The Group 1 winning Pierata retires to Aquis Farm, Hunter Valley as the winner of over $5.8 million in stakes having finished outside of the top five only twice in his 26 career starts.
In defeating 39 individual Group 1 winners of 79 Group 1 races his highlight came in winning the weight-for-age All Aged Stakes of 1400m at Royal Randwick, during the Sydney Autumn Carnival.
In taking out the Sydney Stakes of 1200m at Randwick, he recorded a time 1.21sec quicker than Redzel achieved in winning the very next race, the $10m The Everest in 1-12.03sec over the same distance.
Trained by Greg Hickman at Warwick Farm, Pierata won the Randwick Light Horse Brigade 2YO Maiden Plate of 1200m at his second race start, going onto run third in the BRC Sires’ Produce Stakes.
At three he took out the Magic Millions Guineas of 1400m, the Vo Rogue Plate 1350m and the Winning Rupert Plate at 1200m, when ridden by Corey Brown.
In addition, Piearta he ran second to Kementari in both the Randwick Guineas and Hobartville Stakes, plus second in the Gold Edition Plate, again with Corey Brown in the saddle.
As a 4yo Pierata was outstanding in winning the time-honoured All Aged Stakes, in addition to the Missile Stakes of 1200m and the Sydney Stakes over 1200m.
In finishing second to Nature Strip in The Galaxy, he was again second in the Bill Ritchie Handicap to Siege of Quebec and third in the VRC Sprint Classic to Santa Ana Lane and In Her Time.
Also at four Pierata was selected as a stallion prospect by Aquis Farm, but was returned to trainer Greg Hickman as popular sire Spill The Beans was becoming fully booked, only to die mid-season.
In pacifically targeting weight-for-age The Everest, Pierata finished fifth to the lightweight 3yo Yes Yes Yes and multiple Gr1 winner Santa Ana Lane, run in a record time of 1-07.32min for 1200m.
At five years he took out the Gr1-standard $1m Redzel Stakes in 1-16.59min for 1300m from Trekking and Le Romain and The Shorts of 1100m in defeating Classique Legend and Redzel.
In looking for back-to-back victories in the All Aged Stakes he was a nose second to Tofane, in his second running, plus also second in the Concorde Stakes to Redzel.
A $160,000 buy at the 2016 Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale by Greg Hickman, Pierata is by Champion 2YO and Golden Slipper winner Pierro, who was Leading 3YO Male on the 2013 Sprint WTR.
In being Australian Champion First and Second Sire, Pierro is currently second as Champion Sire with total earnings of over $15.6m from 114 winners, 9 stakes winners and four Group 1 winners.
To date Pierro has sired the winners of over $43m in stakes from 213 race winners, 23 stakes winners and with Pierata, Arcadia Queen, Levendi, Pinot and Shadow Hero being his Group 1 winners.
A half-brother to Skyline Stakes winner Ashokan, he is from the Gr3 winning Flying Spur mare November Flight, the family of Golden Slipper winner Century Miss.
Pierro’s Group winning son Bellevue Hill also retires to Aquis Hunter Valley having been trained by partners Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott.
In winning by 5¼ lengths on debut in the Black Opal Preview 1000m in 57.15sec, he finished a ½ length second to Yes Yes Yes in a record-breaking Todman Stakes, only to be run down at the finish.
Three weeks later Bellevue Hill went onto score a comfortable 2 length victory over Strasbourg in the Schweppervescence Stakes of 1400m, to achieved a juvenile Timeform Rating of 116.
This season Pierro is second to Snitzel as Leading Australian Sire with Shadow Hero winning the Spring Champion Stakes and Regal Power the All-Star Mile and over $3.36m in stakes.
At the NZ National Yearling Sale his Our Squeezer colt from Westbury Stud sold for NZ$900,000, and had another 10 yearlings sell from $300,000 to $575,000 at auction.
Bellevue Hill is out of the speedy 1000m winner Bellevue Girl, a full-sister to Gr.3 winner Sugar Babe, by Exceed and Excel. On Type his triple Gr2 winning Zedative sired grandam, descends to Even True and Testimony.
