Rajah Caruth won the Victoria’s Voice Foundation 200 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, marking his maiden Nascar Truck Series victory. He is the third Black driver to win a NASCAR national series race, joining Wendell Scott in 1963 and Bubba Wallace in 2021.
During a phone conversation with The Washington Post, Caruth expressed astonishment. Everything went smoothly with the race plan and our pit strategy. I’m absolutely shocked that success happened so quickly this year.”
In enthusiasm following the race, the Washington, DC native spun his No. 71 Chevrolet, sending it toward the infield. He described his victory as “surreal,” later telling reporters, “There were many days, especially in high school, when I didn’t think I’d make it here.”
His route to greatness was not simple, having began in high school using an internet racing simulator in the kitchen of his Northwest Washington home.
In retrospect, the Washington Post highlighted that Caruth’s victory had come a long way since Scott first broke ground. Scott was not recognized as a winner since he did not see the checkered flag wave. Officials were anxious about how the crowd would respond to a Black man’s victory, especially because the winner was set to kiss a White beauty queen in the winner’s circle.
The 21-year-old is the third Black driver to win a NASCAR national series race, which he considers a significant achievement in terms of representation.
Wallace, the 2021 history maker, shared his satisfaction on X, stating, “What a massive win for the little bro!” What a major victory for our sport! Proud is an understatement! LFG!!!!! @rajahcaruth.
Caruth is now fourth in the driver standings after three races in the Truck season.
According to Fox Sports, the 21-year-old driver from Spire Motorsports, a senior at Winston-Salem State University, has only one top-five finish in 29 career appearances in the series and no top-10 finishes in 19 starts in NASCAR’s “minor” league, the Xfinity Series.
Nonetheless, he has steadily improved in subsequent races, winning pole and leading 38 laps, including the final 21 of the 134-lap battle.