Da Silva Breaks Woodbine Win Record

Jockey Eurico Rosa da Silva broke the long-standing record for most wins at a single Woodbine meet Dec. 1 at the Toronto racetrack.

Da Silva earned his 222nd victory of the season, eclipsing the previous record of 221 established by Mickey Walls in 1991, in the 10th race aboard the 2-year-old filly Souciologist, a daughter of Gemologist  trained by Kevin Attard for owners Al and Bill Ulwelling. 

"I'm very, very excited. … I want to say thank you to all the horses I rode, trainers, grooms, exercise riders, and owners," said the 43-year-old native of Brazil. "I'm very grateful to be at Woodbine. I love Woodbine, and I feel like this is my home; I come here and I don't feel like I'm working. All the time I feel happy to be here, and I feel like everybody here is my family. I also want to thank my wife and my mom—without them, I never could do that."

Da Silva, who also leads all Woodbine jockeys for earnings ($7.9 million) and stakes wins (28) in 2018, is a multiple Sovereign Award winner. Despite missing the first six days of the 2018 meet, he has dominated the Woodbine jockey standings and holds a 61-win lead. This is the fourth straight year he has topped the 200-win mark, and it's his fifth season as leading jockey at Woodbine.