De Sousa Leaving Britain for Hong Kong
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Photo: Edward Whitaker
Silvestre de Sousa and Winter Power win the 2021 Nunthorpe Stakes at York Racecourse
Three-time British champion jockey Silvestre de Sousa will ride in Hong Kong for the foreseeable future after deciding better opportunities lie there.
De Sousa, who was crowned leading rider for the first time in 2015 before winning back-to-back titles in 2017 and 2018, has been granted a license by the Hong Kong Jockey Club from Aug. 20 until Feb. 20, having ridden 91 winners there during his four previous stints.
Released from his King Power Racing contract last year, de Sousa has ridden 31 winners this year at a strike rate of 10%—his lowest since 2007—and will cut his British campaign short and head to Hong Kong on Aug. 23, the earliest he has ever done so.
The 41-year-old said: "The way British racing is, if you don't have a retainer, you're going around every day just for one or two rides. You need to be established with a stable, and I'm not at the moment.
"I told myself I've been in Hong Kong before and that I didn't want to miss the opportunity to go out there again. It's a nice environment and the prize money is very good.
"You have to work hard and I hope to have support from the trainers when I arrive. It needed a lot of thinking as it's not an easy move when you have a family with young kids, but it's the way it goes sometimes."
De Sousa enjoyed a notable spell in the far East during the winter of 2018-19, when he rode 44 winners during a short period, which included the Longines Hong Kong Cup (G1) aboard Glorious Forever.
De Sousa and Glorious Forever win the 2018 Hong Kong Cup at Sha Tin Racecourse
He won an international jockeys' challenge there in 2018 and hopes to rekindle previous links he made with trainers.
De Sousa will also ride in Singapore at the Lion City Cup meeting at Kranji Racecourse Aug. 14, when he will partner the Stephen Crutchley-trained Fame Star in the feature race before his final week in Britain.
He added: "The people are very grateful and the trainers always looked out for me and got me rides. I'm very lucky I've already ridden a few winners in big races out there. You're retained by the Hong Kong Jockey Club, and you're a freelance out there.
"I'll be coming back to spend a week in Britain and I hope I can have a few more winners before heading over there and having some good winners in Asia too."
De Sousa will join Harry Bentley as a former British-based rider plying his trade in Hong Kong, while Neil Callan enjoyed an 11-year spell there before his return to Britain last year.