The Sporting Life Podcast team discuss the potential for Silvestre De Sousa mounting a bid for a fourth Flat Jockeys' Championship this season.
Brazilian-born De Sousa, 43, was champion jockey in Britain in 2015, 2017 and 2018 and returns to the UK following a tumultuous period in Hong Kong.
In May of last year, he withdrew an appeal over a 10-month ban issued to him by Honk Kong Jockey Club having pleaded guilty, along with fellow rider Vagner Borges, to breaching rule 59 (3), which states “no jockey shall bet, or facilitate the making of a bet, or have any interest in a bet, on any race or any contingency relating to a race meeting”.
Having served his disqualification which ended on March 11 this year, De Sousa has looked in good physical shape since resuming in Britain, riding winners at Newcastle and Lingfield earlier this month before making an immediate impression on the Flat turf season when riding the Roger Varian-trained Charyn to victory in Saturday's William Hill Doncaster Mile Stakes.
De Sousa replaced Amo Racing's new retained rider David Egan on the four-year-old grey, who could be seen in a Sandown Group 2 next time before a potential crack at the Group 1 Lockinge Stakes at Newbury.
It's not the first time De Sousa has had to re-establish himself in this country, having previously held high-profile positions as number one rider for Godolphin, and King Power Racing, and Graham Cunningham feels there might be a title bid brewing ahead of the official start of the 2024 championship, which runs from Newmarket's Guineas Festival on Saturday May 4 to British Champions Day at Ascot on Saturday October 19.
De Sousa is a 16/1 chance for a fourth title with Sky Bet, who make current champ William Buick their 1/2 favourite.
Speaking on this week's Sporting Life Racing Podcast, Cunningham said: "It's hard to say for sure, but I don't think Buick will be going bombs-away this year, while Oisin Murphy has made it clear if there are good rides to be taken abroad, he'll take them.
"Rossa Ryan is firmly on the up, but it's interesting with Silvestre because we know that he knows what it takes to win the title. Will he get the support? It was very interesting to me that he rode Charyn, even though David Egan was available and he'd been riding that horse pretty much all last year.
"So Varian obviously likes him, he's going to use him, Andrew Balding's going to use him, and he'll get plenty of rides from Charlie Johnston - that door's opened a little wider with the news regarding Ben Curtis.
"So very early days, of course, but my suspicion is that 135 won the title last year, and I think 120 might get it done this time around and with the right support, Silvestre is certainly capable of cracking the 100 mark.
"He light, he's really hungry and I'm told that if the opportunity is there he's going to give it a right go as he's eager to make his mark again."
Sky Bet's Flat Jockeys' Championship odds
Click here to place your bets
- William Buick - 1/2 favourite
- Oisin Murphy - 3/1
- Rossa Ryan - 7/2
- Tom Marquand - 8/1
- Hollie Doyle - 16/1
- Silvestre De Sousa - 16/1
- Billy Loughnane - 66/1
- Ryan Moore - 66/1
- Kieran Shoemark - 100/1
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