Ross Chastain Bio
Ross Lee Chastain, born December 4, 1992, is an American professional stock car racing driver. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 1 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 for Trackhouse Racing. He also runs part-time in the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series and the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series. Chastain is the older brother of fellow NASCAR driver Chad Chastain.
Early Life and Background
Ross Lee Chastain was born in Alva, Florida, and raised in the same rural community. He is the son of Ralph Chastain and Susan Chastain, and grew up in a family with deep ties to watermelon farming in southwest Florida. His father raced cars as a hobby, which sparked Ross’s interest in the sport at a young age.
Chastain started racing at the age of twelve, inspired by his father’s hobby and by other kids his age competing at local tracks. His home track was Punta Gorda Speedway in Punta Gorda, Florida, where he raced in both late model and Fastruck events. Those early races at places like Citrus County Speedway, Auburndale Speedway, and DeSoto Speedway were run on a tight budget, a pattern that followed him for years.
He is a graduate of Riverdale High School in Fort Myers. After high school, Chastain attended Florida Gulf Coast University for a semester before leaving to focus on racing in the Truck Series. A native of Alva, Chastain worked on his family’s watermelon farm until he turned thirteen.
Path to NASCAR
Chastain’s short-track career produced more than fifty feature wins, including the Limited Late Model portion of the 2011 World Series of Asphalt Stock Car Racing at New Smyrna Speedway, where he won three of eight events. That success opened the door to NASCAR, and in mid-2011 he moved to Charlotte to take over the No. 66 Turn One Racing entry in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series.
His first Truck race came at Lucas Oil Raceway at Indianapolis and was his first event with live pit stops. He finished tenth in that debut. Connections in the watermelon farming industry helped him land additional Truck Series starts, and the path eventually led to a full-time ride with SS-Green Light Racing in 2012. He won his first Truck Series pole in 2013 with Brad Keselowski Racing, leading the most laps at Iowa Speedway before finishing second.
Ross Chastain Career
Early Career (2011–2014)
Chastain made his national NASCAR debut in 2011 with Turn One Racing in the Truck Series and followed that with a Rookie of the Year campaign at SS-Green Light Racing in 2012. Driving the No. 08 truck sponsored by the National Watermelon Association, he earned a career-best seventh-place finish at Martinsville Speedway and a third-place run at Bristol. In 2013, he joined Brad Keselowski Racing for a fifteen-race Truck schedule and quickly showed speed.
After leaving BKR, Chastain drove part-time for RBR Enterprises in 2014 and made his Nationwide Series debut at Charlotte Motor Speedway for Viva Motorsports. He also began a long relationship with Hattori Racing Enterprises later that season, finishing twelfth at Michigan International Speedway in what was, at the time, the team’s best NASCAR result.
NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series Breakthrough (2015–2020)
Chastain joined JD Motorsports in 2015, replacing Jeffrey Earnhardt, and posted four top-ten finishes, including a ninth at the PowerShares QQQ 300 at Daytona. In 2017, he enjoyed his best Xfinity season to that point, scoring a top-five at Iowa and finishing thirteenth in points, the highest of the non-playoff drivers. The year also featured memorable on-track confrontations with Jeremy Clements at Bristol and Brendan Gaughan at Texas.
His career turned a corner in 2018, when a three-race deal with Chip Ganassi Racing produced a pole at Darlington Raceway and a breakthrough victory at the DC Solar 300 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. That win was his first in more than 200 NASCAR national-series starts and earned him a 2018 Xfinity playoff berth. He moved to Kaulig Racing full-time in 2020 and finished a career-high seventh in the Xfinity standings with 27 top-tens.
NASCAR Cup Series Breakthrough (2021–Present)
Chip Ganassi Racing announced in September 2020 that Chastain would drive the No. 42 Chevrolet in the Cup Series in 2021. In August 2021, Trackhouse Racing founder Justin Marks revealed that Chastain would drive the No. 1 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 for the team’s second Cup entry beginning in 2022. The switch set the stage for his breakout year.
In 2022, Chastain scored his first Cup victory at the Circuit of the Americas, added a second win at Talladega, and finished a career-best second in the Cup Series standings. His season will forever be remembered for the “Hail Melon” move at Martinsville Speedway, when he drove his car into the outside wall to gain speed on the final lap and steal a Championship 4 berth. In 2023, he won at Nashville and Phoenix, and in 2024 he picked up a win at Kansas despite missing the playoffs.
Trackhouse Racing Era (2022–Present)
Chastain has been the anchor of Trackhouse Racing’s No. 1 program since its 2022 launch, running alongside Daniel Suárez in the No. 99. The team invested heavily in Chastain, and the relationship has produced multiple Cup wins, deep playoff runs, and one of the most memorable single moments in modern NASCAR history. His consistency in the second seat has helped establish Trackhouse as a championship-caliber organization.
His Trackhouse tenure has also featured feuds with veterans like Denny Hamlin and Chase Elliott, and a high-profile confrontation with Noah Gragson in 2023. In 2024, the No. 1 team was penalized 50 owner and driver points and fined $100,000 for race manipulation at Martinsville. Chastain has continued to deliver top-ten speed and a regular presence in playoff contention.
Notable Races and Milestones
Chastain’s signature tracks include Martinsville, where the “Hail Melon” move was born, and the road courses, where his first Cup win at the Circuit of the Americas launched his 2022 run. Other milestone moments include his first Truck Series win at Kansas Speedway in 2019, his first Xfinity win at Las Vegas in 2018, and his 2025 Coca-Cola 600 victory at Charlotte Motor Speedway, where he became the first driver in the modern Cup era to win a race after starting last.
Ross Chastain Career Wins
Ross Chastain has built a winning record across all three NASCAR national series, with six Cup wins, three O’Reilly Auto Parts Series wins, and five Craftsman Truck Series victories. His win list blends superspeedway triumphs, road course victories, short-track battles, and crown jewel success, with the Coca-Cola 600 standing as the biggest win of his career to date.
Cup Series Highlights
Chastain has six NASCAR Cup Series wins, including his breakthrough at the Circuit of the Americas in 2022, the iconic Talladega victory that same year, a win at Nashville in 2023, a Phoenix finale win in 2023, a Kansas playoff win in 2024, and the 2025 Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte. He finished a career-best second in the Cup standings in 2022 and has been a regular playoff contender ever since.
Truck Series Highlights
Chastain has five NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series wins. His first came at Kansas Speedway in 2019, and he added Darlington in 2024 as his most recent Truck victory. He also won the 2019 NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series Most Popular Driver Award, reflecting his strong connection with fans.
Ross Chastain Family
Family Background and Racing Lineage
Ross is the son of Ralph Chastain and Susan Chastain, and grew up on a watermelon farm in Alva, Florida. While his father raced as a hobby, Ross is the first generation of his family to race competitively. He is the older brother of fellow NASCAR driver Chad Chastain, and the nephew of former stock car racer Roger Chastain and pioneering sportscaster Jane Chastain.
Personal Life
Chastain is in a relationship with Erika Anne Turner. He continues to honor his family’s watermelon roots, famously smashing a watermelon in Victory Lane after his first Xfinity win at Las Vegas in 2018. His upbringing on the farm and his close relationship with his brother Chad remain central to his identity away from the track.
2025 Season Performance
The 2025 season featured one of the defining moments of Ross Chastain’s career. After a rough start with a 40th-place DNF at the Daytona 500, he regrouped and arrived at Charlotte Motor Speedway for the Coca-Cola 600. Starting from the rear of the field, he ran down dominant driver William Byron with five laps to go and took the win, becoming the first driver in the modern Cup era to win a race in which he started last. The performance was an instant classic and added a crown jewel trophy to his resume.
Despite the Charlotte high, the rest of the 2025 campaign has been a grind. Chastain was eliminated from the playoffs following the Charlotte Roval race, ending his bid for a Championship 4 berth. Through the closing stretch, he has continued to post competitive runs and has remained a consistent presence inside the top tier of the Cup garage with Trackhouse Racing.
Looking ahead, the Coca-Cola 600 victory gives Chastain major momentum heading into the offseason. With the No. 1 team returning its core group and Trackhouse continuing to invest in personnel and equipment, Chastain enters 2026 as a proven winner and a threat to return to the Championship 4 for the first time since his 2022 runner-up finish.
