Hollie Doyle landed her first Group One success when snatching the verdict on Glen Shiel in the Qipco British Champions Sprint Stakes at Ascot just 35 minutes after Doyle had become the first female rider to win on British Champions Day in the opening Long Distance Cup on Trueshan.
Doyle and connections of the Archie Watson-trained six-year-old had to wait a few anxious moments for the result of the photo-finish before it was confirmed Glen Shiel (16-1) had beaten the veteran Brando by a nose.
Doyle said: “I’m in a state of shock right now. I didn’t think I’d won, so to have had the result we have was incredible. We had a good old battle with Oxted from the three-pole and I thought that I would be doing well to hold on like I did, but he is such a game horse.
“He is incredible. He has got quicker with age. When we first got him, he was running over 10 furlongs in France and didn’t show a whole lot of speed, but the further we dropped him back, the quicker he has got.”
She added: “It’s not about me it’s about Archie Watson, he has campaigned this horse unbelievably. No one else would have won a Group One with this horse.
“It is a dream come true, a massive dream come true, especially on this horse. Everyone in the yard adores him. My aim at the start of the year was to ride a Group winner and I always said a Group One one day, but I didn’t think it would come this year.
“I don’t get too carried away, but I’m a bit delusional as to what is going on at the moment as it has all been a bit of a whirlwind. It has been a great few years. It feels really unusual as for someone like me it doesn’t normally happen, but it has done today.”
Earlier, just days after breaking her own record for the number of winners in a year, Doyle, 24, made history as she became the first female rider to win a race on British Champions Day in the two-mile Group Two Long Distance Cup with victory on Trueshan, as hot favourite Stradivarius finished towards the rear of the field.
Doyle said: “That was incredible, I travelled all over them. He doesn’t like being crowded, so I switched him at the three-pole and the further I went, the better.
“This is a proper horse, he won his first two starts. I’ve always liked him – but I’m not going to lie, I didn’t realise he would be up to Group Two level like today. I’m really happy people are seeing me as just a jockey and not a female jockey. Shout out to Alan King because he is some trainer.”
Doyle’s partner, Tom Marquand, joined in the celebrations when steering Addeybb to victory at 9-1 in the Champion Stakes, the most valuable race on the card.
Addeybb was second in the same race last year but the William Haggas-trained winner is a confirmed mudlark and relished the very testing going. Skalleti and Pierre-Charles Boudot tried hard to chase him down, but could not get there. Neither could 2019 winner Magical, with the 15-8 favourite having to settle for third.