- Name
- Sammy Smith
- Birth Date
- June 4, 2004
- Hometown
- Johnston, Iowa
Sammy Smith, who battled near the top of the NASCAR Xfinity Series point standings all season long in 2023, joins JR Motorsports for 2024 as driver of the team’s No. 8 Chevrolet. The up-and-coming driver earned a playoff berth and narrowly missed a chance at the 2023 championship in the NXS, ending a strong sixth in the season-ending point standings.
In just his 13th career start, Smith raced to victory at Phoenix Raceway in the spring of 2023, locking him into the playoffs. His points finish, on the strength of six top-five and 15 top-10 finishes, also earned him Rookie of the Year honors in the series.
Smith began his racing career at age 10 in U.S. Legend Cars, posting 31 victories in three seasons of competition. In 2019, he turned his attention to Late Model racing, succeeding in both Pro and Super Late Models with multiple teams in several series, including the zMAX CARS Tour.
Two seasons later, Smith made his ARCA Menards Series East debut and, in just eight races, the young driver earned three wins. He finished in the top five on seven occasions and led 396 laps en route to his first ARCA East championship. In the Super Late Model ranks, Smith won four times and earned 13 top-five finishes.
In 2022, Smith again competed in the ARCA Menards Series and with Donnie Wilson Racing in Super Late Models before making nine NXS starts. Across the ARCA platform, Smith won 12 races, led 1,988 laps and collected the Sioux Chief Showdown and ARCA Menards Series East championships. In his NXS races, Smith tallied three top-10 finishes with a best finish of third on the legendary road course at Watkins Glen International.