Gray Gaulding Biography

American racing driver (born 1998)NASCAR driverNASCAR Xfinity Series career79 races run over 8 years2023 position37thBest finish13th (2019)First race2016 Food City 300 (Bristol)Last race2023 Wawa 250 (Daytona)NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series career19 races run over 4 years2020 position69thBest finish26th (2014)First race2014 Kroger 250 (Martinsville)Last race2020 Baptist Health 200 (Homestead)Statistics current as of November 5, 2023.

Dwayne Gray Gaulding Jr. (born February 10, 1998) is an American professional stock car racing driver. He last competed part-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driving the No. 08 Chevrolet Camaro and Ford Mustang for SS-Green Light Racing and part time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 15 Ford Mustang for Rick Ware Racing.

Racing career

Gaulding began racing motorbikes at age 4, and raced cars five years later. When he was 10, Gaulding received two Bandolero cars, and won in his first Bandolero race. At age 12, Gaulding was the youngest driver in a NASCAR Legends Division, and won a Legends car national championship, gaining sponsorship from firearm distributor GunBroker.com. Also at age 12, Gaulding defeated NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver Kevin Harvick at Harvick's karting track, which prompted Harvick to sign Gaulding to Kevin Harvick Incorporated's driver development program. At 13, Gaulding became the youngest Super late model race winner, and was also the youngest driver to win the Pro All Stars Series (P*) Rookie of the Year Award. After KHI shut down in 2011, he was released from the team's driver development program. When he was 14, Gaulding was volunteering at the Victory Junction Gang Camp when he agreed to five one-year contracts with Krispy Kreme as a sponsor.

K&N Pro Series East

Gaulding's No. 20 Toyota in the K&N Pro Series East race at Richmond International Raceway

In 2013, Gaulding ran the No. 20 Krispy Kreme Toyota in both the K&N Pro Series East and West. He won the pole position at Richmond International Raceway at 15 years, 2 months, 15 days, becoming the youngest pole-sitter in NASCAR history, more than four months younger than Cole Custer, the previous record holder. In the season-ending Pro Series West race at Phoenix International Raceway, Gaulding spun out Custer on the final lap to win, becoming the youngest race winner in K&N series history at 15 years, 8 months and 30 days. During the year, Gaulding was named to the NASCAR Next program, which highlights NASCAR's future stars. In 2014, Gaulding was hired by NTS Motorsports to run full-time in the K&N East series.

Truck Series

Gaulding joined NTS Motorsports in the No. 20, and ran eight races in the 2014 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series season; he made his Truck Series debut at Martinsville Speedway. On lap 243, Gaulding was running three-wide, and was turned around. Gaulding finished 19th. Gaulding recorded his best finish of the year at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park, finishing 4th in the Chevrolet Silverado 250.

On March 23, 2015, Gaulding was released by NTS Motorsports, and joined Red Horse Racing, making his debut for the team at Martinsville where he finished 17th. He later joined Kyle Busch Motorsports, driving the No. 54 Toyota Tundra in three races at Mosport, New Hampshire and Martinsville.

Xfinity Series

Gaulding in the No. 08 at Road America in 2019

In 2016, Gaulding joined Roush Fenway Racing's driver development program and made his NASCAR Xfinity Series debut in the No. 60 at Bristol Motor Speedway, while also running another round at Richmond.

For the 2019 season, Gaulding drove No. 08 Chevy for SS-Green Light Racing full-time. In April's MoneyLion 300 at Talladega Superspeedway, Gaulding finished a career-best second behind Tyler Reddick.

On January 16, 2020, it was announced that Joe Graf Jr. would take over the No. 08 car for the 2020 NASCAR Xfinity Series season, leaving Gaulding without a ride. Despite losing his full-time seat with the team, Gaulding returned to SS-Green Light for Talladega, where he piloted the No. 07 to an eighth-place run. Another ride opportunity with the same team saw Gaulding score another second-place finish in the Wawa 250 at Daytona International Speedway, being beaten by eventual winner Justin Haley. Gaulding later joined Mike Harmon Racing for a late-season drive at the Charlotte Motor Speedway Roval.

On January 26, 2021, it was reported that Gaulding would return to the Xfinity Series full-time for Jimmy Means Racing. At the conclusion of the Martinsville race, a fight broke out on pit road between Gaulding and Joe Graf Jr. after Gaulding wrecked Graf on lap 177.

Gaulding would only make a handful of starts in 2022, splitting time between Mike Harmon Racing and JD Motorsports with a best finish of 21st at Talladega Superspeedway.

Gaulding at Auto Club Speedway in 2023

In 2023, Gaulding would return to SS-Green Light Racing in the No. 08 in a mix of Chevrolets and Fords with Blaine Perkins as his teammate.

Cup Series

In late 2016, Gaulding attempted to make his Sprint Cup Series debut at Martinsville, driving the No. 30 car for The Motorsports Group. Gaulding joined BK Racing's No. 23 car for the 2017 season, driving in 33 races. Gaulding was not approved to run the Daytona 500 due to lack of experience on larger tracks (1.5 miles or greater). On June 13, 2017, he was replaced by Ryan Sieg at Michigan. Later in the month, Gaulding announced he had joined Premium Motorsports' No. 55 Camry for the Cup races at Kentucky and Loudon. On June 5, 2017, BK Racing released Gaulding because of financial issues; however, he would later return to the team at Darlington. At Talladega, Gaulding survived a crash-filled race to post his career-best finish of ninth.

Gaulding would return to BK Racing in 2018, but left the team after running the first 17 races as it fell into financial turmoil. He joined StarCom Racing for two races in the No. 99 before moving to Rick Ware Racing. He returned to Ware for the 2019 Food City 500 and a part-time schedule in 2020.

Personal life

Gaulding is the son of Dwayne and Kristin (Martek) Gaulding. A native of Colonial Heights, Virginia, Gaulding's father, Dwayne, was the vice president of operations at NTS Motorsports.

Gaulding's brother-in-law is fellow race car driver Zane Smith.

On April 2, 2024, Gaulding was arrested for a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence. He was indefinitely suspended by NASCAR the following day.

Motorsports career results

Career summary

NASCAR

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

Cup Series

* Season still in progress
1 Ineligible for series points

Daytona 500

Xfinity Series

Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series

K&N Pro Series East

K&N Pro Series West

ARCA Racing Series

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

References

External links

Official website
Gray Gaulding driver statistics at Racing-Reference

Former personnel

Gene Christensen
Jeff Lefcourt
Ken Smith
Steve Urvan

Former drivers

Jeff Agnew
Willie Allen
Aric Almirola
Jack Bailey
T. J. Bell
Norm Benning
Rich Bickle
Josh Bilicki
Ray Black Jr.
Mike Bliss
Todd Bodine
Clint Bowyer
Spencer Boyd
Stan Boyd
Chase Briscoe
Brandon Brown
Tim Brown
Jade Buford
Brett Butler
Johnny Chapman
Ross Chastain
Chris *rum
Enrique Contreras III
Ray Courtemanche Jr.
Dawson Cram
Sheldon Creed
Jake Crum
Cole Custer
James Davison
Natalie Decker
Hailie Deegan
Jamie Dick
Michel Disdier
Bobby Dotter
T. J. Duke
Wayne Edwards
Chris Eggleston
Ricky Ehrgott
Ryan Ellis
C. J. Faison
A. J. Fike
Chad Finchum
Korbin Forrister
Grant Galloway
Colin Garrett
Joey Gase
Gray Gaulding
Joe Graf Jr.
Mike Greenwell
Bobby Hamilton Jr.
Kevin Hamlin
Mike Harmon
Timmy Hill
Carson Hocevar
Ronnie Hornaday
Andy Houston
Tony Jackson Jr.
Jarit Johnson
Devin Jones
Chris Jones
Boris Jurkovic
John King
Travis Kittleson
Brandon Knupp
Blake Koch
Matt Kurzejewski
Alex Labbé
Andy Lally
Jared Landers
Jody Lavender
Ryan Lawler
Katherine Legge
Kevin Lepage
Donny Lia
Carl Long
Ryan Lynch
Randy MacDonald
Mason Maggio
Bill Manfull
Jeremy Mayfield
Chad Mc*bee
Mark McFarland
B. J. McLeod
John Mickel
Butch Miller
Matt Mills
Marc Mitchell
Brett Moffitt
Ricky Moxley
Alex Müller
Camden Murphy
Sean Murphy
Burt Myers
Brennan Newberry
Eric Norris
Mike Olsen
Max Papis
Preston Pardus
Stefan Parsons
Todd Peck
Blaine Perkins
Chase Pistone
Spencer Pumpelly
José Luis Ramírez
Josh Reaume
Scott Riggs
Caleb Roark
Johnny Sauter
Tim Sauter
Dennis Setzer
Todd Shafer
Morgan Shepherd
Shane Sieg
Kevin Simmons
Jason Small
Casey Smith
Garrett Smithley
Patrick Staropoli
J. C. Stout
Tam Topham
Chrissy Wallace
Kenny Wallace
Carson Ware
Cody Ware
Kyle Weatherman
Ken Weaver
Jimmy Weller III
Derek White
Jason White
Chris Wimmer
Jason Young
Tyler Young

Partnerships and affiliations

Kaulig Racing
Richard Childress Racing

IndyCar Series

(51) Colin Braun

IMSA SportsCar Championship

(51) Eric Lux / Pietro Fittipaldi / Devlin DeFrancesco / Austin Cindric

Carolina Pro Late Model Series

(51) Mason Maggio

Former driversAsian Le Mans Series LMP2 Am ChampionshipsPartnerships and affiliations

Ford Performance
RFK Racing
Dale Coyne Racing

Buyouts and mergers

Premium Motorsports

Former driversNASCAR Hall of Fame

Dale Jarrett
Kirk Shelmerdine

Partnerships and affiliations

Go Green Racing
Keselowski Motorsports
Moy Racing
Rick Ware Racing
Team Rensi Motorsports

Former driversFormer personnel

Donnie Richardson
Eddie Netzloff
Tim Goulet

Partnerships and affiliations

B. J. McLeod Motorsports
Bolen Motorsports
Brandonbilt Motorsports
Faith Motorsports
Jordan Anderson Racing
Lou Goss Racing
Rick Ware Racing

Formerly known as Richardson-Netzloff-Harmon Racing, Elite 2 Racing and CHK RacingFormer drivers

Jeffrey Abbey
Bryant Barnhill
Tanner Berryhill
Josh Bilicki
Jade Buford
Bryan Collyer
Dan Corcoran
Caleb Costner
Dawson Cram
Natalie Decker
Austin Dillon
Ty Dillon
Devin Dodson
Kevin Donahue
Kyle Donahue
Ryan Ellis
Patrick Emerling
Mason Filippi
Chad Finley
Gray Gaulding
Jake Griffin
Chris Hacker
Loris Hezemans
Ryan Huff
Jesse Iwuji
Chase Janes
Justin Johnson
Bobby Kennedy
Andy Lally
Brayton Laster
Cameron Lawrence
Nick Leitz
Derek Lemke
Blake Lothian
Dylan Lupton
Robby Lyons
Mason Maggio
Mike Marlar
Mason M*ey
C. J. McLaughlin
B. J. McLeod
Braden Mitchell
Kenko Miura
Thad Moffitt
Akinori Ogata
Brad Perez
Blaine Perkins
Kyle Plott
Gregory Rayl
Josh Reaume
Tyler Reddick
Will Rodgers
Devon Rouse
Angela Ruch
Daniel Sasnett
Ryan Sieg
Myatt Snider
Scott Stenzel
Memphis Villarreal
Carson Ware
Jason A. White
Armani Williams
J. J. Yeley

Former personnel

Todd Parrott
Gregory Rayl

Partnerships and affiliations

Ford Performance

Related teams

Team Hezeberg

Partnerships and affiliations

Jennifer Jo Cobb Racing
Mike Harmon Racing
Premium Motorsports
Rick Ware Racing
TJL Motorsports

Previous incarnations

MAKE Motorsports

NASCAR Hall of Fame

Kirk Shelmerdine

Partnerships and affiliations

Richard Childress Racing
Germain Racing
Hillman-Circle Sport
Jordan Anderson Racing
JR Motorsports
NEMCO Motorsports
NY Racing Team
Spire Motorsports
Tommy Baldwin Racing

Buyouts and mergers

HScott Motorsports
Michael Waltrip Racing
Phil Parsons Racing
Rick Ware Racing

Formerly known as Jay Robinson RacingFormer driversPartnerships and affiliations

Ford Performance
Front Row Motorsports
Lowden Jackson Motorsports
Reaume Brothers Racing
Roush-Yates Engines
Stewart–Haas Racing
Viking Motorsports

NASCAR Hall of Fame

Ron Hornaday Jr.

Former drivers

Aric Almirola
Tim Andrews
T. J. Bell
Mike Bliss
Jason Bowles
Chad Chaffin
Joey Clanton
Kevin Cywinski
Erik Darnell
Matt DiBenedetto
T. J. Duke
Jeffrey Earnhardt
Tommy Ellis
Jimmy Foster
Larry Foyt
Matt Frahm
Gray Gaulding
Jeff Green
Lance Hooper
Ron Hornaday Jr.
Andy Houston
Shane Huffman
Blake Koch
Frank Kreyer
Travis Kvapil
Stephen Leicht
Charles Lewandoski
Carl Long
Randy MacDonald
Jeff McClure
Brandon Miller
Chase Miller
Ryan Moore
Larry Pearson
Tom Peck
Tony Raines
Josh Reaume
Scott Riggs
Clay Rogers
Brett Rowe
Boris Said
Tim Schendel
Reed Sorenson
Dexter Stacey
Scott Speed
Scott Wimmer
Josh Wise
J. J. Yeley

Partnerships and affiliations

Circle Sport Racing
Keyed-Up Motorsports

Other incarnations

Key Motorsports
Circle Sport – The Motorsports Group

eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Series

(6) Parker Retzlaff
(17) Kaden Honeycutt

NASCAR Hall of Fame

Matt Kenseth
Mark Martin
Jack Roush

Notable former driversNASCAR Cup Series Championships

2003 (Kenseth)
2004 (Ku. Busch)

NASCAR Xfinity Series Championships

2002 (Biffle)
2007 (Edwards)
2011 (Stenhouse)
2012 (Stenhouse)
2015 (Buescher)

NASCAR Truck Series Championships

2000 (Biffle)

NASCAR iRacing Series Championships

2019 (Novak)

Daytona 500 wins

2009 (Kenseth)
2012 (Kenseth)

Coca-Cola 600 wins

1999 (J. Burton)
2000 (Kenseth)
2001 (J. Burton)
2002 (Martin)

Southern 500 wins

1993 (Martin)
1999 (J. Burton)
2005 (Biffle)
2006 (Biffle)

GEICO 500 wins

1995 (Martin)
1997 (Martin)
2017 (Stenhouse)

All-Star Race wins

1998 (Martin)
2004 (Kenseth)
2005 (Martin)
2011 (Edwards)

Busch Light Clash wins

1999 (Martin)

Partnerships and affiliations

Ford Performance
Rick Ware Racing
Stewart–Haas Racing
Team Penske
Wood Brothers Racing