21-year-old Rajah Caruth racked up his first NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series win on Friday night in Las Vegas, making a statement, flaunting Spire Motorsports new-look. Caruth, who is a product of NASCAR’s diversity program, is now the third driver of African American descent to win a NASCAR series.
In fact, Caruth, who was a former iRacing driver, got his first win in stellar fashion, beating three Cup Series regulars including the 2-time Cup Series champion, Kyle Busch, Christopher Bell, and Zane Smith.
Following his thumping victory, Caruth was seen on the DBC podcast, revealing his excitement and astonishment when he came to know that Rick Hendrick of HMS had massive plans for him, sharing how the bossman and his co supported him.
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Rajah Caruth gets candid about meeting bossman, Rick Hendrick, and opens up about the HMS involvement
After his iconic Daytona run, all eyes were on Spire Motorsports‘ young sensation, Rajah Caruth, who came home third just in the nick of time before the ‘Big One’ swept the field in the closing leg of the race. While the driver was initially blamed and criticized for triggering the late wreck, fast forward to the third race of the calendar and the 21-year-old showed to the world that he means business.
Winning his first race, Caruth’s thumping victory comes 20 years after the creation of NASCAR’s Driver for Diversity program, which was initiated to attract more minority and female participation in NASCAR. Speaking on the DBC podcast, the youngster opened up about his association with Hendrickcars.com, HMS’ automotive sales group. He got candid about meeting Mr. Hendrick, where he said, “I met him for the first time in the 500 in 2020. I do not think he remembers that I met him in checking us that they got they do not remember there’s no way. But actually, we met last year.”
Then the conversation picked up pace, and the youngster was all about his partnership with the group and revealed how it fell through. “They know that we want to do a race and stuff and so through Chevy, they kind of connected us all and they were honestly really interested and I was surprised like I mean, I haven’t really done much this year. Like, why me? You know? But they gave me the opportunity there at Phoenix, and I guess, obviously, finished 14 but I felt like I was gonna finish 8th so a decent day I think for that car not running on ovals that much. But I think they just, I guess, had believed in me,” said the driver.
Furthermore, he revealed his delight in being associated with the larger-than-life group, saying, “So, it’s been pretty special just because like they don’t do that for anybody, right? Very, very few, let alone a young guy like myself. I feel pretty grateful, though.”
Caruth and Spire Motorsports extend their association with HendrickCars.com for the entire Truck Series season
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“Rajah has had a tremendous start to 2024,” Executive Vice President of the Hendrick Automotive Group Gary Davis, said in a press release. “When you combine his on-track potential, how he represents himself and HendrickCars.com, his impressive social media presence, and the incredible fan support he receives, we couldn’t pass on supporting him for the entire season,” added the official breaking the news of their extension plans.
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HendrickCars.com extended its partnership with the trucker, Rajah Caruth and Spire Motorsports, continuing to serve as the primary sponsor for the No. 71 Chevrolet for the rest of the 2024 season. Initially, it was announced that the group would partner with Caruth for the first 10 races of the Truck Series season, but the 21-year-old captivated the fandom after finishing third at Daytona International Speedway, and eighth at Atlanta Motor Speedway, eventually picking up his first win in Las Vegas.