He and Miss Hippisley, 26, had broken up after a long relationship but since the break-up they had seen each other on and off, Ipswich Crown Court heard.
Nolan had made it clear he was unhappy his ex-girlfriend was friends with Mr Maxse, a 45-year-old communications consultant for Qatar Racing and a work rider for Michael Bell, a racehorse trainer.
Earlier on the day of the attack, Miss Hippisley, the mother of Nolan’s three-year-old daughter, had sent Nolan a text message saying: “I have tried not to hurt you but you and me are over now.”
Richard Kelly, prosecuting, described how Nolan, from Newmarket, visited her home just before 11.30pm that night however, and found Mr Maxse sitting on the sofa.
“He strode past Miss Hippisley and said something like ‘how could you?’ or ‘how dare you?’ before repeatedly punching Mr Maxse,” Mr Kelly said.
“He continued to punch him in the face, with Mr Maxse putting up an arm to protect himself.”
At 5ft 6in tall, Mr Maxse stood little chance against Nolan, who is 6ft 1in and athletically built, the court heard.
Nolan kicked Mr Maxse several times as he lay on the floor, then chased him on to the pavement outside where he continued the attack.
Mr Maxse was left with a broken nose, fractured eye socket and fractured cheekbone.
Jailing Nolan for four years today after he admitted grievous bodily harm with intent, Judge Rupert Overbury told him: “You carried out a vicious, sustained and unprovoked attack.
“Simply by using your hands and feet you left Mr Maxse looking like the victim of a road traffic accident.”
Mr Maxse, a former PR director at the Jockey Club and the British Horseracing Authority, was not in court but said in a series of Twitter messages that he had continued to suffer since the ordeal.
He also posted a picture of himself in his hospital bed (below) with the caption: “Today the person who did this to me is due in court for sentencing.”
Following the incident he was photographed with a black eye and cuts and bruises to his face, and claimed on Twitter he had been left looking like Rocky Balboa, the boxer in the Sylvester Stallone film.
Charles Myatt, mitigating for Nolan, said: “Extreme emotions turned this otherwise placid, kind and non-violent man into somebody governed by a blind emotional rage.
“There is genuine and deep remorse borne out of a genuine feeling that Mr Maxse did not deserve in any shape or form to be victim of this attack.”
Queen"s horse rider jailed for "vicious" jealous attack
