DEL MAR, Calif. – Seeking opportunities to ride more races and earn more money, jockey Joe Talamo, a mainstay on the Southern California circuit for a dozen years, said he has decided to relocate to Oaklawn Park for the start of that track’s meeting on Jan. 24 and will ride on a year-round circuit that includes Arkansas and Kentucky. “For me and my family, it’s a good time to head back there,” Talamo said. “There should be more opportunity – full fields, and the purses are astronomical.” Talamo and his wife, Elizabeth, have two sons – Vincent, 3, and Dominic, 1 1/2. “They’re young enough that they’re not in school yet, they’re not teenagers, or in grade school. It would be tougher then,” Talamo said. “They’re young enough that the move comes at a really good time. “I’m young. I’ve got a lot more good years. I’m jumping in with both feet.” Talamo, 29, began his career in his native Louisiana, but moved to Southern California – under urging from the late Hall of Fame trainer Bobby Frankel – in 2007 while still an apprentice and won that year’s Eclipse Award as the champion apprentice jockey. In the years since, he has won numerous major races on this circuit – including the Santa Anita Derby and Santa Anita Handicap – as well as the Wood Memorial and the Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint. He has 1,998 career wins entering Friday’s card at Del Mar. Opportunities have been less frequent for almost all riders on this circuit over the past year, a combination of smaller fields and less racing dates. Talamo had more than 1,000 mounts per year from 2007 through 2014, but rode 751 races in 2017, 688 in 2018, and has 503 mounts this year. “I’ve got a lot of lifelong friends here,” Talamo said. “I have great respect for California racing and the horsemen here. I appreciate all the success I’ve had here. I wish California racing all the best.” Talamo said he will ride in California through the start of the Santa Anita meeting that is scheduled to begin Dec. 26, then relocate in January prior to Oaklawn beginning. Many trainers he knew when he began in Louisiana are scheduled to race at Oaklawn. “I’ll know a lot of guys I rode for when I was an apprentice,” he said. “It’s going to be a challenge. There are a lot of good riders there. I’ll just do what I did here – work hard, go out every morning with a big smile on my face.” Talamo said he envisions working a circuit that goes from Oaklawn to Keeneland, then Churchill Downs, Ellis Park, and Kentucky Downs, remaining in Kentucky through the spring, summer, and fall before returning anew to Oaklawn. Talamo’s long-time agent, Scotty McClellan, will not be going with him, owing to family obligations McClellan has in California. Talamo said he has been in touch with several potential agents who would work at Oaklawn, but has yet to commit to one.