Yorkshire are a close third heading to Week 4 at Windsor, live on Sky Sports Racing, with a team starring Silvestre de Sousa and Jane Chapple-Hyam.

Silvestre an ace up our sleeve at Windsor

After a top-drawer performance at Chepstow my Yorkshire team is sitting in a healthy position as we enter week four of the Racing League at Windsor on Thursday evening, live on Sky Sports Racing, with an ace up our sleeves.

We have the top two teams, The East and London & The South, clearly in our sights following a double at the Welsh track. In fact, only 26 points separate us from Matt Chapman’s team, who in turn are only 16 points off top spot.

So, it’s all to play for by the Thames and I’m delighted to welcome top international jockey Silvestre de Sousa to the party with four rides in the white jersey. My trainers are just as delighted as I am to have him on our side at such a crucial stage of the competition.

My Brazilian star starts with Jane Chapple-Hyam’s lightly raced colt Hinchinbrooke in the ten-furlong heat (5.30pm). The Cracksman colt is best judged on his two placed efforts in good maidens and could get us off to a flying start for Jane, who put us in such a strong position last week with her winner Flag Of St George.

I’m also banking on his link-up with Jane’s handicap debutant Boxtel reaping rewards in the 6.30pm contest. He’s been gelded since going down narrowly in a good Newbury maiden last autumn after giving Wathnan Racing’s Qatar Goodwood Festival fourth Defence Minister a scare at Newmarket and has been working well lately.

Jane runs her former Royal Ascot winner Claymore in the ten-furlong feature at 8.00pm, a six-year-old who got back to winning ways at Newmarket in July and drops back in trip off what remains a workable mark of 95. He’s not an easy horse to predict as he often blows the start but Silvestre will hopefully get the best out of him, too.

Easterby duo hold claims for the White Rose

While it’s a logistically tricky fixture for my northern based trainers I’m happy to have 11 runners out of a possible 14 across the seven-race card – five of them provided by the wonderful Tim Easterby. He continues to be a great supporter in travelling his horses all the way down from his Great Habton base near Malton in North Yorkshire for the good of the team.

Tim’s Mount King could be his best chance in the 1m handicap (7.00) with stable jockey David Allan – so effective for us at Chepstow – renewing his partnership with a gelding he won on at Pontefract in June. The rain-softened ground on opening night at Yarmouth went against him but fast conditions at Windsor will be much more to his liking.

A bigger price will be stablemate Financer, who creeps into that closing £75,000 handicap (8.00) off a light weight. A repeat of his run at York off a similar rating earlier this summer would give him a chance of putting more valuable points on the board.

Joanna Mason with nice chances in week four

Fresh from representing Britain and Ireland in last weekend’s Shergar Cup, Joanna Mason teams up with Paul Attwater in the 6.30 on the reliable Brosay who steps up to 6f with a great chance after a luckless run over the minimum trip at Goodwood. Jo was brilliant last week, winning on Adrian Keatley’s Roberto Caro before finishing in the frame three times and this could be our best chance.

Jo gets the opportunity to ride for Marco Botti for only the second time on Spirit Of Leros in the mile handicap (6.00). She actually won on her only previous ride from my adopted Italian on Hyperchromatic in Week 2 and should go well on this three-year-old who may just benefit from the addition of blinkers having gone agonisingly close off a higher rating at Yarmouth in June.

There’s also an interesting new link up for Jo for the Chapple-Hyam stable when she partners Jane’s recent Newmarket winner First Officer in the 7.30pm. He was unlucky at this fixture last year when he represented team Scotland and returns off a mark he’s won off before.

Team confident as competition nears the home straight

One or two big results at Windsor would leave me feeling very confident that this could be Yorkshire’s year after a series of forgettable finishes in previous seasons. We still have our ‘home’ fixture to come at Southwell on the final night on week six and will have some enviable ammunition to fire at Newcastle next week, too.

I get to play my ‘home’ Joker at Southwell which, if I get it right, could prove decisive. The one I played at Wolverhampton in week two transformed our campaign with Jo and Marco’s Hyperchromatic lifting us from the bottom of the table into a challenging position.

Running Team Yorkshire is great fun but with a busy broadcasting career and a baby to care for 24-7 I couldn’t do it without the invaluable support of jockeys’ agent Jack Inkpen. He’s been a great go-between for me, liaising with trainers on my behalf and forging new partnerships like the ones Jo is enjoying with Marco and Jane.

Under the new rules I do have the option of drafting in new signings to strengthen our challenge but have so far chosen to stay loyal to the trainers who are doing so well for us.

I did give myself a kick up the backside last week, however, when a horse I could have recruited won for another team, but that’s the way it works. Despite that blip I’m hoping we have enough strength in depth to emerge victorious!

Leonna Mayor was speaking to Sky Sports Racing’s Simon Mapletoft.