Kris Wright
Kristofer Cole Wright (born July 17, 1994) is an American professional racing driver. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, driving the No. 44 Chevrolet Silverado for Niece Motorsports. He has also competed in sports car, open-wheel, Euroformula Open Championship, NASCAR Xfinity Series, and the ARCA Menards Series. He won the 2018 IMSA Prototype Challenge LMP3 class championship. Racing career. Wright began competing in kart racing in middle school. Sports car racing. In 2015, he joined Kinetic Motorsports in the Pirelli World Challenge Touring Car A class. He recorded his first podium finish  at Miller Motorsports Park where he finished third. In 2017, he raced in the IMSA Prototype Challenge with JDC MotorSports. Wright, who described the prototype cars as "really easy to drive", finished second in the Prototype Challenge standings with a win at Watkins Glen International and Rookie of the Year honors. He signed with Extreme Speed Motorsports for the 2018 Prototype Challenge season, during which he scored race wins at Barber Motorsports Park and Virginia International Raceway, finished in podium range in all six events, and won the LMP3 class championship. Wright ran his first endurance and WeatherTech SportsCar Championship  race at the 2019 24 Hours of Daytona, driving for Performance Tech Motorsports in the LMP2 class. Joined by Kyle Masson, Robert Masson, and Cameron Cassels in the No. 38, Wright's team finished second in its class. Open-wheel racing. During the 2017 racing season, Wright entered the Road to Indy ladder beginning with the U.S. F2000 National Championship with John Cummiskey Racing. He raced at the Grand Prix of St. Petersburg, Barber, and the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course before moving to the Pro Mazda Championship in June with JDC. He contested the Road America, Mid-Ohio Sports  Car Course, and Watkins Glen races, with a best finish of fifth at Watkins Glen. In 2019, he started racing in the BRDC British Formula 3 Championship with Fortec Motorsports after testing with the team the previous year; Wright compared the car to the Pro Mazda vehicles, noting they were "very similar". He finished the season 16th in points, last among drivers who ran the full schedule, with a best finish of fifth at Silverstone Circuit. Wright remained with Fortec as he moved to the Euroformula Open Championship in 2020, though the season's start was impacted by the COVID-19  pandemic. Stock car racing. Wright's first starts in stock car racing took place during summer 2020. In June, he raced in the ARCA Menards Series West doubleheader at Utah Motorsports Campus, where he finished second and third. In August, he joined the GMS Racing organization, racing in the ARCA Menards Series and the NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series on a part-time basis. His debut with the team came on August 1 in the CARS Super Late Model Tour at Hickory Motor Speedway, where he finished 11th. His first ARCA and NASCAR Truck starts for GMS took place  at Michigan International Speedway and the Daytona International Speedway road course, respectively. Wright joined Young's Motorsports for the full 2021 NASCAR Truck Series season, driving the No. 02; he also debuted the team's ARCA program at the Daytona test in January. After running the season opener, he also signed with NASCAR Xfinity Series team Sam Hunt Racing as a road course ringer. Wright missed the Atlanta Motor Speedway race in March after testing positive for COVID-19. In 2022, Wright will drive the No. 44 Niece Motorsports Chevrolet full-time. Personal life. Wright's father was also a racing  driver, though he encouraged his son to play golf. After graduating from Central Catholic High School in Pittsburgh in 2013, Wright was a member of IMG Academy and Robert Morris University's golf teams. Motorsports career results. ARCA Menards Series. ARCA Menards Series West. Season still in progress