Oisin Murphy returned from a 14-month ban with a winner on his first ride back aboard Mick Appleby's Jupiter Express at Chelmsford on Thursday.
The three-time champion jockey got the perfect trip aboard The Horse Watchers-owned horse as he sat just off the pace in the slipstream of the leaders before it opened up for him on the turn for home.
Murphy had to get the whip out in a driving finish as Thismydream and Muscika challenged the four-year-old, but the 15/8 favourite found enough to win by half a length.
The 27-year-old was banned for breaches of Covid-19 rules and for twice being above the alcohol threshold.
Murphy is due in Qatar at the weekend to ride Flaming Rib for trainer Hugo Palmer and this was the perfect comeback ride after so much time out of the saddle.
Murphy told Racing TV: "It's fantastic, it's been a long time, to be back on racecourse riding a winner. I'm quite fit and I even missed the banter in the weighing room!
"We felt like we could sit on the rail just behind the leaders, so it was a relatively easy job for me.
"I hit the front plenty soon enough, I felt in this grade the pace was quite strong. Sharpness wise I'll have to keep thinking about racing all the time and hopefully that instinct will come quickly.
"I've been riding out throughout my suspension and it can't replicate race riding.
"It was quite a long time off to find new jobs and tasks to get through the day, riding out only kills a few hours. I focused on my showjumpers, I really enjoyed going to big competitions, both watching and taking part.
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"Andrew Balding my main trainer also had a great year and I felt I was still part of that success.
"Realistically I was very silly, I made many errors I wish I hadn't done. I was given a period of time to think about that and come back with a different mindset.
"Hopefully over the next year and in following years I can prove to be the person I'd like to be."
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