Carrasco will soon head to Turfway for the winter
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Jockey Victor Carrasco said that he plans to spend a few more weeks at Laurel Park before shifting his tack to Turfway Park for the winter. Barring two meets lost to injury, it will be his first winter racing outside Laurel since his 2013 debut.
The 33-year-old rider said that he was considering making the move to Turfway last winter, but he chose to stay closer to home after his son was born in August 2024.
“I really like [Turfway], but even before, I was thinking about trying to make a change,” said Carrasco. “At Laurel through the winter, the fields start to get smaller and the opportunities start to get smaller, so I’ve been thinking about coming this way for quite a bit.”
Raised in a prominent racing family in Puerto Rico, Carrasco has always had a habit of turning racetracks into homes. As a child, he regularly accompanied his father to his barn at Hipódromo Camarero, where the idea of becoming a veterinarian gradually morphed into the dream of riding.
When Carrasco made his stateside debut in the Mid-Atlantic region, he immediately found success at Laurel and earned the Eclipse Award for outstanding apprentice jockey in 2013. Many riders have come and gone since, but he has remained at Laurel, for the most part. In 8,805 career starts, he has raced at Laurel 5,164 times and earned more than half of his 1,363 victories there.
“It’s been great, and I always say that not only Laurel, but the Mid-Atlantic in general, is a very great spot for young riders,” Carrasco said. “We have so many races running at the same time, so it gives you the opportunity to learn different riding styles and different things.”
Carrasco first raced at Turfway in two stakes in April 2022, but most of his racing experience at the track has come in the past year aboard White Rocks, a 3-year-old filly trained by Arnaud Delacour. Carrasco has ridden her in all five of her starts, four of which were at Turfway. In February, they connected for a victory in the $175,000 Cincinnati Trophy.
Though he is open to more opportunities in Kentucky next year, the jockey said that he currently intends to return to Maryland. Laurel remains a special place for him, one where he has earned immense respect from those around him.
“I haven’t myself had many chances to go and try somewhere else,” Carrasco said. “As I say, Laurel has been home. I’ve been very blessed. I’m very lucky to have the support that I’ve been getting through the years from many great trainers, great owners, and many people that I consider now family.”
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