Blistering Bradsell is the sprint king as Hollie Doyle secures glory in the Coolmore Nunthorpe Stakes

Hollie Doyle’s eyes were wide with wonder as she tried to process it all. She had never been as quick on a horse in her life and the ramifications of these blistering 57 seconds were huge.

Doyle is a trailblazer, an established Group One jockey, but she has also been impatient. This season has been challenging, lacking the big successes she craves, but how that changed in the Coolmore Nunthorpe Stakes as Bradsell blasted out of the stalls and carried her into the record books.

Alex Greaves had been the first female jockey to win a top level race in this country, when dead-heating in the 1997 Nunthorpe on Ya Malak, while Hayley Turner was also successful in the 2011 renewal on Margot Did. Doyle was overjoyed to add her name to that illustrious list.

‘A few of the horses I have been riding have been injured but I’m so happy he’s back,’ she beamed. ‘You can be riding winners through the week but it’s the big ones at the weekend you want and I’m greedy for them. This is what it is all about.’

It certainly is. Doyle was roared back into the winners’ enclosure after the Archie Watson-trained colt had shown his 11 rivals a clean pair of heels to triumph at 3-1, seeing off Believing and Starlust, who filled the minor places, by three-quarters of a length.

Hollie Doyle was delighted after Bradsell secured glory in the Coolmore Nunthorpe Stakes

Doyle had endured a challenging season but now has something to celebrate

Bradsell managed to see off Believing and Starlust, who filled the minor places, by three-quarters of a length

Asfoora, the big Australian hope who was sent off the 6-4 favourite, finished fourth but Big Evs, the popular crowd favourite, never got into it.

This was exhilarating to watch as Doyle, in her red-and-white silks, set her exuberant partner off in the direction of the far side rail and struck for home with 500 yards of the frenetic five- furlongs sprint. Plenty tried to get into it but nobody could really lay a glove on the pair.

What made this all the more remarkable is that back in February, it seemed that Bradsell’s career was over. He fractured a fetlock when cantering, an injury that can occasionally have grave consequences, but his full recovery was remarkable.

Watson, who is based in Lambourn, was profuse in thanking the work his vets had done to get Bradsell back to health and the four-year-old was in such good heart beforehand that he whipped around and sent those in the paddock scattering for safety. ‘It was probably 0.5 per cent about him running again when he got injured,’ said Watson.

‘This means so much to everyone. I have grown up with Hollie, we have had all our Group One wins together and he (Bradsell) is just an absolute pleasure to train. ‘We were able to buy this horse for £50,000 and I still can’t believe we were able to get him. We are a small yard. I can’t believe we have got him back.’