Hollie Doyle: Sky Sports Racing ambassador picks out six of her most exciting horses for the 2023 flat season

Sky Sports Racing ambassador Hollie Doyle enjoyed another highly memorable year in 2022, riding over 150 winners including a first Classic success with Nashwa.

A fractured elbow has Doyle currently on the sidelines but she is set to return just in time for the start of the turf season, renewing a number of exciting partnerships.

Among that list is Archie Watson’s Bradsell, who gave Doyle a third Royal Ascot success last season, as well as Group One star Trueshan.

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Nashwa

Nashwa was just an incredible filly for the team last year. She danced every dance and was so consistent, winning two Group Ones in the shape of the Prix de Diane and the Nassau.

Things didn’t go to plan at the Breeders’ Cup, where I wasn’t as quick away from the gates as I would have liked to have been, resulting in us ending up too far back. She has such a big heart and still ran on well.

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I feel sometimes she can get a little claustrophobic, so seems better either ridden handily or dropped in. She’s a push-button filly who ran some serious sectional times last season, in comparison to the likes of Baaeed and others on Lockinge Day at Newbury. I know her inside-out now and I can’t wait to get back on her.

Image: Doyle punches the air as Nashwa wins the Nassau Stakes at Goodwood

I was delighted when owner/breeder Imad Al Sagar announced that she’d stay in training. I’ve been unable to sit on her due to my injury, but she’s thrived over the winter and is bigger and stronger now. Being by Frankel, she was always going to improve with time.

We stuck to fillies and mares’ company for the bulk of last season, but given her improvement over the winter, I think we’ll be happy to mix it in open company now. You have to play it by ear with fillies early in the season and make sure you catch them at the right time. We’ll see where she starts off, but the Prince of Wales’s Stakes at Royal Ascot could be a big target for Nashwa this season.

Image: Doyle picked up her fifth Group One success with Nashwa in the Nassau at Goodwood

Bradsell

I was delighted to ride my third Royal Ascot winner on Bradsell in last year’s Coventry Stakes. It turned out to be a pretty strong renewal and had some serious form to it with the likes of Persian Force and Blackbeard in behind.

Despite my injury, I’ve been into Archie Watson’s yard on most workdays and Bradsell’s been really impressing everyone with how he’s developed physically. He was small but stocky as a two-year-old but he’s growing and filling out more now. He is one we’re really excited about.

Bradsell sustained a season-ending injury in the Phoenix Stakes at the Curragh and I regard that run as a bit of a write-off. We still don’t know what his limitations are, but Archie and I are hoping he’ll be a top sprinter this year. The Pavilion Stakes on Royal Ascot Trials Day could be a likely starting point, before looking at the Commonwealth Cup and beyond.

Image: Doyle wins the Coventry Stakes on Bradsell at Royal Ascot

Trueshan

While it would be absolutely fantastic to win a fourth QIPCO Long Distance Cup on British Champions Day, the dream with Trueshan is the Gold Cup at Royal Ascot. We’ve had to pull him out the last twice because of the ground, and we seem to do a lot of praying each year to hope that he gets his conditions. He does want softer ground.

Alan King knows him inside and out and so do I. We gave it a go on a sounder surface at Goodwood last year, and although he ran a very solid race, he just didn’t dominate in the manner that he can on a slower ground. Then again, the winner was Kyprios who looks a fantastic horse.

Trueshan spent a few weeks in the field after Ascot having a well-deserved break and has strengthened up really well. He’s seven, rising eight now, and is not highly strung but seems to do everything so easily at home.

Alan King doesn’t seem to have any trouble getting him fit which can be another cause of frustration. He’s always ready to roll, but we need to wait for suitable ground.

Trueshan could start off in the Further Flight at Nottingham once again, which he won last year. After that, let’s hope for plenty of rain in June so that we can give him his chance in the big one at Ascot. A clash with Kyprios will be one to savour, and by the sounds of it, Constitution Hill could even be a shock contender too!

Image: Trueshan and Doyle edge out Coltrane to win the Long Distance Cup

Intinso

Intinso is a beautifully-bred son of Siyouni out of Rose Of Miracles, who has been a solid broodmare for Imad Al Sagar. He’s a half-brother to Amtiyaz, who I won on at Royal Ascot, and this colt was very impressive on debut at Newcastle. He was sent off at odds of 1/2 and won very easily by over three lengths under Robert Havlin. It wasn’t the strongest race, but John Gosden has sent many a subsequent star to win at Newcastle, including Enable, Stradivarius and Without Parole.

They like Intinso at home, and he holds Classic entries in both the QIPCO 2000 Guineas and the Qatar Prix du Jockey Club. I’m not sure of his starting point yet, whether he’ll take his chance in a smaller race to gain experience before a trial, but he’d be one of the most exciting up-and-comers for Imad Al Sagar.

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Ribal

I really like Ribal. He’s a lovely scopey horse by Roaring Lion and was quite raw and immature as a two-year-old, but took his racing really well.

He improved from his debut at Salisbury with a really encouraging third behind Adayar’s brother Military Order at Newmarket. That race is traditionally very strong, with previous winners including Cracksman and Hurricane Lane.

He was always going to be better as a three year-old, so is hopefully a winner waiting to happen for the Andrew Balding team.

Merlin The Wizard

Sean Levey rode this gelded son of Camelot on debut at Kempton Park and he shaped like a horse who’ll be getting off the mark soon enough for Harry and Roger Charlton. He was sent off at odds of 12/1 but looked pretty straight and I thought he travelled into the race like the winner. He’ll come on for that run and would have learnt plenty, and is another young horse I’m looking forward to riding.