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Noah Gragson
American racing driver (born 1998) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Noah Quinn Gragson[1][2] (born July 15, 1998) is an American professional stock car racing driver. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 4 Ford Mustang Dark Horse for Front Row Motorsports.
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Racing career
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Early career
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Gragson started racing Bandoleros at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway Bullring at the age of 13,[3] eventually moving to compete in late models.[4] Gragson also competed in the INEX Legends car racing series, winning the 2014 Young Lion Road Course championship.[5]
Regional series
ARCA Menards Series West
In 2015, Gragson joined Jefferson Pitts Racing in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West in the No. 7 with sponsorship from AlertID,[6] his ride being overseen by co-owner Jerry Pitts.[4] In his series debut at Kern County Raceway Park, he finished third after qualifying eighth.[6] At Tucson Speedway, Gragson battled with teammate Gracin Raz to score his first career victory.[7] Later in the season at Meridian Speedway, Gragson recorded his first pole position and led 176 laps to win.[8] In his first season of stock car racing, Gragson finished second in the final points standings behind Chris Eggleston with two wins, seven top fives, 11 top tens, becoming the ninth driver in series history to finish runner-up in points and win Rookie of the Year.[9] After the season ended, he was named Rookie of the Year.[10]
Gragson would return to the West Series in 2019 in a one-off attempt for his old team, Jefferson Pitts Racing, in their No. 7 car in the race at Sonoma. He was announced to run the same race in 2024 in the No. 30 car for Rette Jones Racing in addition to competing part-time for the team in their new Xfinity Series car.[11]
K&N Pro Series East
During the 2015 season, Gragson ran two races in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East, finishing eighth in his debut at Watkins Glen International.[12]
ARCA Racing Series
2015–2018: Mason Mitchell Motorsports, Venturini Motorsports, and DGR Crosley
In 2015, he joined Mason Mitchell Motorsports in the ARCA Racing Series, driving the No. 78 Ford Fusion at Kentucky Speedway.[13] After qualifying eighth, he finished 14th, one lap behind race winner Ryan Reed.[14]
In 2016 he made two starts; one with Mason Mitchell Motorsports driving the No. 78 Chevrolet SS at Pocono finishing 30th and one in the season finale with Venturini Motorsports driving the No. 15 Toyota Camry at Kansas finishing 5th.
In 2017 he competed in five races with Venturini with a best finish of 4th at Chicagoland.
In 2018 he made 2 starts for DGR Crosley in the No. 54 Toyota Camry at Daytona finishing 7th and Pocono where he scored the pole, dominated much of the early going, and finished 10th.
2024: Rette Jones Racing
On April 30, 2024, it was announced that Gragson would return to ARCA and drive the No. 30 car for Rette Jones Racing in the race at Watkins Glen International in addition to running part-time for the team in their new Xfinity Series car.[11]
Camping World Truck Series
2016–2018: Wauters Motorsports and Kyle Busch Motorsports
In preparation for the 2017 season, he drove the No. 18 Toyota from Kyle Busch Motorsports at the Phoenix International Raceway and Homestead-Miami Speedway events in an entry fielded by Wauters Motorsports, who also fielded Super Late Model’s for Gragson.[15] In his debut at Phoenix, Gragson qualified 14th and finished 16th.[16] Gragson raced at Homestead as well, qualifying 10th and finishing 15th.[17]
On October 7, 2016, he was hired by Kyle Busch Motorsports to compete in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series in 2017.[18]
In 2017, he recorded his first career Truck win in the fall at Martinsville Speedway in the Texas Roadhouse 200 after passing Matt Crafton for the lead on the outside with 10 laps to go, he finished tenth in points.[19][20]
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He returned to the No. 18 KBM truck for the 2018 season.
A week after wrecking with two laps to go while battling with Johnny Sauter for the win at Dover, Gragson dominated at Kansas in the 37 Kind Days 250 leading 128 out of 167 laps to score his 2nd career win.
During qualifying at Pocono Raceway, Gragson fell ill and was not cleared to race. Erik Jones replaced him for the race, but he was granted a playoff waiver and will still contend for the championship.
Gragson finished second in the points standings, after finishing third at Homestead.
Xfinity Series
2018: Joe Gibbs Racing
Gragson made his NASCAR Xfinity Series debut in the No. 18 for Joe Gibbs Racing at Richmond Raceway in 2018 as part of a three-race schedule that included further starts at Talladega Superspeedway and Dover International Speedway.[21]
2019–2022: JR Motorsports
On September 25, 2018, JR Motorsports announced that Gragson would drive the No. 1 Chevrolet full-time for the 2019 Xfinity Series, replacing Elliott Sadler who retired at the end of the 2018 season. However, on January 25, the team announced that Gragson would instead pilot the No. 9 and teammate Michael Annett would drive the No. 1.[22] Gragson opened his rookie campaign with JR Motorsports by finishing 11th in the NASCAR Racing Experience 300 at Daytona International Speedway. He scored a ninth-place at Atlanta the next week for his first top-10 of the season and followed it up with his first top-five of the season the next week when he finished third at Las Vegas.[23] Gragson would go on to produce several strong runs during the season including a season-best second-place at Michigan.
Gragson qualified for the Playoffs after the second Las Vegas race on the strength of seven top-fives and 17 top-10s in the regular season.[24] Gragson scored his first DNF of his Xfinity Series career in the 2019 O'Reilly 300 at Texas Motor Speedway when contact on lap 150 with the No. 18 of Harrison Burton sent Gragson's car spinning through the front stretch grass. Gragson was credited with a 30th-place finish.[25]
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On February 11, 2020, Gragson announced Bass Pro Shops, Black Rifle Coffee Company, and True Timber would sponsor him as a primary sponsor for three races starting at the season opener at Daytona International Speedway. He went on to win the season-opening NASCAR Racing Experience 300. At the end of the 2020 Alsco 300, he was involved in a fight with Harrison Burton after Gragson pushed him into the wall in the closing laps. Neither driver was reprimanded by NASCAR.[26] Gragson was in position to win a late-season race at Texas Motor Speedway but was passed by Harrison Burton in the final set of corners.[27] He would later finish 5th for the year in points.
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On August 27, 2020, Gragson and JR Motorsports confirmed a third season together.[28] At the end of the Atlanta race, he was involved in a fight with Daniel Hemric after a pit road mishap during the race. Neither driver was reprimanded by NASCAR.[29] Hemric would later go on to win the Xfinity Series championship that year. On May 10, Gragson finished fourth at Darlington, but was disqualified when his car failed post-race inspection for unapproved suspension mounts. JR Motorsports filed and won the appeal, restoring Gragson's fourth-place finish and awarding him the US$100,000 Dash 4 Cash bonus.[30] He would later win at Darlington and Richmond to make the playoff before scoring a big win in Martinsville to make the Championship for the first time in his career and finishing 3rd in points.
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Gragson began the 2022 season with a third-place finish at Daytona. He also scored wins at Phoenix, Talladega and Pocono. At Road America, Gragson had an on-road scuffle with Sage Karam, resulting in him triggering a 13-car pileup on lap 25. He was fined US$35,000 and docked 30 driver and owner points for the incident.[31] At the September Darlington race, Gragson won a three-car battle with Sheldon Creed and Kyle Larson on the closing laps.[32] He also won the next three races at Kansas, Bristol, and Texas, becoming the first driver since Sam Ard in 1983 to win four straight Xfinity Series races.[33] Gragson won his eighth race at Homestead to make his second straight Xfinity Championship 4 appearance.[34] He would end up finishing 2nd in the Championship to Ty Gibbs.
2024: Part-time with Rette Jones Racing
On April 30, 2024, it was announced that Gragson would be returning to the Xfinity Series driving Rette Jones Racing's new No. 30 car in four races: Charlotte, Nashville, Michigan, and Darlington.[35] It was the team's Xfinity Series debut. He drove for RJR in late models and the Canada Series in 2023 after he was reinstated by NASCAR. RJR would form an alliance with Stewart–Haas Racing, Gragson's Cup Series team, for their Xfinity Series program. In two races in 2024, Noah has finished top 10 at Charlotte and top 5 at Nashville.[11]
Cup Series
2021–2022: Beard Motorsports, Kaulig Racing, and Hendrick Motorsports
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On January 14, 2021, Beard Motorsports announced Gragson would attempt to make his NASCAR Cup Series debut in the Daytona 500, driving the No. 62 Chevrolet.[36] He was unable to set a qualifying time after failing inspection three times and started the Bluegreen Vacations Duel from the back; a wreck with Garrett Smithley and Brad Keselowski with four laps remaining ended his chances of making the 500.[37]
Gragson returned to Beard for the 2022 Daytona 500, this time successfully qualifying for the race. He also signed with Kaulig Racing to share the No. 16 Cup car with A. J. Allmendinger and former rival Daniel Hemric.[38][39]
In his first start at the Daytona 500, he was involved in The Big One late in the race with 10 laps to go while running 7th after getting wrecked by Kevin Harvick. In his 2nd start at Atlanta he would have much of the same luck wrecking hard into the second turn wall on lap 24 while running 17th after his car broke loose in the middle of turns 1 and 2. At the 2022 Coke Zero Sugar 400, Gragson finished a Cup career-best finish of fifth.
Gragson drove the Hendrick Motorsports No. 48 at the Talladega, Charlotte Roval, Las Vegas, Homestead and the Martinsville races as a substitute for Alex Bowman, who sustained a concussion from a crash at Texas.[40][41]
2023: Rookie season with Legacy Motor Club and suspension
On August 10, 2022, Gragson was announced as the driver for the No. 42 for Petty GMS (which was later rebranded Legacy Motor Club) for 2023, replacing Ty Dillon and signing a two-year contract.[42][43] He started the season with a 24th-place finish at the 2023 Daytona 500. At Kansas, Gragson got into a fist fight with Ross Chastain after the two were having a discussion of an on track incident that escalated quickly.[44] At Gateway, Gragson was involved in a hard crash due to a brake rotor failure. His car spun down toward the apron and then back up the track, hitting the wall first with the rear of his car and then the front. Gragson suffered concussion-like symptoms from the crash and was replaced by Grant Enfinger at Sonoma.[45] On August 5, NASCAR and LMC suspended Gragson indefinitely for violation of Section 4.4.D. of the NASCAR Rule Book, which concerns member conduct, after Gragson liked an offensive meme related to the murder of George Floyd on social media.[46][47] On August 10, 2023, Gragson requested to be released from his contract with LMC so he could focus on the reinstatement process.[48] On September 12, 2023, NASCAR lifted Gragson's suspension and cleared him to resume his racing activity after he completed diversity and inclusion training.[49][50]
2024: Stewart–Haas Racing
On December 13, 2023, Gragson signed a multi-year deal with Stewart–Haas Racing to drive the No. 10, starting in 2024.[51]
Gragson started the season with a ninth-place finish at the 2024 Daytona 500. Following the Atlanta race, the No. 10 was hit with an L1 penalty and docked 35 owner and driver points after pre-race inspection revealed unapproved roof rails.[52] Gragson rebounded a week later at Las Vegas with a sixth-place finish.[53] He scored a career-best third-place finish at Talladega.[54]
On May 28, 2024, Stewart–Haas Racing announced it would shut down its NASCAR operations at the end of the season.[55]
2025: Front Row Motorsports
On July 10, 2024, Gragson signed a multi-year deal with Front Row Motorsports to drive for the team starting in 2025.[56] On January 3, 2025, FRM announced Gragson will drive the No. 4 car.[57]
Other racing
Late Model Racing
In 2017, Gragson won the Winchester 400 and in his final ride with KBM, he won the 2018 Snowball Derby after holding off Ty Majeski.[58]
Gragson ran late model races in 2023 for Rette Jones Racing after being reinstated from his suspension by NASCAR.[11]
Pinty's Series
Gragson's 2018 racing slate also included starts on the NASCAR Pinty's Series circuit in an effort to make himself a better driver via more seat time. He also started working with a sports psychologist that year.[59]
Gragson ran one race in the Pinty's Series in 2023 for Rette Jones Racing after being reinstated from his suspension by NASCAR.[11]
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Personal life
Gragson's great-grandfather, Oran K. Gragson, was the longest serving mayor of Las Vegas, Nevada, having held the office from 1959 to 1975.[60] Gragson's grandfather and father were both prominent real estate developers in Las Vegas.[61]
Gragson struggled in school due to dyslexia and a learning disability. In seventh grade, he was sent to attend the Army and Navy Academy in Carlsbad, California for two years.[61] Gragson attended Bishop Gorman High School in Las Vegas, Nevada for two years. He finished his high school education online at K12.[62] Gragson enjoys downhill mountain biking,[63] and is an avid video game player, saying in an interview that he would perhaps spend Dash 4 Cash winnings on the popular video game Fortnite.[64]
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Motorsports career results
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Stock car career summary
† As Gragson was a guest driver, he was ineligible for championship points.
NASCAR
(key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. Italics – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)
Cup Series
Daytona 500
Xfinity Series
Camping World Truck Series
* Season still in progress
1 Ineligible for series points
Pinty's Series
ARCA Racing Series
(key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. Italics – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)
K&N Pro Series East
ARCA Menards Series West
CARS Super Late Model Tour
(key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. Italics – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led. ** – All laps led.)
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References
External links
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