Rajah Caruth Sweeps Races At Hickory
After winning his first career Late Model Stock car race last year at Greenville-Pickens Speedway, Rev Racing’s Rajah Caruth entered 2021 determined to build on that momentum.
Caruth, a Winston Salem St. student, showcased his development on April 18th at Hickory Motor Speedway by sweeping both 40-lap Late Model Stock Car features en route to becoming the first African-American driver to win at the track since Chris Bristol in 2005.
An exhausted and exuberant Caruth admitted that the second victory was more challenging than the first, as he was tasked with keeping Gracie Trotter in his rearview mirror during the final green-flag run, to secure the historic victory.
Following his win, Caruth mentioned he was more mentally tired than anything else. His talks with his mentor NASCAR star Bubba Wallace, probably deal with the mental strain of racing and the pressures of being the only Black driver, more than anything else.
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Caruth began his racing career competing in iRacing events before earning an opportunity to race Late Model Stock Cars in 2020 as part of the Drive for Diversity Program.
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Rev Racing elected to move Caruth up to the ARCA Menards Series East in 2021 while also having him compete in a handful of Late Model Stock Races so he could gain more valuable experience.
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Hickory has provided Caruth plenty of lessons during his transition into Late Model Stocks, but he says he’s finally beginning to understand how to race at the facility. Understanding the track is half the battle in car racing and he seems to really be getting his footing in that regard.
Hickory has been the most challenging place for Caruth as he had to start from fifth in the first race, while an invert relegated him to eighth in the second race. But he persevered each time. Caruth effectively utilized his equipment and charged to the front of the field on both occasions to give Rev Racing owner Max Siegel, a few reasons to celebrate.
With his victories, Caruth joins a diverse group of drivers that visited victory lane at Hickory, which includes three female winners in Annabeth Barnes-Crum, Kate Dallenbach and Chrissy Wallace.
This is just the tip of the iceberg for the Washington DC native. Bringing the soul to NASCAR is a challenge that only a handful of Black drivers are positioned to achieve right now. Caruth is one of them, so all Black and Brown people should have a vested interest in how things shake out for NASCAR’s new boy wonder.
