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Arnaldo Bocachica won his first career race as a teenager at Charles Town in West Virginia in 2006. He won his 1,000th race there in 2015, as well as his 2,000th in 2021, and his 3,000th on Wednesday night, Oct. 1. All of those milestones have come at Charles Town, as did his first career graded stakes win aboard Covey Trace in the Grade 3 Charles Town Oaks in 2016.
How did a kid from Puerto Rico wind up in West Virginia? And what keeps him there?
Bocachica, the son of jockey Orlando Bocachica, enrolled in Puerto Rico's jockey school as soon as he turned 16, but didn't graduate, leaving after a year and a half.
"An agent, Gersom Rodriguez, came to the jockey school and saw me ride in one of the races," Bocachica said. "He asked me if I wanted to come to West Virginia, saying he could help me get a license and knew a lot of people who could get me started. I decided to make the move. I just had a baby that was born and I needed to work."
As for what keeps him at Charles Town after winning riding titles there the last seven years, he gave a simple answer. "I've had offers to leave, to go to Monmouth, Laurel and Parx, but I'm riding the best horses here. I'm content."
Many of those horses are trained by Jeff Runco, who has compiled a formidable 4,872 career wins, putting him 11th all time among North American Thoroughbred trainers. The two men had a night to remember in 2021, when Runco saddled seven stakes winners on the West Virginia Breeders' Classic program. Bocachica rode all seven, plus an eighth stakes winner for trainer Ollie Figgins III.
Not surprisingly, Runco is the trainer of Thunderturtle, the horse that gave Bocachica career win No. 3,000 Wednesday night. He also trains Radar Alert, ridden to victory by Bocachica later Wednesday for his 3,001st victory.
"I never thought about getting to 3,000," Bocachica said. "But now I want to get to 4,000."
The relationship with Runco has been long-running. "As soon as we got together, we started doing well," the rider said. "He's got good horses and he trusts me. He's been really good to me for the last 10 years."
Other than an occasional out-of-town mount in the northeast, Bocachica is a stay-at-home type, with one exception: he rides the Timonium meet in Maryland, sometimes riding there in the afternoon and at Charles Town at night. "I go there because the trainers know I can ride the small (bullring) tracks," he said.
Career win 3,000 for @jockeyAboca!
He did it aboard #3 THUNDERTURTLE in race 3 at @RaceCharlesTown for Jeff Runco. pic.twitter.com/GN6Uml57a3
— FanDuel Racing (@FanDuel_Racing) October 2, 2025
Bocachica's brother, Orlando, is currently riding at Presque Isle Downs in Pennsylvania and has ridden 1,446 winners. Arnaldo's son, Abnel, followed in his father and grandfather's footsteps. After launching his career in Puerto Rico in 2023, he is now riding against his father at Charles Town.
Arnaldo Bocachica has won every riding title at Charles Town since 2018 and he's the runaway leader – with 158 wins compared to 65 for his closest competitor, an amazing 34 percent clip – to win again in 2025.
"I like the competition," he said. "I love the horses and the people who work on them. Since I was a little kid, this is all I wanted to do."
This story was originally reported by Paulick Report on Oct 2, 2025, where it first appeared in the News section. Add Paulick Report as a Preferred Source by clicking here.