Brazilian jockey Jose De Souza made a triumphant return to Malaysian racing over the weekend, winning on his first ride back. He guided Awesome Storm to victory in the Metro A event, covering 1275m on the No. 2 track at Selangor.
Notably, De Souza’s victory aboard Awesome Storm marked both his first win upon returning and his farewell triumph on his last ride the previous year when the pair secured victory in the prestigious Group One Tunku Gold Cup (1200m).
De Souza bid farewell to Malaysia in April of last year after 12 successful years in the saddle. He then headed to Mauritius for a riding contract but was slapped with a 12-month riding suspension for breaching rule 207(a), which states: ‘When riding in a race, a jockey shall allow his horse to run on its merits. When a jockey contravenes this provision, the jockey shall commit an offence and shall be liable to a suspension or disqualification not exceeding 5 years, and to a fine of not less than 50,000 rupees and not exceeding 1 million rupees.’
On 8 August, De Souza successfully appealed the sentence, which was put into effect immediately and allowed him a return to the saddle.
The three-time champion jockey first arrived in Malaysia in 2010, winning 22 races that season. He steadily climbed the ranks, reaching the pinnacle with 75 victories in 2014, his best season. De Souza clinched his second title in 2015 with 50 wins and repeated the feat in 2016 with 60 victories.
![[Image: Owners of Gimme A Nother honoured at the Highveld Feature Season Awards 2024]](https://www.irace.com.sg/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Picture1-4-218x150.webp "Gimme A Nother named Highveld horse of the season")