Hollie Doyle’s appeal against a seven-day suspension will be heard by a British Horseracing Authority disciplinary panel next week and is set to determine if she can ride at the Breeders’ Cup.

Doyle incurred the ban aboard the Jonathan Portman-trained Rose Light in the Unibet More Boosts In More Races Fillies’ Handicap at Kempton on Monday evening, with the rider found to have cut across a number of rivals in the early stages of the 11-furlong contest.

The stewards report on the night read: “Doyle was suspended for seven days for careless riding as she allowed her mount to shift right-handed when insufficiently clear of Flying Circus on her inside, causing (Neil) Callan to take a significant check to avoid clipping heels which resulted in Sindri, Page Three and Typical Woman to all be tightened for room and lose their respective racing positions on the inside.”

Doyle’s ban is currently due to run from October 30 to November 4, plus November 6 as there is no Flat racing in Britain on November 5.

If she is successful in having the punishment reduced to five days or less, she would then be free to ride Bradsell in the Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint at Santa Anita on November 4.

Connections of Bay Bridge are unconcerned about conditions at Ascot ahead of the defence of his Qipco Champion Stakes crown on Saturday.

Trained by Sir Michael Stoute, the five-year-old produced a career best to end the unbeaten run of Baaeed in the Group One feature last season and returns to British Champions Day looking for a repeat of that half-length victory which came in the hands of Richard Kingscote.

That success came on ground described as good to soft, but having also finished second at Royal Ascot on good to firm ground last year, Bay Bridge appears to have few going concerns ahead of a race which may be switched to the Berkshire venue’s inner track if forecast rain turns conditions heavy on the round course.

“If he can go back and defend his crown, that would be wonderful,” said John O’Connor of Ballylinch Stud, who own the horse in partnership with James Wigan.

“At the moment the intention is to run as far as I know, but all of those final decisions will come down to Sir Michael Stoute. All I know is he was happy with him when I last spoke to him and the intention is to go to Ascot on Saturday.

“He has good form on varying ground at Ascot. He’s run well there on summer ground as well and he was maybe a little bit unlucky when touched off in the Prince of Wales’s last year.

“I don’t know myself which track they will race on, but we will just turn up on whatever track we’re told to turn up on I guess.”

A proven performer at the highest level, Bay Bridge has been a regular in some of the hottest 10-furlong contests but made a brief foray up to a mile and a half for a crack at the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe.

The son of New Bay finished a creditable sixth behind Ace Impact in Europe’s richest middle-distance contest, with an urge to hold an early position taking its toll in the closing stages of that contest.

However, he is reported to have returned from the French capital in fine shape and now returns to his optimum distance for this Champions Day appearance.

“He appears to have come out of the Arc well and he ran very well there. For the moment we’re heading directly to Ascot, hopefully still in good form,” added O’Connor.

“In terms of the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe, he probably did a little too much too early. You obviously need to hold your position in a race with that many runners, but he probably did a little bit too much and it probably cost him a little bit in the straight. Nonetheless he ran a really good race.”

On returning to 10 furlongs, O’Connor said: “It looks like that (is his best distance) and his highest ratings are at that trip, so hopefully dropping him back will be beneficial to him.”

Warren Gatland is to remain as Wales head coach and lead them to the 2027 World Cup.

Gatland placed his future in the hands of the Welsh Rugby Union following his side’s World Cup quarter-final defeat to Argentina on Saturday.

The 60-year-old New Zealander, pointing to a break-up clause in his contract, said: “If the union want to get rid of me, that’s up to them.”

But asked at a press conference on Wednesday whether he will stay through to the next World Cup in Australia, Gatland said: “Absolutely. That’s the plan.

“I had a joke with Nigel (Walker, interim WRU chief executive) before and said ‘You can’t get rid of me’.

“I think my contract said if we didn’t get out of the pool they had a clause that said they could get rid of me. I said: ‘If you do want to pay me off that’s up to you’. But I’m excited what we can do as a group.”

Gatland was joined at the press conference by Walker, the former Wales wing who has stood in as WRU interim CEO since the end of January and will become the executive director of rugby at the start of next year.

Walker said: “To be successful in international sport you have to have good coaches and good players.

“To be a good coach you need experience, miles on the clock, understand your craft, get your message across to players, and players have to trust you.

“You’ve seen the growth in the squad in a relatively small period of time and, like Warren, I’m really excited what the next four years can bring.

“We’ve got something to build on and we know we can grow the standard of the squad to an even greater level we saw over the last four or five weeks.”

Wales were written off by many before the World Cup after a difficult 12 months, which saw them suffer an embarrassing defeat to Georgia and head coach Wayne Pivac sacked in December.

Gatland, who coached Wales between 2007 and 2019, returned to oversee a Six Nations campaign that produced only one victory after the players had threatened to take strike action over contractual issues.

Ken Owens, captain in that campaign, described Wales as the “laughing stock” of world rugby, but Gatland believes Wales will move forward after topping their World Cup pool with wins over Australia, Fiji, Georgia and Portugal.

“We’ve got an opportunity to bring some youngsters in and build on the cycle to 2027 with players having 50, 60, 70 caps behind them,” said Gatland, who became the first coach in France to lead a team to four World Cup quarter-finals.

“There’s also an opportunity for us to build some closer relationships with the regions and some of the changes with coaches and personnel there, and that hasn’t always been the case in the past.

“Often those relationships have been quite fractured because of things that were going on between the regions and the unions, and we got dragged into it.”

Wales play the Barbarians in Cardiff on November 4 as a tribute to their former captain Alun Wyn Jones, who retired from international rugby in May.

Players based in France and England will not be selected as the game falls outside the international window.

Gatland confirmed five players – Dan Biggar, Gareth Davies, Josh Adams, Liam Williams and Louis Rees-Zammit – are injured and would have missed out on a World Cup semi-final against New Zealand this Friday had they beaten Argentina.

Biggar has retired from international rugby and played his last game for Wales, while Taulupe Faletau’s future will become clearer next year.

The 32-year-old British and Irish Lions number eight broke his arm against Georgia and missed the Argentina defeat.

Gatland said: “I spoke to Taulupe before he left France and said ‘get that arm fixed’. We’ll sit down then and talk about what he wants to do over the next few years in terms of playing.”

Daniel Ricciardo is “ready to go” as he prepares to return from injury for this weekend’s United States Grand Prix.

The 34-year-old Australian has missed the past five races after he broke his left hand in practice for the Dutch Grand Prix on August 25.

Ricciardo, who took part in a Red Bull demonstration run in Nashville last weekend, will be back in his AlphaTauri cockpit for practice at Austin’s Circuit of the Americas on Friday.

New Zealander Liam Lawson, who has impressed as Ricciardo’s stand-in, will make way.

He said: “It’s good to be back! My hand is much better and the simulator was a useful way of assessing it.

“I tried it out in the week before Qatar, but I didn’t feel it was at full potential, so I spent the rest of that week in the UK, spending more time in the sim, and got to a point where I felt ready to go.

“My overall fitness is fine as I kept training as much as I could, although I obviously couldn’t do much with my left hand or arm for a while.

“It was definitely frustrating watching the past few races, especially as I’d gotten myself to a place where I was so ready to go again and race, and then I did two events and had to hit pause again, but actually, the time without racing went quite quickly.”

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Ricciardo was due to take part in only his third comeback race when he crashed in Zandvoort. He was immediately taken to the medical centre before he was transported to a nearby hospital with his left arm in a sling.

A subsequent X-ray confirmed Ricciardo had sustained a break to the metacarpal on his left hand.

Ricciardo was ruled out of the race in Holland and the following rounds in Italy, Singapore, Japan and Qatar.

Ricciardo was handed a second chance by Red Bull’s junior team AlphaTauri following his dismissal by McLaren at the end of last season.

Despite his injury, AlphaTauri announced last month that they have retained the eight-time grand prix winner winner for 2024 alongside Japanese driver Yuki Tsunoda.

Newcastle have confirmed midfielder Sandro Tonali is being investigated by the Italian Prosecutor’s Office and Italian Football Federation for breaching betting rules.

The 23-year-old Italy international was withdrawn from his country’s squad prior to the Euro 2024 qualifying defeat to England at Wembley on Tuesday night and his club have released a statement to say he is co-operating with the enquiry.

The Premier League club said: “Newcastle United can confirm that Sandro Tonali is subject to investigation by the Italian Prosecutor’s Office and Italian Football Federation (FIGC) in relation to illegal betting activity.

“Sandro is fully engaging with the investigation and will continue to cooperate with all relevant authorities.

“He and his family will continue to receive the club’s full support.

“Due to this ongoing process, Sandro and Newcastle United are unable to offer further comment at this time.”

England’s impressive victory over Italy at Wembley on Tuesday night confirmed their qualification for Euro 2024.

While there are still two qualifiers still to play in November, attention will already be shifting to how England end a 58-year wait for a major men’s trophy in Germany next summer.

Here, the PA news agency takes a look at some of the key questions Gareth Southgate will need to answer between now and the start of the finals as he prepares to lead England into a fourth tournament as manager.

Faith no more?

Southgate has always remained loyal to players he feels he can trust and who have not let him down when they have turned out for England.

Among the current crop, former Manchester United captain Harry Maguire and Manchester City midfielder Kalvin Phillips started the win over the Azzurri despite playing a combined total of 186 Premier League minutes so far this season.

Whether their places in Southgate’s plans are sustainable if such a dearth of club football remains is something only the England manager will know – likewise with Jordan Henderson plying his trade in the Saudi Pro League and whether the competition there is enough to keep the former Liverpool man competitive.

The last dance?

There was plenty of speculation that Southgate would leave his position after the World Cup in Qatar.

England were knocked out at the quarter-final stage by France but that did not deter Southgate’s belief that he could achieve something special with the players at his disposal.

His contract, however, expires next year and, having been at the helm since 2016, he may be tempted to seek a new challenge regardless of how England do in Germany and that may be something that will weigh on his mind leading into the finals.

Spring break opponents?

The March international break is expected to see England host two Wembley friendlies in what will be the last chance Southgate has to work with his players in the run-up to Euro 2024.

He will be keen to work closely with the Football Association to make sure the right opponents are found to aid that preparation – especially as, by that stage, England will know who they will face in the group stages.

While morale-boosting wins will be welcomed, Southgate and his coaching staff will also want to test the players against the highest-calibre rivals and striking a balance there could be key.

Who is most able to support Kane?

Captain Harry Kane moved onto an unmatched 61 England goals with his brace in the win over Italy.

The Bayern Munich striker shows no signs of slowing down and will no doubt lead from the front if he is fit and raring to go next summer.

The question remains who will fill the unenviable position as Kane’s deputy within Southgate’s 23-man squad and the boss will be taking a close look at the form of players such as Ollie Watkins, Callum Wilson, Eddie Nketiah and Ivan Toney in the coming months.

Starting positions?

A number of players are seemingly all but assured of inclusion – fitness-permitting – in England’s starting XI for their opener next June, but Southgate does have a couple of issues at both left-back and in central midfield.

Luke Shaw and Ben Chilwell are natural left-backs but both are injured and have history of fitness concerns, meaning Kieran Trippier could be asked to deputise, while Levi Colwill made his debut there against Australia having risen up through the ranks as a central defender.

In midfield, Jude Bellingham and Declan Rice have been superb for club and country this year but the third berth is a more difficult conundrum. With Phillips not playing regularly and Henderson now in Saudi Arabia, the door could be open to someone like Conor Gallagher or Trent Alexander-Arnold, who the FA now lists as a midfielder, getting a chance to impress before the tournament.

Migration will aim to land his second major handicap of the season off top weight when he runs in the Balmoral at Ascot on Champions Day.

Trained by David Menuisier, the seven-year-old won the Lincoln at Doncaster on the opening weekend of the season and is aiming to bookend his campaign in fine style.

He has only run once since, when failing to get involved in the Gordon Richards Stakes at Sandown, but Menuisier hopes the return to testing ground and, more importantly, a big field will see him recapture his best.

“We gave him a break in the summer to try to run him in this race. We know he loves the big fields and it looks like he will have his ground, so we are looking forward to it,” said Menuisier.

“We know he can carry big weights and the hustle and bustle of the big handicaps suit him, so we’ve aimed at it.

“Look, off his weight I’m not saying he’s going to go and win, but I know he’ll give his best and we’ll see where he ends up. I’m not a statistician but I assume winning handicaps off 113 has not been done very often. Hopefully class rises to the top.”

It could be a big weekend for Menuisier who is sending Champagne Stakes second Sunway to France for a Group One, though whether he runs in the Criterium de Saint-Cloud over 10 furlongs or the Criterium International over a mile is not quite decided.

He said: “The plan is for Sunway to run I’m just not sure which race yet. I’ve left him in both races to have a look but sadly it looks as if all the other trainers did the same!

“It’s pretty much the same horses in both races. I think our preference is to run him over a mile but I have little doubt he would stay 10 furlongs.

“I’ll have a chat with the owner but at this stage we’re favouring the mile. His Doncaster run was good and the form, with Rosallion winning the Lagardere and Mountain Bear winning a black type race in Ireland, has worked out.”

A decision on whether Matilda Picotte will race on next season or be sold next month has yet to be made, her trainer Kieran Cotter has revealed.

Third behind Mawj and Tahiyra in the 1000 Guineas at Newmarket in the spring, the three-year-old made a successful return to the Rowley Mile in last week’s Group Two Challenge Stakes.

Given she has also won a Listed race and a Group Three, the daughter of Sioux Nation is clearly a valuable broodmare prospect and she holds an entry in next month’s Goffs November Breeding Stock Sale at Kildare Paddocks.

However, Cotter has not given up hope of seeing her return to training as a four-year-old next term, when he believes she is capable of striking gold at Group One level.

“She’s come out of Newmarket super, as she always does. She goes and gets the job done and comes home and relaxes – she’s a a super horse,” he said.

“She’s definitely finished for this year and the owners are still mulling it over. She is in the Goffs Breeding Stock Sale, so do they keep or do they sell her?

“I suppose where the lads are coming from, there’s 10 of them involved with her and by the time you’ve paid commissions and split it down 10 ways, it’s not going to be a life-changing amount of money.

“They know they’re not going to find another one like her – she’s brought them to places they couldn’t dream of going, so there is that to be factored in as well.”

While Matilda Picotte’s back-to-back Pattern race wins have been achieved over seven furlongs, Cotter is confident his stable star would be capable of contesting top-level sprints in 2024.

He added: “There’ll be a lot of options open to her next year as a four-year-old. If she is here, I’d say we’d look at dropping her back to six furlongs as there aren’t many seven-furlong races open to her at Group One level.

“She showed a lot of pace on Friday – her second and third furlongs were sub 11 seconds, so that’s very, very fast over that trip.

“We’ll keep minding her anyway and see what happens. We’ll enjoy her while she’s here.”

Gareth Southgate has eight months to mull over his European Championship selection after England sealed their place at next summer’s finals with two games to spare.

Tuesday’s 3-1 win against Italy underlined their place among the favourites in Germany and the PA news agency has analysed how Southgate likely sees his options for the squad right now.

Goalkeepers

On the plane: Jordan Pickford (Everton) and Aaron Ramsdale (Arsenal)

In the departure lounge: Sam Johnstone (Crystal Palace)

Hoping for a late ticket: Nick Pope (Newcastle)

Pickford established himself as England’s number one ahead of the 2018 World Cup and is all but certain to go into his fourth major tournament as the man between the sticks.

Ramsdale is his closest contender but David Raya’s arrival at Arsenal is impacting his playing time and could well damage his international ambitions. Johnstone has supplanted Pope as third choice for the time being.

Defenders

On the plane: Ben Chilwell (Chelsea), Marc Guehi (Crystal Palace), Harry Maguire (Manchester United), Luke Shaw (Manchester United), John Stones (Manchester City), Kieran Trippier (Newcastle) and Kyle Walker (Manchester City)

In the departure lounge: Levi Colwill (Chelsea), Lewis Dunk (Brighton), Reece James (Chelsea) and Fikayo Tomori (AC Milan)

Hoping for a late ticket: Conor Coady (Leicester), Eric Dier (Tottenham), Ezri Konsa (Aston Villa), Tyrone Mings (Aston Villa) and Ben White (Arsenal)

Trippier, Stones, Walker and Maguire have been to every previous major tournament under Southgate and will do so again if fit and playing – not something that is a given with the latter.

James undoubtedly has the quality to be on the plane but needs to prove his fitness. The Chelsea skipper missed the World Cup through injury and has struggled for an issue-free run since – not ideal given the competition at right-back.

Injured team-mate Chilwell is in a similar position but there is a dearth of options at left-back beyond him and Shaw.  Colwill can fill in there as he did on his England debut against Australia, which will boost the central defender’s hopes.

Guehi has established himself as third-choice centre-back. Dunk and Tomori furthered their case for inclusion in recent camps in the absence of injured Mings, whose Aston Villa team-mate Konsa cannot be far from a call-up.

Coady and White have not been selected since Qatar, while fellow World Cup squad selection Dier’s lack of club action has seen him fall out of consideration.

Midfielders

On the plane: Trent Alexander-Arnold (Liverpool), Jude Bellingham (Real Madrid), Jordan Henderson (Al-Ettifaq), Kalvin Phillips (Manchester City) and Declan Rice (Arsenal)

In the departure lounge: Conor Gallagher (Chelsea) and Mason Mount (Manchester United)

Hoping for a late ticket: Morgan Gibbs-White (Nottingham Forest) and James Ward-Prowse (West Ham)

Bellingham would be in any squad in the world, as would Rice. There are questions over Phillips and Henderson given their club situations, but Southgate has so far seen enough to stick with two players he trusts implicitly.

The Football Association now lists Alexander-Arnold as a midfielder, with his versatility and qualities surely enough to see him involved in a midfield that Gallagher is now a regular part of.

Mount’s difficult end to last season and injury-impacted start to life at Old Trafford has seen him miss out on recent squads, but Southgate is a long-term admirer of the Euro 2020 final starter.

In-form Ward-Prowse has not been called up despite his fine start to life at West Ham.

Forwards

On the plane: Phil Foden (Manchester City), Jack Grealish (Manchester City), Harry Kane (Bayern Munich), Marcus Rashford (Manchester United) and Bukayo Saka (Arsenal)

In the departure lounge: Jarrod Bowen (West Ham), Eberechi Eze (Crystal Palace), James Maddison (Tottenham), Raheem Sterling (Chelsea), Ollie Watkins (Aston Villa) and Callum Wilson (Newcastle)

Hoping for a late ticket: Dominic Calvert-Lewin (Everton), Eddie Nketiah (Arsenal) and Ivan Toney (Brentford)

England are blessed with an abundance of attacking options.

Skipper Kane is a certainty, as is fleet-footed Saka. Foden, Grealish and Rashford are established performers under Southgate, while Maddison is now a regular squad member.

There are decisions to make beyond them. Sterling has won 82 caps for his country but has not featured since December’s World Cup quarter-final loss to France. Bowen is another fighting for a sport after his October recall, while Eze will hope to earning back the spot he got before injury. Under-21 Euros winner Gibbs-White is another knocking on the door.

As for Kane’s back-up, Watkins scored on his return to the set-up and Nketiah made his debut this month. But Wilson will be hoping to head into another tournament in that role. Toney is the most interesting alternative but his betting ban does not end until January.

Gareth Southgate says there can be no let-up after sealing early qualification for Euro 2024, telling England’s players to grab next month’s chance to impress and ensure their place as top seeds.

Having set out their stall with an impressive victory over Italy in March’s Group C opener, three further wins and an away draw against Ukraine put them within touching distance of progress.

England took their chance to qualify for an eighth straight major tournament with two games to spare on Tuesday night, coming from behind to beat holders Italy 3-1 at a sold-out Wembley.

Southgate’s Euro 2020 runners-up have silverware in their sights next summer and are waiting to find out how things will shape up in Germany at the draw in Hamburg on December 2.

But before that comes the end of qualification at home to Malta and away to North Macedonia, with the England boss calling on his players to end an unbeaten 2023 on a high.

“We can now plan,” England boss Southgate told BBC Radio 5 Live after their place at Euro 2024 was mathematically secured.

“We have been planning anyway for base camps and things because I think the days are gone where we didn’t do that in case it brought bad luck.

“We decided a long time ago that you have to plan as if you’re going to be there.

“We still need to win the matches next month because I think it won’t be enough to win the group to be one of the top seeds, so we’ll need a high points tally as well.

“But also I want to see all the players again next month.

“We’re not going to flog them physically. We didn’t do that this month. We’ve looked after them. We’re dealing well with the clubs on that.

“I have to say Manchester City were brilliant with this with John Stones. We’ve managed his return to play really well and I think that’s worked for both of us.

“So we now can really start to look forward with enthusiasm for next summer, but we want to finish the year, the calendar year, well as well next month.”

Southgate pledged to again give players the chance to stake their claims for a Euros spot in November’s fixtures.

“Similar to this month, we want to give people opportunities,” Southgate said at the post-match press conference.

“We need to win two matches firstly, but there’s a chance to look at look at players again, which we need to do.”

Ollie Watkins and Jarrod Bowen returned to the set-up in October and will be hoping to get another chance to impress, having started against Australia, with the former scoring in the 1-0 friendly win.

Levi Colwill and Eddie Nketiah are also in that boat, having made their debuts on Friday before Southgate reverted to the tried and tested against Luciano Spalletti’s revitalised Azzurri.

The England boss made a full 11 changes from the Socceroos encounter, with eight of Tuesday’s line-up having started the Euro 2020 final against Italy 27 months ago.

Skipper Harry Kane was, unsurprisingly, among them and took his record national team goal haul to 61 with his brace in the comeback triumph.

“There’s a risk we take the goals for granted,” Southgate said of the Bayern Munich sharpshooter.

“But his all-round play, his hold up play, the way physically dealt with the centre-backs, his vision, his passing – because we have had him for a while it’s easy to underestimate, but he’s a top-level player.

“He’s also now got a new experience at a different club, where he’s looking to win trophies all the time, and he’s got to win every week. (There is a) different sort of focus and pressure as the big signing there, so all of that’s good.

“I think he’s enjoying also coming back to England and mixing with the lads because he’s very close with all of the group.

“I’ve said before, our senior players set a brilliant example for the young ones.

“They provide that spirit. They’ve been through so much together and they provide us with such a brilliant platform.”

Dermot Weld looks set to make a late call on the participation of his star filly Tahiyra in Saturday’s Queen Elizabeth II Stakes at Ascot.

The daughter of Siyouni has won five of her six starts to date, her only defeat coming at the hands of Mawj when beaten by half a length in the 1000 Guineas at Newmarket in May.

Tahiyra has since impressed in winning the Irish Guineas, the Coronation Stakes at Royal Ascot and the Matron Stakes at Leopardstown and Weld is keen to pitch her in against the colts on Qipco Champions Day – but admits the prospect of running on testing conditions is a worry.

“It’s pretty clear the filly herself has progressed from each of her Group Ones wins, I’m delighted with her and we want to run – but I do have to put in the caveat that she’s shown excellent speed on fast ground,” the trainer told Sky Sports Racing.

“She’s also won on soft ground and she’s a very adaptable filly, but I do have to advise that if the ground came up very heavy, she’s not a big filly and it would cause concern.

“She’s a brilliant filly and she will handle soft ground well, but I’m concerned about the weather forecast for that part of England, especially Friday night into Saturday.

“She will definitely travel over, (but) she is racing against some of the best colts in Europe and that (ground) is a concern.”

Weld has trained a host of top-class fillies during the course of his long and illustrious career and believes Tahiyra matches up to any that have gone before her.

He added: “She’s right up there. Homeless Songs was a brilliant filly the year before when she won the Irish Guineas and Tahiyra’s half-sister Tarnawa won at the Breeders’ Cup for us.

“I don’t like comparing horses from year to year. On this year Tahiyra is a very brilliant filly.”

Should Tahiyra sidestep Ascot, she would have the option of travelling to America for the Breeders’ Cup, although Weld is refusing to look beyond the weekend at this stage.

He said: “We haven’t even discussed that because it would be wrong to do so. Let’s concentrate on Saturday and let’s hope to be there.

“Champions Day has always been a very good day for me. Fascinating Rock won the Champion Stakes, we won the fillies’ and mares’ race with Sapphire and the Long Distance Cup I’ve won a couple of times with Forgotten Rules and Rite Of Passage.

“Ascot itself as a track has been very good to me. I think I’ve trained 19 Group winners at the Royal meeting and my horses always run extremely well at Ascot.

“Tahiyra is in great form, I couldn’t be happier with the filly, her final piece of work was excellent and her graph has gone the right direction throughout the year.

“I’m just very positive of a big run for Saturday.”