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Jockey Bernardo Pinheiro is all set for his first race meeting on Sunday at his second long-term stint in Singapore and he is not ruling out the possibility of an extended stay moving forth.
The young Brazilian jockey, who was based in the UAE, flew to Singapore for a one-day visit at the Kranji Mile meeting in May last year before fulfilling his five-month contract from June to October, chalking up 14 winners from 109 rides and finishing 13th on the jockeys' log in the 2022 season.
Things, however, ended on a slightly sour note for Pinheiro after he was handed a two-month suspension from October 3 to December 2 for his handling of Mr Malek on September 24. That setback sent him packing early.
Despite that black mark on his riding records, Pinheiro has generally enjoyed the riding experience and hospitality he received from the local racing fraternity, so much so that he decided to give it another shot this time.
"It (the suspension) hurt me a lot last year but I also took that as a lesson to learn and grow," said the 26-year-old who last rode at Al Ain racecourse on Friday and arrived in Singapore on Sunday night with his wife Gabriela.
"I love this city, the weather, and the racing, and I've made a lot of good friends here. They are very welcoming.
"When I left here last year after the suspension, a lot of people like (trainers) Steven (Burridge), Ricardo (Le Grange), KS (Kah Soon) Tan treated me very nicely. They were kind and encouraged me to keep my head up and be strong.
"I took 10 days off, flew to Bali and hiked Mount Agung successfully. It was a very difficult hike but it taught me that we can fix all problems eventually.
"After that, I flew back to Singapore to pack up and go back to Dubai.
"I still rode in trackwork there during my suspension because we have to prepare ourselves by working hard. I believe that every time you 'plant a seed', you can 'collect' it in future."
Pinheiro eventually ranked fifth on the 2022/2023 United Arab Emirates Jockey's Premiership that just concluded on April 7, with 28 winners as his best result in a season in Dubai since he began riding there six years ago.
He also secured a second victory in the Group 1 Emirates Championship (2200m) aboard the M Al Jahoori-trained Ajrad Athbah on March 16 after landing the feature race in 2021.
With four Group 1, two Group 2 and four Group 3 wins under his belt thus far, the likeable hoop is hungry for more success as he looks to raise the bar for himself in Singapore.
"I had a very good season in Dubai. The Group 1 win (Emirates Championship) came as a big surprise but still great," said Pinheiro, who was voted by the public as the Best Local Jockey at the His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Horse Racing Excellence Awards at Meydan Racecourse on March 25.
"I love challenges and racing in Singapore is competitive, which makes me want to try even harder for winners here.
"Even when I was in Dubai, I've been following the racing in Singapore and I watched the Group races here.
"I was so close to winning the big races here a few times before, so one of my goals this time is to ride a Group winner.
"Now that I know the place and people better, and with more time here this year, I hope to improve on my results (14 wins) last year and maybe to reach my 600th career win in Singapore too.
"I have a good feeling that I will surpass this (record of 14 wins) quick (laughs)!"
The boyish looking rider, who is licensed to ride in Singapore from April 1 to December 31 this year, came close to breaking through for his first Singapore group win four times previously. He managed three seconds and one third in the end, including steering Mr Malek to third in the Group 1 Kranji Mile (1600m) last year.
With a haul of 572 winners in 10 years of riding, Pinheiro is currently 28 wins shy of his 600th win milestone, which is an achievable target, assuming he rides in all 32 meetings ahead and takes home an average of one winner per meeting.
Should things turn out well for him this season, Pinheiro might even consider a permanent relocation to the Little Red Dot.
"I'm keeping my options open for now. Things seem to be looking good in Singapore with more feature races this year," he said.
"I want to see how things go in Singapore for me this year and I do intend to stay here long-term if I can. We'll see how things go."
Meanwhile, Pinheiro is looking forward to his booking of six rides on the Sunday meeting. He singled out the Le Grange-trained Sayonara in the $30,000 Class 5 race (2000m) and the Jason Ong-trained War Pride in the $70,000 Class 3 race (1200m) as the better chances for him to get on the scoresheet.
"I think one of my best chances would be Sayonara. He's been very consistent recently," said Pinheiro who began riding trackwork on Wednesday morning and rode two horses (Jupiter Storm and Imperial Parade) in the barrier trials on Thursday for trainer Mahadi Taib.
"War Pride has a chance with 53kgs."
Pinheiro will also ride Roda Robot for Ong, Sheng Warrior for Mahadi and Lion Spirit and Winning Spirit for trainer Kuah Cheng Tee.
