Jennifer Jo Cobb currently competes full-time in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series and drives the #10 Chevrolet Silverado for her own JJC Racing. She competed in NASCAR's first-ever Cup Series race on June 19, 1949 at Charlotte Speedway. So, Courtney, of course, feels advantages of having a sister as a champion of Funny Car division and father, John Force. If you're a Black consumer, it's hard to enjoy the sports or the leisure or the activity when you're surrounded by this ambiance or this effervescence that's racially discriminating.". Gracie Trotter (Source: Twitter) In 2007, she earned the title of the first female driver winner at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Named for the type of gasoline her father used in his taxi, Ethel Flock Mobley competed in more than 100 Modified stock car races in her career. [6] In the second official race, at Daytona Beach and Road Course, Christian was joined by Ethel Mobley and Louise Smith, with Mobley finishing first out of the 3, in 11th. Born and raised in Iowa, now retired, Robinson started her career for the Spring Cup Series in 1995. "People were like, 'oh, she sucks,' 'what does it matter that she's Black?' You can check out her Instagram, where she keeps posting pictures of her family. In addition to Breidinger, Decker and Balcaen, the other recipients of the inaugural sponsorship are Jennifer Jo Cobb, Melissa Fifield, Stephanie Moyer and Brittney Zamora, Busch Light said. "There was a time where when you think about race and sport, NASCAR would be on the not-so-positive end of the spectrum," Armstrong said. She made her debut with the Xfinity series, made 10 starts, and finished 72nd in 2004. . Then, keep on reading our list of best female NASCAR drivers. In September, Trotter became the 4th woman to win a late model race at Hickory Motor Speedway. During her NASCAR Xfinity Series career, she finished once in the pole position and once in the top ten. She's continuing to break barriers in the historically white, male-dominated sport as a tire changer on . The NASCAR Whelen Euro Series formed the Lady Cup, a championship system for female drivers in 2014. Toni Breidinger - Wikipedia . At Kentucky, Patrick became the first woman to make 100 starts in NASCAR's Cup Series. Why wouldn't that be talked about?," Daniels said. This season, there's a new face on the racetrack, and she's creating history. While the media paints Tia Norfleet as a liar and a criminal, it seems that she was right on par with other young drivers trying to find their way in the wild world of motorsports. NASCAR's first Arab American female driver makes her Daytona debut With a resume full of firsts, Janet Guthrie truly broke barriers in her racing career. Race Car Drivers Who Have Died - Legacy.com The 20 year old ARCA rookie earned pole position during the season opener in Daytona, making her the 3rd woman in ARCA history and the fourth in Daytonas 60 year existence to start a race from pole position. In 2010, IndyCar Series driver Danica Patrick joined NASCAR, racing part-time in the K&N Pro Series East and the Nationwide Series. She returned to ARCA in 2021 for Youngs Motorsports on a part-time schedule. First Black Woman Making NASCAR History Without Getting Behind the Wheel "When I saw Danica Patrick in the Cup Series, that made me believe that I could somehow, someday be in the Cup series," Balcaen said. Kim Crosby, a NASCAR female driver, was born in Tallahassee in Florida on 8th December 1964. In her career in the NASCAR Xfinity series, she appeared in 15 races in just a year and 32 races in the Camping World Truck. Danica is a successful retired NASCAR driver and the first woman to win an Indy Car Series race. This isnt a rank-based list. There are few women and minorities represented across the sport. Moise is married to fellow NASCAR driver Elton Sawyer. While some female NASCAR drivers have transitioned or attempted to transition from open-wheel racing and sports car racing (such as Sarah Fisher, Janet Guthrie, and Danica Patrick), most have climbed the stock-car racing ladder (such as Tammy Jo Kirk, Johanna Long, and Shawna Robinson), beginning to race full-sized stock cars in their teenage years. During college, the Norfolk State women's basketball point guard said she never once thought about NASCAR as a sport, let alone a career. Toni Breidinger, the first Arab American female driver in NASCAR, returned to the ARCA Menards Series for the first time since 2018, joining Young's Motorsports to compete part-time for them as part of the Truck Series team's first foray into ARCA. (WKMG 2021) In 2019, she became the . Deegan moved up from the ARCA Menards Series to the Truck Series full-time, continuing to drive for David Gilliland Racing. Beyond raising "millions of dollars" just to get on the track, having female drivers paving the way is also crucial, Balcaen said. Natalie Decker, 24, who is competing one level below the Cup Series in the NASCAR Xfinity Series this season, told ABC News she has looked for sponsorships since she started racing at the age of 9 to help fund the expensive sport. She was born on June 25, 1997, in Eagle River, Wisconsin, U.S. Decker has competed at the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series and ARCA Menards Series and in 2015, participated in the Drive for Diversity. Christian competed in NASCAR's first race on June 19, 1949 at Charlotte Motor Speedway. In Australia, Terri Sawyer[13] won the Moomba 100 NASCAR race at the Calder Park Thunderdome, Melbourne on March 3, 1991 driving a Pontiac. A former NASCAR driver, Danica is one of the most successful women in open-wheel race history. Photo by Paul Morigi/Getty Images for BET. Female NASCAR Drivers That Deserve a Shot at the Cup Series Soon A few weeks later she passed Guthrie for the most top ten finishes for a woman in Sprint Cup history at Bristol. Richard Petty's 200 wins make him the winningest driver. Siegel himself was NASCAR's first highest-ranking Black executive. In a late model race at Motor Mile Speedway in Fairlawn, Virginia, she started a race, yet parked after one lap. Pioneering Female Race Car Drivers - Your AAA Network Most recently, she was also featured in the video for Maroon 5s Girls Like You single. Ann Slaasted (1 / 1950) Two year later, Patrick would earn the pole at the 2012 DRIVE4COPD 300, becoming the first female driver since Shawna Robinson to clinch it. She was listed as one of the drivers for the #15 truck for Billy Ballew Motorsports as a teammate to Kyle Busch in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck. 71 Ford placed 14th. Some of her other awards are the 2005 Indianapolis 500 Rookie and the 2012 NASCAR Nationwide Series. . Patricia Moise-Sawyer is a former NASCAR driver born on 29 December, 1960 and is married to a former fellow NASCAR driver Elton Sawyer. Paris Berelc is suiting up for an adult role in the new Netflix NASCAR-inspired comedy series The Crew as up-and-coming race car driver Jessie de la Cruz, who is trying to bump Jake Martin . [17] In 2012, Patrick would eventually race part-time in the Sprint Cup Series. Toni Breidinger makes history as Nascar's first Arab-American female driver Daniels said she has had to tune out a lot of negativity even while some celebrate her achievements in the sport. The Busch Light Accelerate Her Program, which is being announced timed to the Daytona 500 this Sunday, marks a $10 million commitment from the brand to sponsor every female driver in NASCAR ages 21 and up over the next three years. "You see that symbol, you know that it evokes these feelings of hatred and racial denigration. Twelve years later, Breidinger has become the first Arab American female . Born in Massachusetts, Erin started in the NASCAR field in 2005, where she created ten starts and received the 67th best finish the following year. Sara Christian (7 / 1949-1950) Darius Days Bio: Family, Contracts And Net Worth, Gus Johnson Bio: Family, Documentary & Net Worth, Mike Conley Net Worth: Charity & Endorsements, Shaun Livingston Bio: Injuries, NBA Championships, Net Worth & Kids, Romain Grosjean Bio: Crash, Wife, IndyCar & Net Worth>>. Despite competing on only six of eight races, Christian finished 13th in points in 1949, her only full season of competition. Earning the pole for the 2013 Daytona 500 was a history-making event for Danica Patrick and her Stewart-Haas Racing team. Formerly Busch North Series (19872005), Busch East Series (200607), Camping World East Series (200809) and K&N Pro Series East (201019), Formerly Pacific Coast Late Model Division (195469), Grand National West (1970), Winston West Series (197193), Winston Transcontinental Series (1994), Winston West Series (19952003), West Series (200405), AutoZone West Series (2006), West Series (2007), Camping World West Series (200809) and K&N Pro Series West (201019), Formerly Winston Modified Tour (198593) and Featherlite Modified Series (19942004), Formerly Desafo Corona (200406), Corona Series (200711), Toyota Series (201214), Mexico Series (2015), Note: Only partial statistics available prior to 2008 season, Formerly Mexico T4 Series (200407), Mini Stock Series (200910), Stock V6 Series (201115). She's continued to set records: In 2013, she became the first female NASCAR driver to take a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series pole in the 2013 Daytona 500; her eighth place finish is the highest finish . A Professional Stock Car Racer, Johanna Robbins (Source: AL.com). [5], NASCAR has seen varying levels of participation by female drivers throughout its ranks since the sanctioning body's inception in 1949. Terri had previously attempted the NASCAR Sportsman series in the US.