A star-studded line-up descended on Nottingham Racecourse for a charity race on Wednesday (28th October), raising more than £37,000 in the process.

The seven-race card was rounded off by the Autism in Racing Heroes Gallop, which works to make the sport welcoming and accessible for everyone.

There were big-name participants on both the human and equine front, with Grand National-winning jockey Patrick Mullins and ITV Racing presenter Leonna Mayor facing off against a Group 1-winning racehorse in Ancient Wisdom.

The mile and a quarter contest was a hotly contested affair, but class certainly came to the fore in the closing stages, as Ancient Wisdom put his eight rivals to the sword under Tara Murphy (pictured below), who works as a rider for Godolphin trainer Charlie Appleby.

Murphy has a close connection to the charity’s ambassadors William and Jane Buick, and she was thrilled to be able to support such a worthy cause.

She said: “I’ve been working with Charlie for two years now so to get an opportunity like this is amazing and I’m very grateful to him and the whole team. The race suited him, so I’ve been riding him and getting used to him for today.

“I’ll remember today forever. I was coming round the bend and he wasn’t slowing down coming into it. I was thinking to myself, ‘oh my God, please don’t slip!’, but he was just so sure-footed. I then just dropped my hands and let him do his thing and he just powered home. I didn’t dare look around in case I fell off!

“I was very lucky that Jane let me ride her event horse Monbeg Maximus, who took me to great places. So, when she asked me if I wanted to take part it was a no-brainer for such an amazing cause. I’m so grateful to have raised some money for a worthy cause and it’s been an amazing day.”

Former jockey Leonna Mayor returned to the saddle for the first time in 13 years and rode a fine race to finish second on the Dylan Cunha-trained Asgard's Captain.

She said: “I had a great spin and it was so much fun, the winner was very classy but my horse ran really well. I’ve definitely got the bug back, so I wouldn’t rule out riding in another race in the future.

“It’s a great cause and one that means a lot to me. My younger sister Emiliah is autistic, and the charity is doing fantastic work to make the sport inclusive for everyone.”

Autism in Racing works to make the sport more accessible for everyone through specialised racedays, community programmes and by providing a mentor programme for those looking to break into the sport.

And the charity’s founder Bobby Beevers was bowled away by the support that the cause had received. He said: “It’s an incredible amount and I never thought in a million years we’d raise that. We gave every rider a target of £3,000 and every single one of them has smashed it.

“I’m so proud of them all. They’ve all worked so hard, from both a fundraising effort and also to get themselves fit and ready to take part. They’ve all done this to raise awareness and funds to help and support people who are autistic and have disabilities, so I’m bursting with pride.

“Autism in Racing relies purely on the generosity of people, so these funds will make a huge difference.”

ENDS