McCarthy, Migliore Thankful for New York Opportunity

When jockey Trevor McCarthy and his wife, Katie Davis, sit down Nov. 25 for a family Thanksgiving dinner, they will surely have numerous reasons for giving thanks. "It will be a special Thanksgiving. Katie and I have a lot to be thankful for," McCarthy said. "We had some ups and downs this year and even the year before with COVID-19. So it's nice to be back in New York and surrounded by a lot of positive people with a lot of good things to look forward to." At a separate table in another part of New York, Joe Migliore will have very similar feelings Thursday as he sits down to eat surrounded by his cherished family members. "It's going to be a special holiday," Migliore said. "With no racing in New York on Thanksgiving we can get in some good family time at a time when there are some great things happening in my life." All three, each of whom grew up as the offspring of a jockey, are now linked through that profession and will be spending the holiday enjoying feelings of thanks and optimism as they look forward to exciting and memorable times together in the coming months. For McCarthy and Davis, the date circled on the calendar is Dec. 18, when Davis is expected to deliver the couple's first child, a baby girl, into this world. "I'm doing good. I just want to hold her in my arms right now. I can't wait," said Davis, the daughter of retired longtime New York jockey and now a trainer, Robbie Davis, who has been a rider herself since 2013. "She's due Dec. 18, but I hope she comes the 17th. That's our wedding anniversary and it will help Trevor remember the dates." Aside from the couple's joys of becoming a mom and dad, the upcoming days will also feature an exciting winter for McCarthy and Migliore as the 27-year-old jockey has decided to take a huge step forward in his career by committing to become a year-round rider on the highly competitive New York Racing Association circuit and recently taking on Migliore to serve as his agent. "I had been looking for a place to settle my tack and ride there all the time," McCarthy said, "and the great part about doing that in New York is that I can learn from so many great riders, ride for great outfits, and spend time with my family." For the 30-year-old Migliore, working as an agent is a new chapter in a career that has taken off rather quickly and has included a dizzying array of sales, bloodstock, racing, walking hots, a top 100 finish at the World Series of Poker, and now, working as a jockey's agent. After six years of work as a sales associate for West Point Thoroughbreds, Migliore opened his own bloodstock agency earlier this year, and has done well with it. Now, in addition to that, he will be handling McCarthy's book, taking on a job his uncle, Mike, performs for Dylan Davis, Katie's brother, and his dad, popular longtime NYRA rider and now broadcaster, Richard, handled in the past for Chris Landeros and Declan Carroll. "I'm excited about growing my bloodstock agency, but working as an agent is something I've looked at for a long time. Watching my father's career, I have an acute understanding of what a rider's needs are, how to manage his career, and what a rider is looking for. I've learned so much from him," said Migliore, a graduate of the Irish National Stud Course. "And I think the two roles will complement and scratch the other's back. I have a strong group of clients I've been working with and that makes it an easy introduction to bring in Trevor as a rider for those horses. It can open a lot of doors for both of us now." The bond between McCarthy and Davis and Migliore is not really surprising. McCarthy's father, Michael McCarthy, won 2,907 races in his career as a rider, meaning the three dads in this three-ply entry combined for 10,739 wins, a total only exceeded by all-time wins leader Russell Baze. "There's a lot of jocks and agents in the pedigree tree among us," Joe Migliore said. Success as well. Trevor McCarthy has already racked up 1,639 victories with earnings of $57.4 million since he began riding in 2011. He's known in New York circles after riding at the 2020-21 Aqueduct Racetrack winter meet. He finished fifth in the standings with 39 wins despite some lingering pain from a broken ankle and the stress of an archaic New York rule which forced horses ridden by him and his wife to be coupled in the wagering. "If I had won five races last winter I would have been happy. It was a learning curve. I wanted to learn from the best. I've learned how important position is in New York racing. Aqueduct can get really biased with speed and you have to be aggressive. I like how people get position and wait. It makes for a great run in the last quarter of a mile," McCarthy said. "There's so much to learn from the great riders like the Ortiz brothers (Jose and Irad Jr.) and Hall of Famers like John Velazquez and Javier Castellano. It's great to watch them on a daily basis and see how they handle things and prepare for each day. Getting feedback from them is huge." But when spring arrived, and the top New York jockeys returned to the colony, instead of returning to his Mid-Atlantic roots where he has been leading rider at Pimlico Race Course and Laurel Park, he decided to head west, enlist Derek Lawson, who had been Flavien Prat's agent, to represent him and try to make a name for himself on the Southern California circuit. But after winning just one of 48 starts at Santa Anita Park and five of 94 at Del Mar, McCarthy learned how California dreaming could sometimes be a nightmare and he realized it was time for him and Davis to return home to the East Coast. "I was really excited to go to California and try something new as an experiment. I didn't want to look back years later and say I should have gone to California. I wanted to see what I could make out of it," McCarthy said. "It turned out to be a mistake." Returning home gave McCarthy time to have his achy ankle re-examined and ankle chips were detected. He underwent surgery Sept. 27. "Ten days after the surgery I was feeling better than I did before it," he said. His recovery kept McCarthy sidelined until Nov. 18 and McCarthy used the time off to find a new agent. His brother-in-law, trainer Edmund Davis, mentioned to Migliore that McCarthy was looking for an agent and Migliore asked him to relay his interest. "When I talked to Edmund, I had to put my name in the hat because Trevor is too talented of rider to miss out on that opportunity," Migliore said. Shortly thereafter Migliore and McCarthy talked, but McCarthy came away feeling that it would not be a good fit. "I didn't think it would be the right move," McCarthy said. "I thanked Joe for talking with me but I was ready to talk to other people." Yet it didn't take McCarthy long to start wondering if he had rushed to judgment. "The talk with Joe stuck with me and I kept thinking about it. He's about my age and in the same position as I am. He just got married and wants to start a family in the future. He's very aggressive and has some good connections, so the idea kept growing on me over time," McCarthy said. "I did a little homework and asked some owners and trainers about him and didn't hear a bad word from anyone. They were on board with it. When I'd ask them about other agents, I'd hear negativity about a lot of them but I heard nothing negative about Joe and that sold me." Once the two discussed how to build up McCarthy's career, the grade 2- and 3-winning jockey knew he made the right decision in teaming with Migliore. "We're young and want to work hard every day. We have the same mindset. When we had a deep conversation about Joe taking my book it was like he was reading my mind. We had the same plan and ideas. He was the guy for me," McCarthy said. It only took McCarthy two mounts to find the winner's circle last week and though he's 2-for-23 through his first four days of riding at the Big A, McCarthy and Migliore believe early support from trainers such as James Bond, Jorge Abreu, and Danny Gargan and working horses for Steve Asmussen is laying the foundation for a productive winter and a long and fruitful stay in New York. "I emphasized to Trevor that if we are going to do this, I need him to grow roots in New York. I need to tell everybody that he'll be here year-round and there's no doubt in my mind he can be a top year-round rider," Migliore said. "He's a strong finisher. He never gives up on a horse. He always rides for a placing and has a great work ethic. If I line up four horses for him to work, he wants five. We don't want to let anyone outwork us. I can't say enough good things about his abilities and it's a great opportunity to work for him." Mike Migliore believes staying in New York during the spring, summer, and fall when the jockey colony is at its all-star best played a key role in Dylan Davis' recent emergence as a top 10-caliber New York rider after some lean early years on the circuit. He believes in time his nephew and McCarthy can establish themselves as a viable option for top trainers even after winter coats are put away in storage. "It's a great, great opportunity for both of them. They both work really hard and Trevor will get on horses all morning. They're going to do well but Trevor has to stay here. You can't keep making moves. You have to grind through it, go through the tough times like Dylan and I did," Mike Migliore said. "I know this will work for them because Joe is so knowledgeable about the whole game. He's been around it since he was a kid. I gave him some tips about being an agent but he knows the game better than me, especially when it comes to dealing with people. There's nothing bad you could say about that kid. He has class, manners, he's polite. He doesn't have a bad bone in his body. I love the kid and I'm very proud of him." Joe Migliore is definitely logging some long hours as he's built a growing network of clients for his bloodstock business that includes Robert Masiello and Matt Cutair, Brian Hahn ,and Jordan Zotts of Adelphi Racing Club. He's also received some invaluable support along the way from trainer Christophe Clement and his family as well as help and motivation from his own wife, Jessica, his dad, Richard, mom, Carmela, and the entire Migliore clan. In August at the Fasig-Tipton New York-Bred Yearlings Sale, Migliore's emergence on the scene in a short amount of time was underscored by signing the ticket on seven horses for gross receipts of $1.07 million. "I have a strong group of clients and we have outstanding prospects for next year," Migliore said. "Things are really coming together well on all fronts." As much as Katie Davis longs for that day next month when she will become a mother, her riding days are merely on hold, not at an end. She would also like to ride at Aqueduct a year from now, putting regulators on notice that the furor over the rule coupling married jockeys in the betting is far from over. "I'd like to ride in the winter and then spend the summers with my baby," she said. A year ago, Davis, who married McCarthy last December, said "It's not the 1800s anymore" in blasting the rule coupling married riders and the impact on her business was noticeable. Many horsemen shied away from using her because of the impact on their horse's final odds in an entry with McCarthy's mount. Despite the outcry and a strong wave of support for her on social media, the New York State Gaming Commission took no action to change the rule. Yet there was hope it would be wiped away last month when a bill eliminating it unanimously passed through the New York legislature. Instead, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul vetoed it and ordered the Gaming Commission to review the rule and seek additional input from the racing industry and public. "I knew it was going to take time to change the rule and I probably didn't push it as hard as I should have. But we have a lot support from a lot of people. We're still staying on top of it because I want to get back to riding. So it's going to be an issue if they don't change it," said the 29-year-old Davis, whose sister, Jacqueline, plans to ride at the current Aqueduct meet. "We really need to change this rule not just for me but for the next woman who finds herself in this position." Until then, Davis intends to spend 2022 caring for her baby girl and rooting for her husband to make it in New York, New York as she awaits the resumption of her own career. Yes, there is indeed many reasons for Team McCarthy to be thankful this holiday weekend.