Finger Lakes jockey Davila poised to hit 4,000th winner

When John Davila Jr. came to Finger Lakes in 1991, he was 26 years old and looking for direction. He had won a total of 37 races while bouncing back and forth between his native Puerto Rico and the United States and realized time was running short if he was going to make it as a jockey.

Flash forward to present day and Davila is on the verge of his 4,000th victory. He has won 14 riding titles at Finger Lakes and overtook Les Hulet in 2017 to become the all-time winningest rider at the upstate New York track. At age 54, he is still winning at a high percentage, and through Tuesday was second in the Finger Lakes standings with 106 wins.

Davila came to Florida to ride in 1983 but had only limited success and returned to Puerto Rico. When he tried the United States again, he won 32 races over two seasons at Thistledown but once again struggled and went home.

“I did nothing for a long time,” Davila said. “I stayed away from the racetrack in Puerto Rico because I didn’t like the way they did things there. In 1991, I was ready to do anything. I needed to do something with my life.”

Davila headed to Finger Lakes and dedicated himself to riding. Things began to click.

“When I went to Finger Lakes, I did my exercises, I worked hard,” Davila said. “When people saw me on top of horses, they told me I had talent. It changed my life completely.”

Davila won his first Finger Lakes title in 1994. He led the standings again in 1998 and then reeled off 10 straight championships from 2002 to 2011. He was leading rider again in 2016 and 2017.

Through Tuesday, Davila had 3,996 career wins. Of that total, 1,899 have come for trainer Chris Englehart, the all-time leader at Finger Lakes with 3,352 victories. Davila has won another 198 races for Chris’s son Jeremiah. Between them, Chris and Jeremiah Englehart have won the last 15 Finger Lakes training titles.

“Chris Englehart is like my father,” Davila said. “His wife, Sheila, is like my mother. Jeremiah is my brother. They respect me. I respect them.

“Chris gave me the confidence to do all this.”

Davila is looking forward to winning his 4,000th race.

“I am very, very excited about it,” he said. “I never expected to win 100 races in my life. I believe when you do things right, God comes to you. I have been so fortunate.”

Davila has not wandered far from Finger Lakes, where he has won 3,948 races.

“I like it here very much,” Davila said. “It is beautiful country. I went to Ohio, Oklahoma, New York, but I don’t like the fast city. Up here, it’s like living in a park.”

Davila is married to former rider Elaine Castillo, who between 2003 and 2013 won 541 races, all but three at Finger Lakes. When the track closes for the winter, they head to Davila’s farm in Puerto Rico, where he has a 20-horse riding stable and is in the process of building a two-level countrywestern bar.

“It is a beautiful place,” he said. “Whenever I bring something from the States there, people love it because it is new to them.”

Taking the winter off not only gives Davila time to recharge, it reduces wear and tear on his body and likely has helped extend his career. He has no plans to retire.

“I go home to Puerto Rico, get my mind fresh again, and then when I come to Finger Lakes I am ready for anything,” Davila said. “I feel like I am 18. I feel freaky good. I keep waiting for my body to tell me to slow down but I don’t feel any different.”

Delaware Park handle rises

Delaware Park officials reported a 17 percent increase in handle during its 81-day season, which concluded Saturday. In a press release, the track said it had total all-sources handle of $112 million, up from $95.7 million in 2017.

The handle increase came despite fewer turf races at the meet and a drop in average starters per race.

Kevin DeLucia, senior vice president of racing/finance, attributed the handle increase to several factors.

“I think we did a better job of placing some of our cards and even individual races in spots attractive to horseplayers,” DeLucia said. “Having opening day on the Wednesday after Memorial Day instead of our traditional opening on Saturday is one example. I think we also benefited from industrywide handle figures being up despite slightly smaller field size.”

Field size at the meet was 6.65 horses per race, a decline of 6.8 percent from 7.14 horses a year ago. The number of turf races was down 18.7 percent, from 150 to 122.

“The historic rainfall that resulted in the significant decrease of turf racing also contributed to the drop in average starters per race,” DeLucia said.

Trainer Jamie Ness and jockey Carol Cedeno once again led their respective divisions.

Ness won his sixth title in the last seven years by sending out 41 winners from 153 starters, a 26 percent win average.

Cedeno has won four of the last five Delaware titles. She rode 100 winners from 409 mounts (24 percent) at the meet. Cedeno won 86 Thoroughbred races and 14 Arabian races.

Laurel: Serpa to ride in China

Jockey Angel Serpa will represent Laurel Park and the United States during the 16th China Wuhan International Horse Racing Festival in China on Oct. 25-27.

Serpa, 30, was an Eclipse Awards finalist for apprentice jockey in 2010. He is in the midst of a comeback after breaking his ankle in a gate accident at Laurel last December. He returned to riding in late June and is 6 for 61 since.

“Since I came back from the injury, I feel good,” Serpa said. “It hurts a little bit when it’s cold, but right now I’m feeling great and we keep going. Never give up.”

Wuhan is the capital of China’s Hubei province and has a population of almost 11 million. It is located about 515 miles west of Shanghai.

“I can’t wait to leave,” Serpa said. “Everyone wants to be able to go do something like this.”

A delegate from China recently visited Laurel and asked track officials if Laurel would be interested in recommending a rider to compete in the festival. The invitation was extended to Serpa, who plans to ride at Laurel throughout the winter.