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As Palace Pier embarks on his next season at stud, there is plenty to look forward to, with two top-class books of mares now covered. In his first two years at Dalham Hall Stud, Palace Pier covered 285 mares – almost 74% of whom are Group winners, producers or siblings/ daughters to Group winners.
To date he has covered over 120 G1 winners, producers, their siblings or daughters and it is worth noting that Godolphin supported him with 24 mares in 2022 alone. For a full list of breeders who have sent mares to Palace Pier during the past two seasons:
There can often be some caution when considering whether to use a stallion during his second and third years as the resultant offspring will be offered as yearlings the same years as his first two and three-year-olds hit the racecourse.
However, one must look not only to the future but also the past, which shows some very promising trends in Palace Pier’s family history.
Breeders who supported Palace Pier’s sire, Kingman, during his third season were well rewarded at the sales, with that crop of yearlings averaging 5.4 times his advertised stud fee.
Of course, averages do not always tell the full story but further analysis of the figures provides further positive news. 73 yearlings by Kingman were offered, with 81% sold. Of those to successfully sell, no less than 93% were profitable – congratulations to those breeders.
It is also worth noting that Kingman’s broodmare sire Nayef averaged £91,000 in his third season, over 6X his fee of £15,000.
The early signs in the sales ring for Palace Pier himself are also very promising indeed. In 2023, he not only recorded an average of over £100,000, but also a median at the same level. This places him among a very elite group of stallions to have achieved this since 2000.
You can also revisit his greatest moments on the racecourse, as we should also remember what a truly outstanding racehorse Palace Pier was. Unbeaten at two, he won the St James’s Palace Stakes, the Prix Jacques le Marois and the QEII on Champions’ Day at three. He added two further top-flight wins to his record at four, becoming the first back-to-back winner of the Marois for decades having taken out the Lockinge earlier in the season.
There are a limited number of nominations in Palace Pier for 2024 so please contact a member of the Nominations team if you would like to discuss your mare. He is available to view at Dalham Hall Stud.
