EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. – When jockey Samuel Marin arrived in the United States from Venezuela in 2021 he didn’t speak any English and had never ridden on the grass, since his native country doesn’t have turf racing.

These days, he’s the leading rider at the all-turf Monmouth-at-Meadowlands meet –  an achievement he is happy to discuss in fluent English.

The 23-year-old will continue in his quest for his first-ever riding title when he rides in all six races on Friday’s Monmouth-at-Meadowlands card. He enters the weekend with a 6-4-2 line from 18 mounts at the boutique meet.

“I wouldn’t say I learned quickly how to ride on the grass, but if you want something badly enough and you are willing to work for it you will see good results,” said Marin. “If you really want to learn something you can. It’s like when I was learning to speak English. There was not a single day I missed trying to learn English.

“I wanted to ride in this country and I knew I had to learn English if I wanted to ride for everyone. I was an exercise rider and galloped horses for the first nine months when I came here. I galloped at Gulfstream, Fair Hill, Laurel and Delaware and I realized that if you don’t speak English it will be difficult for anyone who wants to grow in this career. So I learned because I really wanted it.”

Marin’s current grass success is more of a continuation of his professional growth than an aberration.

The Trujillo, Venezuela, native was a solid third in the rider standings this summer at the Monmouth Park meet, with 13 of his 40 wins coming on the grass (including two stakes victories on the grass).

His 69 wins overall this year include 27 grass victories (and his first on synthetic at Presque Isle).

“I don’t really look at my statistics so it is surprising to see how well I have done on the grass,” said Marin. “It was weird riding on grass at first. But once I got comfortable and watched replays I got confidence and I was able to be just as comfortable on turf as I am on dirt.”

Marin, who was the leading apprentice at La Riconada Hippodromo in Caracas in 2020, said he learned English by watching TV and picking up what he could online and through social media. It is the same determined approach he had with learning how to ride on the grass.

“I love watching races. That’s how I started learning about how to ride on the grass,” he said. “Even if I am not doing anything at home I am watching videos and replays of races.

“A lot of other jockeys helped me with advice too – Ramon Dominguez, Junior Alvarado, Pedro Monterrey, Elvis Trujillo. All of them would answer whatever questions I had about turf racing. All of that helped. But the only way to learn to ride on the turf is to ride in races.”

Marin’s tireless work ethic is reflected in his yearly improvement. He won 22 races in his first year riding in the U.S. in 2022, then 76 overall last year. He is well on pace to eclipse last year’s total with his 69 wins to date.

“It’s important because it means my hard work is paying off,” said Marin. “It’s a good feeling. It feels great to know that when you work hard it will pay off.”