Jockey Martin Garcia to Shift Tack to Churchill Downs

Seeking to rejuvenate his career, jockey Martin Garcia is leaving the beach for the Bluegrass. The 35-year-old will ride through Nov. 16 at Del Mar in California before accepting mounts at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky., Nov. 20, the jockey said.

Represented by agent Jay Fedor, Garcia will ride in December at Turfway Park in Northern Kentucky before shifting his tack to Oaklawn Park in Arkansas for its meet that begins Jan. 24.

"I'm excited and look forward to riding," Garcia said in telephone conversation from California, his base for much of his 14-year career.

Garcia's change in circuit—first reported by Daily Racing Form's Marty McGee—comes as the rider hopes to regain momentum after his business sagged in recent years. Backed by Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert, Garcia's mounts earned between $7 million and $10 million every year from 2010-15 but dipped to $1.3 million in 2018 and just over $2 million this year. He has won 1,539 races from 10,160 mounts, with earnings of $86.6 million.

Although Garcia has ridden only periodically at Churchill Downs, he has been successful, winning the 2011 Kentucky Oaks (G1) aboard Plum Pretty. He also rode in four renewals of the Kentucky Derby (G1), finishing 15th on Conveyance  in 2010, sixth on Liaison  in 2012, ninth on Chitu  in 2014, and third on Dortmund  in 2015—all for Baffert.

His most lucrative victory came aboard the Baffert-trained Bayern  in the $5 million Breeders' Cup Classic (G1) in 2014 at Santa Anita Park, one of the jockey's four Breeders' Cup victories.

The trainer and jockey have not been a partnership for the past few months. Garcia has not ridden for Baffert since Aug. 21.

"Sometimes everybody needs a bit of change," said Garcia, a native of Mexico who rose to prominence in Northern California. "Now he has different jockeys riding for him. … Maybe (in) the future, he will give me another chance."

Garcia is optimistic that deeper fields in Kentucky will provide him with more opportunities. Short lineups of races during this injury-plagued year in California have made securing mounts difficult for all but the leading riders. He tied for 13th during the autumn meet at Santa Anita, riding six winners from 59 mounts. He entered Thursday 1-for-7 at Del Mar, which began Nov. 8. 

This is not Garcia's first change in circuit. He rode at Aqueduct Racetrack in New York during the winter of 2017-18 with limited success before returning to California.

Injured in a training accident in September 2018 at Santa Anita, he returned a month later and rode for nearly a month before lingering shoulder issues forced him to the sidelines. He returned to the saddle at Santa Anita in late March, at which point other riders had become the main jockeys for some of his regular stables, he said.