Davis Heats Up Aqueduct Winter

During the rare months of the year when New York racing takes a back seat to other circuits, it's hard for any news from the frozen tundra of Aqueduct to break through into the sport's mainstream awareness. Dylan Davis made that dent Sunday however, after tying a New York Racing Association record by piloting home six winners from nine mounts. That performance followed a five-win day two weeks prior and launched the 23-year-old to the top of the meet standings, ahead of odds-on favorite Manny Franco.

The key to this unprecedented success for the Empire State born-and-bred son of jockey Robbie Davis, Dylan said Thursday, is his relationship with new agent Mike Migliore, brother of Richie, and the team effort that has surfaced behind him between the two families.

“Richie and my dad used to be pretty good rivals when they were riding, and they've come together since Mike and I hooked up,” Davis said. “Being with the Migliores and my dad, we've built a big bond and they all want the best for me. I get a lot of advice from Richie and so does Mike on how to handle some of his business in certain situations. I've just been getting it from both ends, and we're working hard and working together. We boost each other into the business. My father and Richie are also always there to help improve my riding skills.”

The winter at Aqueduct provides a unique opportunity for riders like Davis, who ride against the top colony in the country for roughly eight months out of the year but get to be a big fish in a smaller pond when most of that colony heads to the warmth of Gulfstream Park when the mercury drops. At the Belmont Fall Championship meet, Davis won eight races from 124 mounts, putting him 14th in the standings. He currently has 33 winners from 142 starts at the Big A.

“What's different is this is my second year with Mike Migliore and a couple of guys went out of town,” Davis said. “Irad [Ortiz, Jr.] went out late and Jose [Ortiz], which helped with my business also. I've just been building up business with the commitment of staying in New York, that and hard work in the mornings really put it all together this winter.”

In recalling his experience Sunday, Davis noted that even for the bullish Migliore, always trying to instill confidence, the day's success was unexpected.

“Mike gets pretty hyped up with some of the overnights that come out, but he probably was looking at two or three winners,” Davis said. “He's pretty aggressive and wants me to have high expectations. I did my homework and it looked like I had a couple good chances. I won the first through the fourth and it never really hit me, I just kept riding, and in the fifth race I have a disqualification that bumped me up. After that, I thought, 'wow, I just hit five winners in a row, that doesn't happen that often.' We don't have that much time in between races, so I'm just thinking about the next race, but after that I thought, 'this is incredible already.'”

Tying the single-day mark with his sixth winner in the day's seventh race, Davis felt the weight of riding history knowing he had two more chances to break the record. He finished second in both races, coming up a diminishing half-length short in the day's final event.

“When I hit my sixth winner, I heard Andy Serling say, 'Dylan Davis has six winners, [tying] the record for most winners on a single card at a NYRA track. If Dylan gets one more today, and he has two more chances, he would be the single record-holder,'” Davis recalled. “I got a little nervous, but tried to just get back into focus and ended up getting two more seconds. The last race, I was closing and thought I was going to get up, but it just wasn't enough. But overall, the day was incredible.”

As for surviving the rigors of riding Thoroughbreds through the frigid winter months in Jamaica Bay-adjacent Ozone Park, Davis says his upbringing helps, and he's more concerned about not having enough opportunities to ride. There were no completed cards at Aqueduct between Dec. 29 and Jan. 13, and after struggling to fill races last winter, NYRA made the call to shrink racing weeks to three days during the especially lean month of March, a move that has compelled Davis to find supplementary mounts at other tracks to carry his momentum.

“[The weather is] not too bad,” Davis said. “I grew up in New York, so fighting the winter is not as hard for me as it is for some of the other riders. But with some of the cancellations, it's very tough trying to build up business. At the same time, I'm having a successful meet, so I know that when we do run that I'm live and can hopefully get some races won. In March, we're going to three days a week, which is going to be difficult, so we're definitely going to be looking for another track to ride, possibly Parx, maybe Gulfstream. We haven't made a decision on Florida, maybe one or two days [a week], but we definitely want to keep moving. Three days is just not enough racing for me.”

Davis will face the litmus test for his newfound success in the next month or two, when the snowbirds return to the Big Apple to reassume their positions at the top of the colony. It remains to be seen if he can ride this tailwind and compete with those riders, day in and day out. For now, all he can do is work to keep stacking up victories.

“Because of having more winners and being leading rider at Aqueduct, more confidence has come to me and I know I can get the job done,” he said. “I've ridden with the top guys and know what to expect when they come back, but I'm just hoping that my business follows through from the winter to the spring. I'll just keep trying and doing what I'm doing.”