In Mexico pursuing a dream
Having relocated from her native city of Ibague in Colombia to Mexico, Sara Varon is developing her racing ability to the elite level under the tutelage of ITALIKA Racing director Jorge Perez, alongside her teammate, the Mexican rider Astrid Madrigal. Varon’s first season on the world stage has been impacted by injury, but she is a determined character and is fighting hard to make a name for herself in WorldWCR.
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A pocketbike as the first step to WorldWCR
Varon states that her family are fully immersed in the motorcycle scene and it was a natural pathway for her into racing. “It’s thanks to them that I got into riding motorbikes,” she reveals. “From when I was a baby they took me to races and also my father had a workshop so I’ve always been around bikes. When I was a child, there was a pocketbike in my father’s workshop and I told him that I wanted to race it like the others, so my father brought the motorcycle to the house one day and let me ride it. Somehow I rode it like I already knew how to.”
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From riding for fun to racing
It was not long before those first turns of a throttle became a serious hobby as the young Varon began to compete. “I started racing because of my parents, as they also raced,” she explains. “I competed in Colombia for most of my career but I was not very well known, nor supported, so I couldn’t go to all the races because it was not financially possible. In 2018 I started going to Mexico to race representing Colombia and that year I was top 10, so I managed to keep my place for the following year, I received a scholarship and won my first race. I only won the first race in the season, then in 2021 they invited me again, I had more podiums and I managed to place well in the championship. So I went to live that year in Mexico, I left my family, friends and university to do it.”
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The base from which to launch a career
Having been selected to develop her career further as part of the ITALIKA Racing structure Varon is highly grateful for the opportunity the organisation has given her. “I’m really passionate about racing and I dedicate myself 100%. I want to achieve something big in this sport and thanks to the support that ITALIKA Racing gave me, I’ve made it here and I never lacked for anything. I’ve been able to train every day and prepare myself properly for this. In 2022 I managed to be Latin American champion, the first Colombian to achieve it, then in 2023 I became Ibero-American champion, again as the first Colombian to do it. In 2024, thanks to the work I did and the titles I won, ITALIKA Racing have helped me fulfil my dream of reaching the FIM Women’s Circuit Racing World Championship. With our sporting director Jorge Perez and my teammate Astrid Madrigal I’ve really learned a lot. Now my dream is to be a World Champion. Racing is what has made me who I am, it’s my identity.”
Coming back from injury in 2024
Varon’s 2024 campaign has not been an easy one due to two crashes in which she sustained injuries in the first half of the year. That meant she was unable to make her WorldWCR debut until the third round of the season in Portugal in August. “I got injured in March and then again in Cremona at the WorldWCR test,” she comments, “So I missed the races in Misano and Donington Park. I would have loved to have been at those races, but unfortunately it wasn’t to be. I got the ok to ride at Portimao, but I still wasn’t feeling so good mentally. I had some fears about crashing again and getting injured again. It was a difficult moment and then of course Portimao is a special circuit with the ups and downs. I knew it was going to be hard. I need to train a lot to be up there amongst the best riders. I’m positive and relaxed, I know I’m coming back from injury and I need to be calm. My goal is to get some points to be in the standings, that’s the step to take to fight to be in the championship again next year. I’m determined and I’ll fight for my dreams.”
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Feeling a warm welcome in the paddock
Describing the experience of being in a World Championship for the first time this year, Varon recognises the highly positive welcome she and her fellow WorldWCR riders have been given. “It’s been great,” she states. “We’re used to a different kind of paddock. In the WorldSBK paddock lots of people are friendly and they appreciate us. That’s awesome. Some of the WorldSBK riders have come to say hello. You can see that they are pleased that the female riders are now there too. It makes us feel special. We are the first women making history this year in the new championship. It feels really good, it makes me feel valued as a rider.”
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Painting and studying biology
In addition to training hard away from the circuit, with sports and physical activity being her main pastimes Varon is also a fan of the paint brush and has been into creating art for some time. “It’s been a few months now since I did any painting, but I really like painting and drawing,” she reveals. “I’m quite good at it and it’s something I usually do watching videos where they show you how to do it. I love the sea and I love painting that, painting nature. Of course I’ve also painted motorcycles! I also used to study biology at university in Colombia, but I stopped when I moved to Mexico to focus on my riding.”
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Representing Colombia and a message to young riders
On the significance for her of representing her nation in WorldWCR, Varon states, “It is very important, I represent an entire country, I am very proud to represent Colombia, I was born there, I grew up there, I will always be Colombian and I will represent my people as it should be. It is the most important thing in my life, I dreamed of this moment. It is an honour to be able to make history and mark this new era of motorcycling. It’s the beginning of something that in a few years will be phenomenal.” Sending out a message to the next generation of aspiring young female riders she concludes, “Like all elite sports, you must have discipline, commitment, sacrifice and dedicate your whole life to achieve something important. If you really like this sport, you will do whatever it takes to make a difference. Fight every day for your dreams, be a warrior and don’t let anyone stop you, because like me you can fulfil your dream of reaching the FIM Women’s Circuit Racing World Championship.”
