At a Monster Jam event in Spokane, Washington, NASCAR driver Ryan Vargas participated for the first time. He got behind the wheel of the famous monster truck, El Toro Loco, and you could say that he did quite well.
Vargas scored seven points in the racing competition, the freestyle competition and the two-wheeled skills challenge. That was enough for him to secure the event’s overall victory in his debut, and Vargas was excited about it.
“I was like you Monster Jam fans, sitting in the stands, watching these trucks hit each other and throw each other,” Vargas said in his post-victory interview. “I can’t believe it. First weekend of the event and I’m an overall champion of the event. Holy cow, this is incredible. Thank you all.”
He continued with a message for those watching and wanting to one day be where Vargas is: “Just dream about it. I never thought I’d drive anything in my life. I’ve raced in NASCAR, I’ve raced overseas, I’ve raced in Canada and now I’m driving in Monster Jam. I mean, can you believe that? It’s crazy!”
He shouted to his parents, who were in the crowd, and told the reporter: “I’m talking, but I’m very happy.”
The 25-year-old has competed in several NASCAR divisions over the years, including Xfinity, Trucks, ARCA, EuroNASCAR and NASCAR Canada.
His career has included 71 starts in the NASCAR Xfinity Series with two top tens and a best finish of sixth. In seven Truck starts in his career, he finished eighth. Last year he raced the entire EuroNASCAR schedule in Europe, where he finished the season tenth in the championship. He also earned a podium finish in the EuroNASCAR 2 division while competing in the Netherlands.
This year, he made his ARCA debut with two top tens in four starts. He has also raced most of the 2025 NASCAR Canada schedule, finishing as high as third at Riverside in Nova Scotia.
He also plans to compete in the upcoming Monster Jam event in Hampton, Virginia, Nov. 1-2.
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