Besides being a fan-favourite sport, NASCAR is also a full-fledged entertainment business. A lot of money goes into the running of this business. Therefore, it’s only normal for a fan to be under the impression that NASCAR drivers are filthy rich. But how rich are these drivers? How much do they make a year?
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In a recent interview with Foxbusiness.com, Joe Gibbs Racing sensation, Christopher Bell was asked if a driver like himself could make about $10 million a year. Bell smiled at the question and explained why drivers can no longer earn that kind of money as their base pay. Indeed it varies from driver to driver but $10 million is kind of absurd according to the #20 driver. “That’s tough,” he said. “From, you know, the early 2000 and stuff, it’s changed a lot since then, so I’d be surprised if anyone’s hitting that number today.”
According to reports, the salary of a NASCAR driver ranges from $40,630 to $390,143. However, for a NASCAR driver, the base salary is not the only means of earning money. Sponsorships, brand endorsements and several other commercial ventures serve as sources of income for these athletes as well.
How did Bell fall in love with racing?
Bell hails from Oklahoma, a place where there’s literally no NASCAR racing. Thanks to his family; they used to take him to the racetracks back when he was four or five years old. And the first race that the JGR star went to was enough to captivate him.
“I grew up being a football fan…my dad was a high-school basketball coach… loved football and basketball growing up and family and friends took me to a race whenever I was four or five years old and it was like a drug,” he recalled.
Bell wasn’t born into a racing family either. His love for racing was carefully nurtured by his parents David and Kathy, who used to take him to I-44 Speedway to watch races. Young Bell spent his youth racing on dirt tracks in Tulsa, Claremore, Fort Cobb and other places around Oklahoma. It didn’t take long for him to pick up the tricks of the trade. Not long after, the Oklahoma native started competing at a national level.
