Martin Garcia to ride at Churchill Downs

Martin Garcia is leaving Southern California to ride in the Midwest. The 35-year-old jockey will begin riding Wednesday at Churchill, according to his new agent, Jay Fedor, and will compete at Turfway Park prior to moving his tack to Oaklawn Park ahead of that meet, which starts Jan. 24.

Garcia has won a number of major races, most of them for Bob Baffert, in a 14-year career that has stalled in recent times. Garcia won the 2010 Preakness with Lookin At Lucky, the 2011 Kentucky Oaks with Plum Pretty, and the 2014 Breeders’ Cup Classic with Bayern. He has 1,540 wins and mount earnings of more than $86 million since he began riding in the U.S. in 2005.

Garcia, a native of Mexico, joins a growing list of Southern California horsemen migrating eastward. Among the trainers who will have strings at Oaklawn are Phil D’Amato, Peter Miller, and Doug O’Neill.