Rajah Caruth etched his name in NASCAR history as the third Black driver to win in a national series with his victory at the Victoria’s Voice Foundation 200 in March at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and has been riding a wave of success this season.
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As a fan favorite, Caruth has been dazzling audiences with his performances in the Truck Series, where he currently ranks fifth. Facing a 22-point deficit, he’s gearing up for this Friday’s race at Martinsville Speedway.
In his second full-time season in the NASCAR Truck Series, Caruth has been basking in the spotlight. However, he maintains a reserved stance on the sport’s transparency with fans. When recently prompted to voice an opinion about NASCAR that he feels resonates with the fans, the 22-year-old remarked:
“This might be controversial, but there’s too much information that’s public knowledge, bro… I’m not saying we should live in a totalitarian society where nobody knows anything, but maybe not everyone needs to know everything, especially people who aren’t in the industry.”
He argued that in his younger years, the intricacies like tire compounds or the specifics of aerodynamic packages weren’t common topics of discussion. It was simpler then: there were good races and bad ones, tracks that were celebrated and others that were less favored — and that’s all there was to it.
“It’s been hard,” admits Caruth about his media interactions in NASCAR
While drivers like Denny Hamlin, Dale Earnhardt Jr., and Kyle Busch are quite forthcoming in their pre or post-race interviews, others, such as Martin Truex Jr., prefer a more reserved approach. Caruth seems to align more with the latter.
Discussing the transition from fan to driver in terms of media engagement, he explained, “The adjustment for me has been learning to speak a certain way — not stutter, not use a lot of idioms, make eye contact, and speak up.”
Caruth further confessed that public speaking wasn’t his forte, remarking on the stark contrast between his perception and reality. He finally understands that while it’s striking to see drivers; they seem like superheroes from afar, now that he is in their shoes, Caruth understands that every action is magnified, for better or worse.
He revealed, “Overall, it’s been hard because I’m naturally someone who likes to keep to myself. Doing interviews and TV stuff can be nerve-wracking sometimes because I keep to myself and my friends and that’s kind of it, to be real.”
As he heads into his third race at Martinsville after finishes of P25 and P7 on the track, the Spire Motorsports driver is focused on winning or amassing sufficient points to secure a spot in the championship showdown at Phoenix.
