Alan Garcia Plans Move to Woodbine

Jockey Alan Garcia plans to try joining the Woodbine colony when the meet there opens April 11, said agent Anthony Esposito, who will manage his book.

Garcia, 29, will return to North America after a stint riding in Saudi Arabia. He moved his tack to the Middle East in November of 2014, coming off a subpar season.

"I think sometimes a change is good," Esposito remarked. "He's gone to Saudi and he's gotten the taste of riding those live horses again, riding a lot and winning a lot. I think momentum is very important for jockeys; they're competitive people. And resume-wise, he totally fits in with the colony at Woodbine."

Among Garcia's major wins are the 2008 Belmont Stakes (gr. I) on Da' Tara, the 2009 UAE Derby (UAE-I) aboard Regal Ransom  , and the 2007 Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Turf (gr. IT) on Lahudood. He has 22 grade I races to his credit and his career record stands at 1,448 wins, with 1,230 seconds and 1,224 thirds from 9,545 starts. His mounts have brought home earnings of $78,172,537.

Esposito, who had the book of leading Woodbine rider Luis Contreras the past four years, split with Contreras at the end of 2014. He connected with Garcia in Florida and plans to manage his business as the Gulfstream Park winter meet winds down before heading North. Garcia last rode in the U.S. on Nov. 2, 2014, at Churchill Downs, where Donnie Richardson had his book.

"We're going to lay some groundwork for Canada, getting on some horses at Gulfstream," Esposito said. "If there's any interest in him coming to Kentucky for the first weekend of Keeneland we wouldn't mind doing that on the way up North, but the plan is to go to Canada for the meet."

Esposito and Contreras led the Woodbine meet in 2011, 2012, and 2013. In 2014 they were second to Patrick Husbands.

"Patrick is a powerhouse; when Luis was leading rider he was fending off Patrick all the time," Esposito said. "But I think Alan will compete well with him and the rest of the colony. I think he'll find his way there and be a formidable presence. He's a good Polytrack rider and he loves the turf course; he came up three or four times last year to ride for (top trainer Mark) Casse."

Garcia, a graduate of the Jockey School of Peru, was his country's leading apprentice in 2002-2003. He came to the U.S. in 2003 and was the top apprentice at the Meadowlands later that fall. After moving to the New York circuit fulltime in 2007 he enjoyed great success there, in Florida, and on occasional visits to Keeneland. He transitioned to Churchill in 2013, splitting his time between Kentucky and New York, and then accepted the offer to ride in Saudi Arabia at the end of last fall.