Jorge Vargas | Sarah Andrews
Via Emmanuel Marquez
Last week, Puerto Rican racer Jorge A. Vargas, Jr won one of the biggest races of his young career aboard the train. Geno (Big Brown) in NYSSS Great White Way S. $500,000 at Aqueduct. Victory, more than happiness and a good check, has brought relief and a breath of fresh air to a new year after a tumultuous 2021.
“I was a bit down because I worked hard, I cycled almost every day and you want to see the results, no big deal,” Vargas said on a recent vacation to Puerto Rico to see family. going on”. “Thank God this week has been great. I won every day, that’s one of my goals, to win at least one every day. On top of that, we won the stakes, which helps us not only with the money but also helps people see us and know that we can do it and we are here because we have the skills. ”
After two consecutive successful seasons in 2018 and 2019, where he won more than 100 races a year and claimed his first equestrian title at Laurel’s Park Winter Meet, Vargas’ pace has been slowed by the greats. epidemic in 2020. He’s back to being hungrier than ever in 2021, but his progress was once again short-lived when he hit the ground hard on March 20 when his horse fell. in a race at Monmouth Park. Vargas broke his lumbar bone and was sidelined for another four months.
“I’m not going to lie and it’s no secret,” Vargas said of his mid-2021 crisis. “You come from a pandemic that keeps you away from what you love for three to four months. You try to get back on track, get a little steam and then drop again, for another three to four months.”
Represented by Jimmy Riccio, Vargas has chosen to stay on the NYRA track for the past three years even in the face of stiff competition from one of the nation’s most elite equestrian colonies. It’s a calculated risk for the 26-year-old, who says he always wants to push himself against the best.
“New York is the big league, that’s where people want to prove themselves,” Vargas said. “You have to really work and know if you belong. I love challenges and that’s what moves me. I accepted the challenge and I always work hard and always rise. ”
Vargas, who started riding in 2013, has been an underdog his entire career. People doubted he could become a professional racer and he did. People doubted he could ride in the United States and he shined on the Pennsylvania track. Everyone doubted he could win a meet and he won in Maryland in 2018. Now the always smiling Vargas wants to do the same in New York and he just needs a little luck and trust.
“I just want to have a healthy year,” Vargas said of his expectations for 2022. “This is a year where I can ride horses and show what I know to do. It is always challenging. In the United States at this time there are a lot of racing games so winning the races is very complicated. I want to keep more than 100 wins a year. ”
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