Less than four months after being seriously injured in a frightening on-track accident, jockey Dylan Davis' comeback is in full swing at Gulfstream Park.
Davis celebrated his return with a pair of mounts on Saturday's Coolmore Fountain of Youth Day program, and rode four races on Sunday's card, finishing second aboard Saffie Joseph Jr.-trained Slow Kara in Race 2. He is named in nine more over the next three racing days starting Thursday including Souper Quest in the $125,000 Silks Run and Indy Bay in the $175,000 Hurricane Bertie (G3).
"It feels great. I'm happy to be back, excited," Davis said. "It felt like forever to get back here, but it was really only a few months. I thought I recovered really quickly. That first month was more mental than anything. Getting on horses last week after I got the green light felt good. I got on 10, 15 horses but I've got get going for racing."
Davis suffered nine fractured ribs, a collapsed left lung, broken right collarbone and hairline fracture of his upper right arm in a spill at Aqueduct Nov. 14 - the day before his 31st birthday - when his mount, Tarpaulin, collided when the horse in front of him, Heavyweight Champs, broke down.
The lengthy recovery process for Davis began at home and ultimately brought him south, where he started getting on horses in late February at Palm Meadows, Gulfstream's satellite training facility in Palm Beach County.
"Eleven bones, collapsed lung, punctured lung, kidney - I don't wish the pain on anybody," Davis said. "That was a real tough spill for me. I didn't know the timeframe for when I was coming back. I was just taking it as it came. I was slowly challenging myself and my body. That second month I was already running 2 miles every other day or so.
"I was doing resistance bands in physical therapy the second month, then I got out of that and started doing some workouts at home, got a coach and started doing more weights as my body was able to handle it," he added. "My coach was aware of that and we just slowly built. If there was some limitations then we'd back off but everything went as well as it could."
Represented by agent Mike Migliore, Davis' return to the irons for morning workouts quickly gained attention from horsemen and led to his decision to ride at Gulfstream through the end of the Championship Meet, which concludes March 29.
"It wasn't my plan to stay, but once I showed up for workouts the phone started ringing. I'm going to stay here for March and then head out to Keeneland," he said. "It makes you feel good. I dedicate my life to the sport, so it's great to feel some loyalty and respect in return. I put my 100 percent out there every day for the outfits and the horses and I'm really happy to see that when I come back, it's almost like I didn't leave. I love the support from everybody. I've just got to get back in the groove and keep going."
Owner of more than 1,600 career victories, Davis rose to national prominence as an apprentice during Gulfstream's 2013-2014 Championship Meet when he won 41 races and $967,028 in purse money. He returned last winter to win 38 races, four stakes including the Royal Delta (G3) and nearly $2.4 million in purses earned
"With the routine that I had before with running and working out, I knew where I was at for a good base," he said. "You're never 100 percent ready to come back. You have to get back racing and get racing fit but I thought I was ready to get going so here we are. I'm happy to be back."
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