Hollie Doyle praises 'tough' Hayley Turner after setting new record for female jockeys

Hollie Doyle praised Hayley Turner for leading the way as racing's current female star set a new record for a female jockey at Ascot.

Doyle moved past her former weighing room colleague on 1,023 wins when Brindavan took the Carey Group Handicap.

The 28-year-old matched Turner - who made her debut 25 years ago and retired on Grand National day last month - at Chelmsford on Thursday.

It was yet another milestone for Doyle, who broke the women's record for winners in a year back in 2019, which she concluded with 116.

In March, the big fitness enthusiast hit 1,000 triumphs, nearly 12 years on from when she made a triumphant start on a horse named The Mongoose in a lady riders' handicap at Salisbury.

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But Doyle believes she would not have got so far in the sport had it not been for a role model like Turner, who is expecting her first child after a stellar career.

"Hayley had it a lot tougher than I did and she’s paved the way for people like me to go on and do this," she told the

"And there’s plenty more female riders in the pipeline who will go on to do it.

"I’ve no room for slackening off the pace. You have to be really resilient in this sport and everyone has to work hard."

Brindavan's trainer Sean Woods said Doyle - who had a long association with Group race winners Trueshan and Bradsell - is a "great asset to the sport."

"We don't get to use her much but obviously today I asked her to get a lead and everything went like clockwork," he added on Racing.

Born in Herefordshire, Doyle was an apprentice jockey at Richard Hannon jnr's stable, where she worked with her future husband and fellow top jockey Tom Marquand.

The pair, who met in their pony club days, married in 2022 and have previously spoken about how they motivate each other to succeed.

"We've both come a long way and some days we do sit back and really appreciate what's happened," Doyle added. "But we're also always looking forward to what we can do next or what's around the corner."