Kingman's Palace Pier takes the Queen Anne

Kingman colt Palace Pier opened Royal Ascot 2021 in style when winning the Queen Anne Stakes - his fourth Gr.1 victory over a mile.

Taken from the Thoroughbred Daily News, 15th June 2021:

Royal Ascot 2021 began in textbook style on Tuesday, with the world's leading thoroughbred Palace Pier opening the scoring for John and Thady Gosden and Frankie Dettori in the Gr.1 Queen Anne Stake.

While odds of 2-7 suggested a total eclipse was imminent, Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed Al Maktoum's TDN Rising Star could only partially overshadow his rivals this time as he added to his wins in last year's Gr.1 St James's Palace Stakes, Gr.1 Prix Jacques le Marois and the Gr.1 Lockinge Stakes at Newbury.

A touch free early exposed on the wing racing prominently towards the stand's side, the bay was niggled at approaching three out and felt the whip as he snuck ahead a furlong and a half later. Pulling out extra on the run to the line without any of the flamboyance of his performance a month earlier, he had 1 1/2 lengths to spare over Ballydoyle's Lockinge flop Lope Y Fernandez. Back in business here under Seamie Heffernan, he was a length ahead of Sir Busker.