Shadwell announces Baaeed will stand at Nunnery Stud but no fee details yet

After months of speculation it has been confirmed that Baaeed will stand at Shadwell's Nunnery Stud in Norfolk, alongside Mohaather, Tasleet and Eqtidaar.

The four-year-old son of Sea The Stars, who bowed out of racing at Ascot last Saturday where he suffered the only defeat of his 11-race career, will return to the place of his birth to begin life as a stallion.

Of course the biggest question of all, what fee the six-time Group 1 winner will command, has yet to be answered as that figure was not revealed in Thursday's announcement.

Making the announcement, Baaeed's owner, Sheikha Hissa said: “On behalf of my family, I am delighted to confirm that Baaeed has now been retired to stand at Shadwell’s Nunnery Stud for the 2023 season, where he was born in 2018. We are all so proud of what Baaeed has achieved and count ourselves very fortunate to have shared his journey with him.

"I would like to thank everyone at William’s [Haggas] for managing his career so expertly and the teams at Shadwell and Derrinstown for raising him to be the champion that he is.

"His regal pedigree and outstanding conformation will stand him in excellent stead at stud and hopefully attract the top breeders from around the world, so that together we can give Baaeed every chance to prove himself as exceptional a stallion as he was a racehorse.”

Sheikha Hissa with Baaeed and William Haggas at YorkCredit: Edward Whitaker

Baaeed was bred by Sheikha Hissa's late father Sheikh Hamdan Al Maktoum and is one of two Group 1 winners foaled so far by the Kingmambo mare Aghareed; the other Hukum is a full-brother to Baaeed and claimed the Coronation Cup at Epsom in June.

The cross of Sea The Stars with Kingmambo mares is an excellent one with 40 per cent stakes winners to runners.

Aghareed is a daughter of Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Turf and Flower Bowl Invitational Stakes winner Lahudood by Singspiel.

Baaeed's fifth dam is Shadwell foundation mare Height Of Fashion, purchased by Sheikh Hamdan from Queen Elizabeth II. The daughter of Bustino foaled eight black type performers headed by the Group 1 winners and sires Nashwan and Nayef, and Group 2 winner and sire Unfuwain. She is also the ancestress of numerous Shadwell stars including 1,000 Guineas and Coronation Stakes heroine Ghanaati.

That link to Shadwell's past and to Sheikh Hamdan made Baaeed's emergence after the death of his breeder all the more poignant on a human scale. On an equine one, it served as a reminder of the strength and power of Shadwell's bloodlines, which breeders will now get the opportunity to tap into through one of the highest-rated racehorses of the past decade.

Stephen Collins, Shadwell's European bloodstock manager, said: “Shadwell are honoured to welcome Baaeed, the top-rated turf horse in the world to their stallion portfolio. Baaeed has all the qualities that breeders require to make the grade as a successful stallion. He is a magnificent racehorse with superb conformation coupled with a wonderful temperament.

The Queen, who bred Baaeed's fifth dam, presents Jim Crowley with his prize for winning the 2021 QEII on BaaeedCredit: Edward Whitaker

"His exemplary pedigree has been developed and nurtured by the late Sheikh Hamdan Bin Rashid Al Maktoum and his family for over 40 years and this renowned bloodline continues to provide so many great racehorses and racing memories for us all.

"I have no doubt that Baaeed will be hugely popular at stud, and we very much look forward to his arrival in a few weeks’ time.”

When Baaeed made a winning debut at Leicester in June last year, there was a promise of talent but little hint of the stellar career that was to come. He quickly stepped up through the grades, winning the Listed Henry Cecil Stakes on his third start and the Group 3 Thoroughbred Stakes followed that.

Passing every exam set for him by trainer William Haggas, he took the Group 1 Prix du Moulin from Breeders' Cup Mile winner Order Of Australia and then lowered the colours of Palace Pier in the Queen Elizabeth II Stakes.

Returning to the track at four, he racked up a sequence of four Group 1 triumphs, culminating in victory in the Juddmonte International at York on his first attempt at further than a mile.

In the aftermath of that seamless success on the Knavesmire, both the Irish Champion Stakes and Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe were mooted as possible final races, before connections plumped for the Champion Stakes at Ascot, where his bid to bow out undefeated came unstuck behind Bay Bridge.

Breeders and the bloodstock industry at large will await the release of his stud fee in the coming weeks with interest.

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