1), 8f, Royal Ascot, then the Prix Jacques le Marois (G1), 8f, Deauville. He also was third in the Queen Elizabeth II S (G1), 8f, Ascot.
He returned as a Four-Year-Old and proved his 3yo season was no fluke.
Better again in his 4yo season, he was Crowned Champion Older Miler in Europe. He raced 5 times as a 4yo, recording 4 wins including three G1 races, a G2 event, and was Runner-Up in a G1, all 5 races at a mile.
He won the Sandown Mile (G2), 8f, Sandown by a massive 8 lengths. He then did a clean sweep in the Lockinge S (G1), 8f, Newbury, he won the Queen Anne S (G1), 8f, Royal Ascot, and then back-to-back in the Prix Jacques le Marois (G1), 8f, Deauville. Whilst he was a neck runner-up in the Queen Elizabeth II S (G1), 8f, Ascot.
From his 11 races during his career, he won 9 and was once runner-up and once third. Earning a Timeform Rating of 132.
He won 5 Group 1 races and a Group 2. He was unbeaten as a 2yo. 9 of his 11 races were at a mile (1600m) where he won 7 of them 5 G1; 1 G2; 1 Hcp. He also won his two starts at 1400m when he was a 2yo.
This is an outstanding racetrack resume.
However, like the majority of breeders and buyers, everyone was bullish about the Palace Pier progeny who were as a whole a fabulous looking crop of yearlings, but like him, most were more immature looking types, that looked like they needed a bit of time to furnish into their frames.
All good 3yo’s show you something as 2yo’s. Palace Pier did and in Europe his progeny are flying!
Nobody is shocked they are good – only that they are showing up so early!
Even John Godsen - the trainer of the World Champion Miler, commented after he saw the his first yearling crop.
“Let’s see them run for two or three seasons, then we will know how good they are. He was a horse that was actually a good 3yo who was even better 4yo.
Don’t think if they are not showing up in 2yo races that’s necessarily an issue. With the quality of mares he’s had, what he did himself, there is no reason to assume he won’t be a very nice stallion.
The 2yo’s will be in the system early, that doesn’t mean they will be “pinging” over five furlongs (1000m). He was a fabulous miler, but he was more a stiff six, seven-furlong horse as a 2yo, going on to be a champion miler.
He was a very attractive yearling. A powerful horse with a lot of scope, he was a very taking individual. He ran twice at two and won both starts. I just gave him some time, he was a big boy. Then he came out in the Spring (as a 3yo) and showed straight away his class. He went into the St James Palace and defeated all the good horses in that race, and he was a pleasure to train. He then won the Jacques le Marois as a 3yo. So, he fulfilled everything I expected and hoped from him.
He was European Champion 3yo and then at 4, he did the clean sweep of the Lockinge, the Queen Anne and the Jacques le Marois and was Champion Older Horse. And I think when you see a horse as a yearling, you dream of a horse being that good. He was that good looking, and he managed to fulfill it all.
Sadly for our Australian Breeding Industry, PALACE PIER only shuttled to Australia for the one season in 2022, where standing at a Service Fee of $55,000 he covered 97 mares, however fertility issues reduced his foal crop numbers to just 66 live foals.
Considered too valuable to risk, his ownership group chose to keep him at Darley in England.
Team Dynamic purchased a superb colt from this crop.
We identified a First Crop Sires whose progeny we wanted to own and went on a mission to inspect what was being offered for sale.
There were 16 on offer at the Magic Millions and we are delighted with our purchase and even more so by the wonderful start PALACE PIER has achieved to start his career.
Palace Pier Leading Progeny to Date:
Sirius A (23c, Sea the Stars, Sunday Silence). Winner at 1408m, 2nd Deauville Prix Roland de Chambure, L
Pacifica Pier (23c, Elusive Quality, Seeking the Gold). Winner at 1408m, 1st Sandown Tattersalls 2YO S.
A Bit of Spirit (23c, Dubawi, Teofilo). Winner at 1308m, 1st Newbury Local IQ EBF Novice S.
Morris Dancer (23c, Dubawi, Sadler's Wells). Winner at 1442m.
Khuskhas (23f, Dansili, Lear Fan). Winner at 1210m.
Royal Fixation (23f, Kodiac, Speightstown). Winner at 1207m.
Golden Palace (23f, Rio de la Plata, Cape Cross). Winner at 1006m.
Rock of Rosha (23f, Kodiac, Giant's Causeway). Placed, 2nd Chantilly Prix de la Troublerie
Hamaleel (23f, Dark Angel, Teofilo). Placed, 3rd Doncaster British Stallion Studs 2YO Maiden S.
Crystal Pier (23f, Dalakhani, Sadler's Wells). Placed, 3rd Newbury British Stallion Studs EBF Fillies' 2YO S.
Conjecture (23f, Dubawi, Pivotal). Placed
The Team at Dynamic Syndications have backed our judgement and secured a yearling colt by PALACE PIER from YOU’RE SO GOOD purchased at the Magic Millions.
Offered by Arrowfield Stud, our colt has shown Shane Rose and our Team what all the hype on the sire in Europe is all about.
He has broken-in like all good horses should. He was a little slow for the penny to drop, but when he worked it out, he’s displayed to us the wow factor. We are very bullish about our colt. We are positive our colt will be a nice 2yo that will be better again as a 3yo and 4yo.
It’s no surprise. He is out of a 1200m Stakes Winning daughter of Cox Plate winning Champion Sire SAVABEEL. People forget that SAVABEEL himself was a slick youngster, winning over 1000m on debut at Randwick as a Summer 2yo. Before closing off his 2yo year running third in the Champagne Stakes G1 at 1600m.
Whilst our Colt’s Second Dam is LIGHTNING SPUR. She was a 1000m winning daughter of speed sire FLYING SPUR. She is a Half-Sister to Champion 3yo dual Gr1 winner MELITO. Whilst the third dam is CLOISTER by Golden Slipper winner Marauding. She won the VATC Debutante Stakes at 2.
Apart from the speed in the female family, there is the wonderful genetics on this cross because we know that there have been 4 stakes winners already by sons or grandsons of INVINCIBLE SPIRIT from daughters of SAVABEEL. They are Gr2 Winners FASCINO and KIRWAN’S LANE, Gr3 Winner JOHNY JOHNY and Listed Winner MADEIRA SUNRISE (Who is a daughter of INDRABEEL – a stakes placed full sister to YOU’RE SO GOOD).
When you drill down further, COLTS bred on this Cross = 8 Runners / 7 Winners / 2 Stakes Winners (KIRWAN’S LANE and JOHNY JOHNY).
Add-in the fact he was bred and raised at Australia’s best thoroughbred nursery Arrowfield Stud at Scone, and the fact the colt is such a magnificent individual, then we have every reason to be as excited about Place Pier’s progeny as the sire’s own trainer JOHN GODSEN is about the future of PALACE PIER as a Sire.
Our COLT has ticked all the boxes that you can ask of any young horse and will be trained by Australia’s Number 1 Stable for the past three seasons – CIARON MAHER RACING.
SEE FOR YOURSELF