James Doyle rides into the history books with English Guineas double

James Doyle rode into the history books on Sunday when he joined an elite group of jockeys to achieve the rare feat of completing an English Guineas double in the same year.

Less than 24 hours after piloting Coroebus to victory in the 2,000 Guineas on Saturday, the talented Godolphin rider partnered longshot Cachet to land the fillies equivalent, the 1,000 Guineas, also at Newmarket racecourse.

It was only a second Classic success for Doyle who first burst into the limelight at Meydan Racecourse in 2012 when he rode Cityscape to win the G1 Dubai Duty Free (now Dubai Turf).

The 16-1 outsider Cachet also provided trainer George Boughey, who only secured a trainer’s license in 2019, with a first Classic winner.

A three-year-old daughter of Acclaim, Cachet grabbed an early lead in the mile contest which she would not surrender despite the efforts of the fast-finishing Prosperous Voyage.

Tuesday was another length and three-quarters back in third for Frankie Dettori.

Only a neck separated the two frontrunners with Doyle becoming the first jockey since Ryan Moore in 2015 to achieve the Guineas double. Moore won the 2,000 Guineas with Gleneagles and the 1,000 Guineas with Legatissimo.

The only other riders to accomplish the feat in the modern era were Kieren Fallon (Footstepsinthesand and Virginias Waters 2005), Sir Lester Piggott (Nijinsky and Humble Duty 1970), and George Moore (Royal Palace and Fleet 1967)

For the second successive day, Doyle was overcome with emotions.

“I promised I wouldn’t get emotional today but that was incredible, wasn’t it? I rode her a couple of times last year and she was Group 1-placed in the Fillies’ Mile and she seems to be much stronger this season,” he told ITV Racing.

“That last half a furlong took forever and I was praying for the line but she’s all guts, loves this track and she put it to bed between the three (furlong pole) and the two.

“A special thank you goes to George. He’s doing amazing things and he’ll be a name we’ll be hearing about in the future.”

Trainer Boughey, who previously was an assistant to Hugo Palmer and has also worked in Australia, was thrilled to pieces.

“I couldn’t have imagined I’d be winning a Classic so soon in my career. To get a filly like her is a privilege,” Boughey said.

“She’s been a star and she’s been improving physically and mentally. She had a bit of a problem getting into the gates at the back end of last year but she’s settled down more and it’s very hard to pick faults in her, she’s sound-minded and very talented.”

Looking ahead to where Cachet could run, Boughey said: “I think she’ll probably go to (Royal) Ascot (Coronation Stakes). There’s the Irish Guineas and the French, but I think she’ll just go straight to Ascot.

“I’d love to end up at the Breeders’ Cup again. It’s a long year and she’s already won the Nell Gwyn and the Guineas – the Breeders’ Cup isn’t until November so we’ll have to think about how she gets there.”