Noah Gragson

Noah Quinn Gragson[1] (born July 15, 1998) is an American professional stock car racing driver. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driving the No. 9 Chevrolet Camaro for JR Motorsports, and part-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 62 Camaro ZL1 1LE for Beard Motorsports. He is a member of Drivers Edge Development Program.

Noah Gragson
Gragson at the 2019 My Bariatric Solutions 300
Born	Noah Quinn Gragson July 15, 1998 Las Vegas, Nevada
Achievements	2018 Snowball Derby Winner 2017 Winchester 400 Winner Most poles in one NASCAR Camping World Truck Series season (6 in 2018)
Awards	2018 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Most Popular Driver 2015 NASCAR K&N Pro Series West Rookie of the Year
NASCAR Cup Series career
Car no., team	No. 62 (Beard Motorsports)
NASCAR Xfinity Series career
69 races run over 3 years
Car no., team	No. 9 (JR Motorsports)
2020 position	5th
Best finish	5th (2020)
First race	2018 ToyotaCare 250 (Richmond)
Last race	2020 Desert Diamond Casino West Valley 200 (Phoenix)
First win	2020 NASCAR Racing Experience 300 (Daytona)
Last win	2020 Cheddar's 300 (Bristol)
Wins Top tens Poles 2 50 0
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series career
47 races run over 3 years
2018 position	2nd
Best finish	2nd (2018)
First race	2016 Lucas Oil 150 (Phoenix)
Last race	2018 Ford EcoBoost 200 (Homestead)
First win	2017 Texas Roadhouse 200 (Martinsville)
Last win	2018 37 Kind Days 250 (Kansas)
Wins Top tens Poles 2 30 9
NASCAR Pinty's Series career
1 race run over 1 year
2018 position	35th
Best finish	35th (2018)
First race	2018 Clarington 200 (Mosport)
Wins Top tens Poles 0 1 0
Statistics current as of November 7, 2020.

Racing career

Early career

Gragson's ARCA Midwest Tour car at a 2016 Wisconsin International Raceway event

Gragson started racing Bandoleros at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway Bullring at the age of 13,[2] eventually moving to compete in late models.[3] Gragson also competed in the INEX Legends car racing series, winning the 2014 Young Lion Road Course championship.[4]

K&N Pro Series West

Gragson in 2016

In 2015, Gragson joined Jefferson Pitts Racing in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West in the No. 7 with sponsorship from AlertID,[5] his ride being overseen by co-owner Jerry Pitts.[3] In his series debut at Kern County Raceway Park, he finished third after qualifying eighth.[5] At Tucson Speedway, Gragson battled with teammate Gracin Raz to score his first career victory.[6] Later in the season at Meridian Speedway, Gragson recorded his first pole position and led 176 laps to win.[7] 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.[8] After the season ended, he was named Rookie of the Year.[9]

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.[10]

ARCA Menards Series

2017 ARCA car at Road America

In September of 2015 he joined Mason Mitchell Motorsports in the ARCA Racing Series, driving the No. 78 Ford Fusion at Kentucky Speedway.[11] After qualifying eighth, he finished 14th, one lap behind race winner Ryan Reed.[12]

2016

Gragson prior to the 2016 Ford EcoBoost 200

On October 7, 2016 he was hired by Kyle Busch Motorsports to compete in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series in 2017.[13]

In preparation, he drove the No. 18 Toyota from KBM 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.[14] In his debut at Phoenix, Gragson qualified 14th and finished 16th.[15] Gragson raced at Homestead as well, qualifying 10th and finishing 15th.[16]

2017

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 to go, he finished tenth in points.[17][18]

2018

Gragson during the 2018 Alpha Energy Solutions 250.

He returned to the No. 18 KBM truck for the 2018 season.

A week after wrecking with 2 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 2nd in the points standings, after finishing 3rd at Homestead.

2018

Gragson in his NASCAR Xfinity Series debut in the 2018 ToyotaCare 250

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.[19]

2019

Gragson at the 2019 CTECH Manufacturing 180

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.[20] 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.[21] 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.[22] 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 frontstretch grass. Gragson was credited with a 30th-place finish.[23]

2020

On February 11, 2020, Gragson announced Bass Pro Shops, Black Rifle Coffee Company, and TrueTimber 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. 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.[24]

2021

On August 27, 2020, Gragson and JR Motorsports confirmed a third season together.[25]

Cup Series

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.[26]

Other racing

Gragson after winning at the Las Vegas Bullring in 2016

His 2018 racing slate also included starts on the NASCAR Pinty's Series and CARS Tour circuits in an effort to make himself a better driver via more seat time. Gragson also started working with a sports psychologist in 2018.[27]

In his final ride with KBM, Gragson won the 2018 Snowball Derby after holding off Ty Majeski.[28]

Personal life

Gragson attended Bishop Gorman High School in Las Vegas, Nevada for two years.[29] Gragson enjoys downhill mountain biking,[30] and is an avid video game player, saying in an interview that he would maybe spend Dash 4 Cash winnings on the popular video game Fortnite.[31]

Gragson's great-grandfather was Oran K. Gragson, the longest serving mayor in Las Vegas history who helped curbed corruption in the city and ended racial segregation in the casinos. Noah’s father Scott is a real estate agent and a businessman.[32] In May 2019, Scott, who has financially supported his son's racing career, was involved in a fatal crash in which his blood alcohol content was nearly twice the legal limit. He settled out of court with the victim and is awaiting sentencing.[33]

Motorsports career results

NASCAR

(key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. Italics – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)

Cup Series

NASCAR Cup Series results
Year	Team	No.	Make	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31	32	33	34	35	36	NCSC	Pts	Ref
2021	Beard Motorsports	62	Chevy	DAY	DAY	HOM	LVS	PHO	ATL	BRI	MAR	RCH	TAL	KAN	DAR	DOV	COA	CLT	SON	NSH	POC	POC	ROA	ATL	NHA	GLN	IND	MCH	DAY	DAR	RCH	BRI	LVS	TAL	CLT	TEX	KAN	MAR	PHO

Daytona 500

Year	Team	Manufacturer	Start	Finish
2021	Beard Motorsports	Chevrolet

Xfinity Series

NASCAR Xfinity Series results
Year	Team	No.	Make	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31	32	33	NXSC	Pts	Ref
2018	Joe Gibbs Racing	18	Toyota	DAY	ATL	LVS	PHO	CAL	TEX	BRI	RCH 2	TAL 4	DOV 7	CLT	POC	MCH	IOW	CHI	DAY	KEN	NHA	IOW	GLN	MOH	BRI	ROA	DAR	IND	LVS	RCH	CLT	DOV	KAN	TEX	PHO	HOM	89th	0^1	[34]
2019	JR Motorsports	9	Chevy	DAY 11	ATL 9	LVS 3	PHO 11	CAL 12	TEX 13	BRI 9	RCH 22	TAL 11	DOV 19	CLT 4	POC 6	MCH 2	IOW 6	CHI 6	DAY 15	KEN 6	NHA 10	IOW 4	GLN 9	MOH 5	BRI 17	ROA 4	DAR 8	IND 3	LVS 6	RCH 7	CLT 5	DOV 7	KAN 13	TEX 30	PHO 10	HOM 4	8th	2246	[35]
2020				DAY 1	LVS 4	CAL 26	PHO 7	DAR 5*	CLT 11	BRI 1	ATL 2	HOM 3*	HOM 5*	TAL 10	POC 22	IND 3	KEN 11*	KEN 7	TEX 30	KAN 15	ROA 6	DAY 3	DOV 4	DOV 6	DAY 31	DAR 7	RCH 8	RCH 5	BRI 7	LVS 2	TAL 3	CLT 2	KAN 36	TEX 2*	MAR 3	PHO 2	5th	2306	[36]
2021				DAY	DAY	HOM	LVS	PHO	ATL	MAR	TAL	DAR	DOV	COA	CLT	MOH	TEX	NSH	POC	ROA	ATL	NHA	GLN	IND	MCH	DAY	DAR	RCH	BRI	LVS	TAL	CLT	TEX	KAN	MAR	PHO

Camping World Truck Series

NASCAR Camping World Truck Series results
Year	Team	No.	Make	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	NCWTC	Pts	Ref
2016	Wauters Motorsports	18	Toyota	DAY	ATL	MAR	KAN	DOV	CLT	TEX	IOW	GTW	KEN	ELD	POC	BRI	MCH	MSP	CHI	NHA	LVS	TAL	MAR	TEX	PHO 16	HOM 15	40th	35	[37]
2017	Kyle Busch Motorsports			DAY 26	ATL 15	MAR 4	KAN 28	CLT 9	DOV 9	TEX 7	GTW 9	IOW 6	KEN 5	ELD 7	POC 24	MCH 7	BRI 15	MSP 2	CHI 8	NHA 15	LVS 13	TAL 14	MAR 1	TEX 10	PHO 15	HOM 18	10th	724	[38]
2018				DAY 23	ATL 2	LVS 12	MAR 5	DOV 20	KAN 1*	CLT 8	TEX 10	IOW 2	GTW 10*	CHI 4	KEN 8*	ELD 6	POC INQ^†	MCH 4*	BRI 9	MSP 9*	LVS 18	TAL 13	MAR 7	TEX 10	PHO 2	HOM 3	2nd	4034	[39]
^† – Qualified but replaced by Erik Jones due to illness

K&N Pro Series East

NASCAR K&N Pro Series East results
Year	Team	No.	Make	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	NKNPSEC	Pts	Ref
2015	Jefferson Pitts Racing	7	Ford	NSM	GRE	BRI	IOW	BGS	LGY	COL	NHA	IOW	GLN 8	MOT	VIR			35th	70	[40]
		55														RCH 10	DOV
2016				NSM 6	MOB 12	GRE 7	BRI 12	VIR 17	DOM 3			NHA 11	IOW				DOV 24	5th	454	[41]
		7								STA 1	COL 5			GLN 15	GRE 13	NJM 1
2018	DGR-Crosley	54	Toyota	NSM	BRI 3	LGY	SBO	SBO	MEM	NJM	TMP	NHA	IOW					31st	67	[42]
		98												GLN 20	GTW	NHA	DOV

K&N Pro Series West

NASCAR K&N Pro Series West results
Year	Team	No.	Make	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	NKNPSWC	Pts	Ref
2015	Jefferson Pitts Racing	7	Ford	KCR 3	IRW 7	TUS 1	IOW 3	SHA 16	SON 7	SLS 2	IOW 2	EVG 5	CNS 8	MER 1*	AAS 8	PHO 14		2nd	504	[43]
2016				IRW 4	KCR 8	TUS 9	OSS 3	CNS 10	SON 2*	SLS 2	IOW 6	EVG 16	DCS 4	MMP 1	MMP 1	MER 6	AAS 4	3rd	552	[44]
2019	Jefferson Pitts Racing	7	Chevy	LVS	IRW	TUS	TUS	CNS	SON 1	DCS	IOW	EVG	GTW	MER	AAS	KCR	PHO	-*	0^1*	[45]

^* Season still in progress
¹ Ineligible for series points

Pinty's Series

NASCAR Pinty's Series results
Year	Team	No.	Make	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	NPSC	Pts	Ref
2018	DJK Racing	28	Dodge	MSP 3	HAM	ACD	TOR	SAS	SAS	EIR	CTR	RIS	MSP	ASE	NHA	JUK	35th	41	[46]

ARCA Racing Series

(key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. Italics – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)

ARCA Racing Series results
Year	Team	No.	Make	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	ARSC	Pts	Ref
2015	Mason Mitchell Motorsports	78	Ford	DAY	MOB	NSH	SLM	TAL	TOL	NJE	POC	MCH	CHI	WIN	IOW	IRP	POC	BLN	ISF	DSF	SLM	KAN	KEN 14	105th	160	[47]
2016			Chevy	DAY	NSH	SLM	TAL	TOL	NJE	POC 30	MCH	MAD	WIN	IOW	IRP	POC	BLN	ISF	DSF	SLM	CHI	KEN		77th	285	[48]
	Venturini Motorsports	15	Toyota																				KAN 5
2017		55		DAY 26	NSH	SLM	TAL 30	TOL	ELK	POC	MCH	MAD	IOW	IRP										34th	685	[49]
		15													POC 9	WIN	ISF	ROA 25	DSF	SLM	CHI 4	KEN	KAN
2018	DGR-Crosley	54	Toyota	DAY 7	NSH	SLM	TAL	TOL	CLT	POC 10	MCH	MAD	GTW	CHI	IOW	ELK	POC	ISF	BLN	DSF	SLM	IRP	KAN	56th	385	[50]

References

1. "Team Event Rosters – Texas Motor Speedway – Saturday, October 24, 2020" (PDF). NASCAR. Retrieved October 23, 2020.
2. "NOAH GRAGSON MAKES VIDEO GAME DEBUT IN NASCAR HEAT EVOLUTION". Speed Vegas. October 20, 2016. Retrieved December 7, 2016.
3. "NKPSW: Raz, Gragson Signed to Newly Formed Jefferson Pitts Racing in 2015". RaceChaser. January 20, 2015. Retrieved January 2, 2016.
4. "2014 Champion of the Day: Noah Gragson". US Legend Cars. January 28, 2015. Retrieved January 2, 2016.
5. "2015 NAPA Auto Parts 150". Racing-Reference. Retrieved January 2, 2016.
6. "Gragson Wins Desert Duel". Motor Racing Network. May 3, 2015. Retrieved January 2, 2016.
7. "2015 NAPA Auto Parts Idaho 208". Racing-Reference. Retrieved January 2, 2016.
8. "Gragson Takes Home Rookie of the Year". Motor Racing Network. November 17, 2015. Retrieved January 2, 2016.
9. Franceschini, Brooke (November 17, 2015). "Gragson Named Sunoco Rookie Of The Year". NASCAR Home Tracks. Retrieved December 31, 2015.
10. "2015 Bully Hill Vineyards 125". Racing-Reference. Retrieved January 2, 2016.
11. "NASCAR K&N West point leader Gragson set for ARCA debut with Mason Mitchell Motorsports at Kentucky". ARCA Racing Series. September 23, 2015. Retrieved January 2, 2016.
12. "2015 Crosley Brands 150". Racing-Reference. Retrieved January 2, 2015.
13. "LAS VEGAS NATIVE GRAGSON TO COMPETE FULL-TIME FOR KBM IN 2017". Kyle Busch Motorsports. October 7, 2016. Retrieved October 7, 2016.
14. Utter, Jim (November 4, 2016). "KBM to enter Noah Gragson in final two Truck races of 2016 season". Motorsport Network. Retrieved November 4, 2016.
15. "2016 Lucas Oil 150". Racing-Reference. Retrieved December 7, 2016.
16. "Unofficial Race Results for the 21St Annual Ford Ecoboost 200" (PDF). Jayski's Silly Season Site. ESPN Internet Ventures. Retrieved September 3, 2017.
17. Associated Press (October 28, 2017). "Noah Gragson holds off champions at Martinsville for first Truck Series win". USA Today. Retrieved April 12, 2018.
18. "2017 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved April 12, 2018.
19. "Noah Gragson to drive three Xfinity Series races for Joe Gibbs Racing". NASCAR. April 12, 2018. Retrieved April 12, 2018.
20. "Noah Gragson to replace Sadler at JR Motorsports in 2019". Motorsport Network. September 25, 2018. Retrieved September 25, 2018.
21. Segal, Davey (2019-03-02). "Noah Gragson survives late Las Vegas carnage for third-place finish". Fronstretch.com. Retrieved 2019-03-02.
22. Albino, Dustin (2019-09-19). "Noah Gragson looking to keep consistency rolling into XFINITY Playoffs". Fronstretch.com. Retrieved 2019-09-19.
23. "Noah Gragson out after Texas crash". MSN.com. 2019-11-03. Retrieved 2019-11-03.
24. Spencer, Reid (October 24, 2020). "Spin and win: Burton bests Gragson on final lap to win at Texas". NASCAR. Retrieved October 25, 2020.
25. "Noah Gragson announces return to JR Motorsports for 2021 season". NASCAR.com. August 27, 2020. Retrieved September 25, 2020.
26. "Beard Motorsports Tabs Gragson for Daytona 500". Beard Motorsports. True Speed Communication. January 14, 2021. Retrieved January 14, 2021.
27. Catanzareti, Zach (2018-06-01). "Noah Gragson 'Going The Extra Mile' in 2018 · Kickin' The Tires". Kickin' The Tires. Retrieved 2018-06-02.
28. "Noah Gragson wins Snowball Derby for Kyle Busch Motorsports". NBC Sports. December 2, 2018. Retrieved December 2, 2018.
29. Kantowski, Ron (June 7, 2017). "NASCAR driver Noah Gragson to get diploma at Texas Motor Speedway". Las Vegas Review-Journal. Retrieved May 19, 2019. Gragson attended Bishop Gorman for two years ...
30. "Noah Gragson". NASCAR Next. Archived from the original on May 29, 2016. Retrieved December 7, 2016.
31. Segal, Davey. "Frontstretch Podcast: Noah Gragson Reviews Monster Dover Weekend". Frontstretch. Retrieved 11 May 2018.
32. "Prominent Vegas businessman accused of DUI after fatal crash". Associated Press. May 31, 2019. Retrieved July 24, 2020.
33. Ferrara, David. "Gragson fatal crash settlement includes $21M to family of woman killed". Las Vegas Review Journal. Retrieved 25 May 2020.
34. "Noah Gragson – 2018 NASCAR Xfinity Series Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved November 4, 2018.
35. "Noah Gragson – 2019 NASCAR Xfinity Series Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved February 16, 2019.
36. "Noah Gragson – 2020 NASCAR Xfinity Series Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved November 7, 2020.
37. "Noah Gragson – 2016 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved November 4, 2018.
38. "Noah Gragson – 2017 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved November 4, 2018.
39. "Noah Gragson – 2018 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved November 4, 2018.
40. "Noah Gragson – 2015 NASCAR K&N Pro Series East Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved March 1, 2018.
41. "Noah Gragson – 2016 NASCAR K&N Pro Series East Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved March 1, 2018.
42. "Noah Gragson – 2018 NASCAR K&N Pro Series East Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved April 15, 2018.
43. "Noah Gragson – 2015 NASCAR K&N Pro Series West Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved March 1, 2018.
44. "Noah Gragson – 2016 NASCAR K&N Pro Series West Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved March 1, 2018.
45. "Noah Gragson – 2019 NASCAR K&N Pro Series West Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved June 22, 2019.
46. "Noah Gragson – 2018 NASCAR Pinty's Series Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved November 4, 2018.
47. "Noah Gragson – 2015 ARCA Racing Series Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved November 4, 2018.
48. "Noah Gragson – 2016 ARCA Racing Series Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved November 4, 2018.
49. "Noah Gragson – 2017 ARCA Racing Series Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved November 4, 2018.
50. "Noah Gragson – 2018 ARCA Racing Series Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved November 4, 2018.

External links

• Noah Gragson on Twitter
• Noah Gragson driver statistics at Racing-Reference