Fresh from setting a new record for British victories in a calendar year by a female jockey at Southwell on Thursday, Hollie Doyle made it win number 108 for 2019 when partnering the Archie Watson-trained Maystar to victory in the £14,000 Ladbrokes “Play 1-2-Free” On Football Conditions Stakes at Wolverhampton on Saturday.
The six-furlong Tapeta contest was a Fast-Track Qualifier, handing Maystar a free and guaranteed start in the £150,000 Ladbrokes Three-Year-Old All-Weather Championship over the same distance at Lingfield Park on Finals Day, Good Friday, April 10.
Maystar powers hone under Hollie Doyle at Wolverhampton
Doyle sent the Mayson gelding, an 8/1 chance, straight into the lead on leaving the stalls with 5/6 favourite Raaeb (Saeed bin Suroor/Jim Crowley) settling just in behind.
Turning for home, Maystar looked for the taking but kept finding more out in front. As the challenge of Raaeb faded away, it was Get Boosting (Keith Dalgleish/Joe Fanning, 20/1) who delivered the strongest challenge but Maystar was always doing enough and held on gamely to score by three-quarters of a length. Auchterarder (Mark Johnston/Jason Hart, 9/2) stumbled turning for home but kept on to take third, a further three-quarters of a length adrift. The winning time was 1m 13.66s.
Hollie Doyle said: “It has been an awesome week and it is great to get a winner on the board for Archie and Hambleton Racing.Maystar has always shown ability at home – his last run was a bit disappointing but he has been gelded and has been electric at home recently. It’s great to get his head back in front.
“His work is always better from the front at home and he won from the front as an early two-year-old. It was quite a task to win off 91 but he has done it nicely. He is a tough horse and seven furlongs won’t be an issue for him.”
Howard Lofthouse, one of the winning Hambleton Racing syndicate, owners of Maystar, said: “We have four horses with Archie Watson and they are doing ever so well. Hollie has ridden five winners for us this season – three on Maystar and two on Dramatic Sands.
“I think Hollie deserves every accolade she gets. When she shakes your hand, she nearly pulls it off – she is so strong. She never loses an inch in a finish and has empathy with the horses, they all run for her. She is a wonderful lady but a great, great, great jockey.
“Maystar has been invited to Qatar for a seven-furlong race later this month and, if he ran well here – which he did, I am assuming that it will now be taken up. So we will all be going out there hopefully and then on to Lingfield.”
Earlier on the same card, regally bred two-year-old Waldkonig created a huge impression on his debut when taking the extended-mile Ladbrokes Home Of The Odds Boost EBF Novice Stakes by nine lengths under Robert Havlin.
The John Gosden-trained colt, a Kingman half-brother to this year’s Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe winner Waldgeist, tracked the leaders before taking up the running turning in and readily powered clear for a comprehensive victory.
