Robbie Davis

Robbie Davis
Robbie Davis
Occupation	Jockey
Born	July 18, 1961 (age 61); Pocatello, Idaho, U.S.
Career wins	3,382
Major racing wins
	Mount Vernon Stakes (1983, 1992); Bed O' Roses Handicap (1984, 1987, 1994); Remsen Stakes (1984, 2000); Meadowlands Cup (1985); Saranac Stakes (1985); Affectionately Handicap (1985); Ladies Handicap (1985, 1987); Santa Ana Handicap (1986); Orchid Handicap (1986); Washington, D.C. International Stakes (1986); Fall Highweight Handicap (1986); Beaugay Handicap (1987, 1995); Revidere Handicap (1987); Honorable Miss Stakes (1987); Tremont Stakes (1987); Acorn Stakes (1988); Hopeful Stakes (1988, 1998); Beverly D. Stakes (1990); Los Angeles Handicap (1990); Round Table Stakes (1991); Oceanport Handicap (1992, 1994); Brooklyn Handicap (1993); Ruffian Handicap (1993); Pimlico Special (1994); Bed O' Roses Breeders' Cup Handicap (1994); Canadian International Stakes (1994); Belmont Futurity Stakes (1995); Cigar Mile Handicap (1995); Champagne Stakes (1995); New York Breeders' Futurity (1995); Sanford Stakes (1995); Vosburgh Stakes (1995); Arlington Million (1996); Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup Stakes (1996); True North Handicap (1996, 1997, 2000); Manhattan Handicap (1997); Jockey Club Gold Cup (1998); Wood Memorial Stakes (1998); United Nations Stakes (2000, 2001); Northern Dancer Breeders' Cup Turf (2001)
Racing awards
	Mike Venezia Memorial Award (1997)
Significant horses
	Videogenic, Lieutenant's Lark, Raintrap,; Mecke, Coronado's Quest

Last updated October 02, 2022

Robbie Glen Davis (born July 18, 1961 in Pocatello, Idaho) is a retired American Thoroughbred horse racing jockey.

Early life

Davis grew up in a single parent household forced onto welfare, something that would impact him for the rest of his life. At age 14 Robbie got his first job at Buddy's Pizza in Pocatello, Idaho, working as a dish washer and busboy.

Robbie Davis began his involvement with horse racing as a stable boy, cleaning horse stalls at a racetrack in his native Idaho and by age 17 was riding in quarter horse races at county fairs.

In 1997, he was honored by Big Brothers/Big Sisters of Long Island for his support of that organization.

Career

In 1981 he switched to Thoroughbred flat racing and in 1982 moved to compete at New York area tracks. He earned his first Grade I victory in the 1985 Meadowlands Cup on board Bounding Basque.

During his career, Davis won a number of premier races including the 1986 Washington, D.C. International Stakes, the 1994 Pimlico Special and Canadian International Stakes, as well as the 1998 Wood Memorial Stakes. His best result in two Kentucky Derby starts was a fifth with Mecke in 1995 with whom he also finished fifth in the Preakness Stakes. Of his five mounts in the Belmont Stakes, Davis's best finish came aboard Kingpost in the 1988 running won by Risen Star.

On October 13, 1988, Robbie Davis was involved in a racing accident at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York that claimed the life of friend and fellow jockey, Mike Venezia. Venezia's horse, Mr. Walter K., broke his right front leg on the backstretch; as the horse fell, Venezia jumped and rolled under the hooves of Davis' mount Drums in the Night. Venezia died instantly.^[1] The trauma resulted in Davis leaving racing for several years. After returning briefly on a few occasions, he came back full-time in 1992. Five years later, he was voted the Mike Venezia Memorial Award which honor a jockey who exemplifies extraordinary sportsmanship and citizenship.

Retirement

Retired in 2002, Davis served as a Director at large for the Jockeys' Guild. In 2006, he was nominated for induction in the U.S. Racing Hall of Fame.

A classic car collector, he and his wife own an 80-acre (32 ha) farm in upstate New York, not far from the Saratoga Race Course. Parents of six children, their daughter Jacqueline was one of eleven students in the inaugural class at the North American Racing Academy in Versailles, Kentucky, founded as a jockey training program through the auspices of the Kentucky Community Technical College System.^[2] Jackie Davis won her first career race on November 5, 2008, aboard 64-1 shot Blue Hill Bay at Aqueduct; she has won six races as of March 2009. Her father serves as her agent.^[3] His son, Dylan, and daughter, Katie, have followed in their father and sister's footsteps.

Return To The Saddle

On October 1, 2011, Davis returned to the saddle, riding Sandyinthesun, a horse he also trains, to a sixth-place finish in the 11th race at Belmont Park.

Year-end charts

Chart (2000–2002)	Peak position
National Earnings List for Jockeys 2000	39
National Earnings List for Jockeys 2001	48
National Earnings List for Jockeys 2002	94

Sources

↑ Jockey Killed in Accident at Belmont NY Times, October 14, 1988
↑ "North American Racing Academy >> KCTCS--Higher Education Begins Here!". Archived from the original on 2010-11-12. Retrieved 2010-12-25.
↑ A Jockey Follows in Father's Tracks But Also Blazes Her Own NY Times, March 27, 2009

Related Research Articles

Edgar S. Prado is a Peruvian-born American jockey, a U.S. Racing Hall of Fame jockey in thoroughbred horse racing.

Ángel Tomás Cordero Jr. is one of the leading thoroughbred horse racing jockeys of the late 20th-century and the first Puerto Rican to be inducted into the United States' Racing Hall of Fame. He led all jockeys in wins at Saratoga Race Course for thirteen years. Cordero rode three Kentucky Derby winners and won over 6000 races in his career.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mike E. Smith</span> American jockey

Michael Earl Smith is an American jockey who has been one of the leading riders in U.S. Thoroughbred racing since the early 1990s, was inducted into the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame in 2003, and has won the most Breeders' Cup races of any jockey with 27 Breeders' Cup wins. Smith is also the third leading jockey of all time in earnings with over $336 million. In 2018, Smith rode Justify to the Triple Crown, becoming the oldest jockey to win the title at age 52.

Gary Lynn Stevens is an American Thoroughbred horse racing jockey, actor, and sports analyst. He became a professional jockey in 1979 and rode his first of three Kentucky Derby winners in 1988. He had nine wins in Triple Crown races, winning the Preakness Stakes and Belmont Stakes three times each, as well as ten Breeders' Cup races. He was also a nine-time winner of the Santa Anita Derby. He entered the United States Racing Hall of Fame in 1997. Combining his U.S. and international wins, Stevens had over 5,000 race wins by 2005, and reached his 5,000th North American win on February 15, 2015.

Jerry D. Bailey is an NBC Sports thoroughbred racing analyst and a retired American Hall of Fame jockey.

Laffit Alejandro Pincay Jr. was once flat racing's winningest all-time jockey, still holding third place many years after his retirement. He competed primarily in the United States.

Ben Brush (1893–1918) was a champion American Thoroughbred racehorse who won the 1896 Kentucky Derby.

Craig Perret is an American thoroughbred horse racing jockey. He began riding horses at age five and by seven was riding quarter horses in match races. At age fifteen he began his career in thoroughbred racing and in 1967 was the leading apprentice jockey in the United States in terms of money won.

Edward Retz "Eddie" Maple is a retired American thoroughbred horse racing jockey. One of eight siblings, he is an older brother to jockey Sam Maple, who won more than 2,500 races.

Jean Cruguet is a retired French-American thoroughbred horse racing jockey who won the United States Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing.

John R. Velazquez is a Puerto Rican jockey in Thoroughbred horse racing. He began his career in Puerto Rico and moved to New York in 1990. In 2004 and 2005 he was the United States Champion Jockey by earnings and both years was given the Eclipse Award for Outstanding Jockey. He was inducted into the Horse Racing Hall of Fame in 2012, rode his 5,000th winner in 2013, and became the leading money-earning jockey in the history of the sport in 2014.

Richard Migliore is a retired American jockey. He now works as a racing analyst for XBTV. He was nicknamed "The Mig," which is a type of Russian fighter jet, for his tenacious style of riding. He lives with his wife, Carmela, and children in Millbrook, New York.

Shane Jude Sellers is an American Thoroughbred horse racing jockey. At age eleven, he began working around horses and in 1983 rode his first winner at Evangeline Downs.

Calvin H. Borel is an American jockey in thoroughbred horse racing and rode the victorious mount in the 2007 Kentucky Derby, the 2009 Kentucky Derby and the 2010 Kentucky Derby. His 2009 Derby win with Mine That Bird was the third biggest upset in Derby history,, and Borel's winning margin of 6+3⁄4 lengths was the greatest in Derby history since Assault won by 8 lengths in 1946. On May 1, 2009, Borel won the Kentucky Oaks aboard Rachel Alexandra, only the second time since 1993 that a jockey has won the Oaks-Derby combo, and just the seventh time overall a jockey has accomplished this feat in the same year. On May 16, 2009, Borel won the 2009 Preakness Stakes at Pimlico with thoroughbred filly Rachel Alexandra. In doing so, Borel became the first jockey to win the first two jewels of the Triple Crown on different mounts. Borel's nickname is "Bo'rail'" due to his penchant for riding close to the rail to save ground.

Alfred Masson Robertson was a Hall of Fame jockey in American Thoroughbred horse racing.

Garrett Keith Gomez was an American Thoroughbred jockey who won two Eclipse Awards and thirteen Breeders' Cup races during his career.

Ruthless (1864–1876) was an American Thoroughbred filly and a National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame-inducted racehorse. She is best known as the winner of the inaugural Belmont Stakes.

Wayne Danforth Wright was an American Hall of Fame and National Champion Thoroughbred horse racing jockey who won all three of the Triple Crown races in different years.

Douglas Allan Dodson was a Champion jockey in American Thoroughbred horse racing.

James D. "Jimmy" Nichols was an American Thoroughbred horse racing jockey and a widely respected horseman who, after retiring from race-riding, played a key role in the two U.S. Triple Crown race wins of Risen Star.

References

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.

[1] Jockey Killed in Accident at Belmont NY Times, October 14, 1988

[2] "North American Racing Academy >> KCTCS--Higher Education Begins Here!". Archived from the original on 2010-11-12. Retrieved 2010-12-25.

[3] A Jockey Follows in Father's Tracks But Also Blazes Her Own NY Times, March 27, 2009

[1]

[2]

[3]