• Contact Us
  • Events calendar
Entering Swellesley
Pinnacle, Wellesley

The Swellesley Report

More than you really want to know about Wellesley, Mass.

  • Advertise
  • Contribute
  • Eat
  • Wellesley Square
  • School
  • Top 10 things to do
  • Embracing diversity
  • Charities/Community
  • Arts
  • Camp
  • Kids
  • Environment/Sustainability
  • Events
  • About us
  • Subscribe
  • Natick Report
  • COVID-19
  • Letters to the Editor
  • 2021 Town Election
  • Bulletin Board
Needham Bank, Wellesley
Boston Sports Institute, Wellesley

NASCAR taps young Wellesley racer for development program

March 26, 2019 by Bob Brown Leave a Comment

Update (5/5/19): Blake Lothian  is officially in the NASCAR Drive for Diversity Driver Development and Training program and is racing for the Rev Racing team in the INEX Legends Series this summer in Charlotte. Congrats to Blake.

It’s been a couple of years since we’ve caught up with Wellesley go-kart driver Blake Lothian, and it turns out the Wellesley High 10th grader has only become more immersed in his sport.

blake lothian wellesley
Blake Lothian

 

He was one of eight drivers selected through a nationwide search to participate in the NASCAR Drive for Diversity Youth Driver Development Program, a 2-day combine event held in North Carolina this past weekend for drivers ages 12-16. The combine will determine the 2019 youth driver line-up for Rev Racing.  Four drivers will be chosen, and they’ll be supplied with a Legends Race Car and a NASCAR coach, and will live and train during the summer in Charlotte. They’ll take part in the Legends INEX Bojangles Summer Shootout and it could pave the way for entering the adult driver development program and eventually, the NASCAR cup series.

“That’s what current NASCAR driver Bubba Wallace did,” Lothian says.

Jusan Hamilton, NASCAR director of racing operations and event management, said in a statement: “We look forward to seeing members of this group rise up the ranks within Rev Racing and one day showcase their talent at the NASCAR touring series level.”

blake lothian

Lothian, fresh from returning from the event, told us that there were a wide variety of drivers in the program including karting, Legends and Sprint.

“There are many ways to get to NASCAR,” the 16-year-old says. “Many of today’s drivers started in karts.”

Drivers were evaluated in simulators, on an outdoor track, and in their interactions with the media, sponsors and race crew, says Lothian, who had never traveled beyond New England to race before. The last two years he has raced high performance go karts in adult leagues with the in New Hampshire at NH Motor Speedway and Canaan Speedway, and you can read more about his accomplishments on his BlakeLothianRacing website.

A key element to the Drive for Diversity program, as the name suggests, is encouraging minority drivers to pursue the sport. Lothian says there’s been steady growth in diversity in NASCAR thanks to programs like this. “In my own karting  experience we have also seen some increases in diversity, but there is always room for more growth,” Lothian says. “In all my karting seasons I have always raced with between one and three other minority drivers in my kart class.”

print

Share

Filed Under: Sports

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Linden Square, Wellesley
Fran's Flowers
Clearhaven Recovery

Tip us off…

Please send tips, photos, ideas to [email protected]
Wellesley Square ad
Wellesley, Jesamondo
Admit Fit, Wellesley
Sexton test prep
Feldman Law
Fay School, Southborough
Wellesley Theatre Project
The Moving-Pictures Company
image of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19)
covid vaccine
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Twitter
Never miss a post with our free daily Swellesley Report email
Name: 
Your email address:*
Please wait...
Please enter all required fields Click to hide
Correct invalid entries Click to hide

You can subscribe for free, though we appreciate any contribution that supports our independent journalism.

Click here to read our Natick Report

Natick Report

Most Read Posts

  • Newton-Wellesley Orthopedic Walk-In—no appointment needed
  • Wellesley summer camp listings 2021 — find the experience of a lifetime
  • Wellesley Business Buzz: Bank branch to close; New bank coming to town, sort of; Celebrating women-owned businesses
  • Babson to the rescue: Survey seeks to get to bottom of Wellesley Square issues
  • Town mourns Wellesley High Building Manager Tom Zinck

Events Calendar

« April 2021 » loading...
S M T W T F S
28
29
30
31
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
1
Mon 12

Open House at Boston Outdoor Preschool Network

April 12 @ 10:00 am - 11:00 am
Tue 13

STEM panel discussion

April 13 @ 7:30 pm - 8:30 pm
Wed 14

Fairies, Frogs, and Damsels (online program)

April 14 @ 4:00 pm - 4:30 pm
Thu 15

Meeting and Discussion with 4th Congressional District U.S. Rep. Jake Auchincloss

April 15 @ 7:00 pm - 8:00 pm
Thu 15

Wellesley’s Sustainable Mobility Plan online forum

April 15 @ 7:00 pm - 8:00 pm

Pages

  • Guidelines for Letters to the Editor
  • How to submit your flyer for the Community Bulletin Board page
  • Wellesley Community Bulletin Board
  • Wellesley coronavirus (COVID-19) updates
  • Wellesley’s 7 official scenic roads
  • Wellesley, Mass., fishing spots
  • Wellesley Choral Society
  • Wellesley College Notable Alumnae
  • Wellesley College, Wellesley, Mass.
  • Wellesley outdoor art gallery
  • Wellesley restaurants offering take-out and delivery
  • Wellesley, Massachusetts restaurant — Amarin of Thailand

Recent Comments

  • Sue Morris on WHS senior scavenger hunt to blanket Wellesley
  • Michael Auclair on Town mourns Wellesley High Building Manager Tom Zinck
  • Kelley Downey on Wellesley Business Buzz: Bank branch to close; New bank coming to town, sort of; Celebrating women-owned businesses
  • MICHAEL GUARNIERI on Select Board makes Indigenous Peoples Day official in Wellesley
  • maureen dargon chapman on Town mourns Wellesley High Building Manager Tom Zinck

Links we like

  • Great Runs
  • Jack Sanford: Wellesley's Major League Baseball Star
  • Taquitos.net
  • Tech-Tamer
  • The Wellesley Wine Press
  • Universal Hub
  • Wellesley Sports Discussion Facebook Group

Categories

  • 2021 Town Election (21)
  • Animals (386)
  • Antiques (48)
  • Art (544)
  • Beyond Wellesley (30)
  • Books (345)
  • Business (1,380)
  • Camp (1)
  • Careers/jobs (45)
  • Churches (73)
  • Clubs (211)
  • Construction (281)
  • Dump (113)
  • Education (2,918)
    • Babson College (244)
    • Bates Elementary School (14)
    • Dana Hall School (29)
    • Fiske Elementary School (6)
    • Hardy Elementary School (33)
    • Hunnewell Elementary School (34)
    • MassBay (49)
    • Schofield Elementary School (20)
    • Sprague Elementary School (19)
    • St. John School (1)
    • Tenacre Country Day School (9)
    • Upham Elementary School (30)
    • Wellesley College (600)
    • Wellesley High School (895)
    • Wellesley Middle School (195)
  • Embracing diversity (52)
  • Entertainment (728)
  • Environment (679)
  • Fashion (134)
  • Finance (13)
  • Fire (144)
  • Food (328)
  • Fundraising (565)
  • Gardens (137)
  • Government (422)
    • 2020 Town Election (47)
  • Health (758)
    • COVID-19 (150)
  • History (360)
  • Holidays (367)
  • Houses (121)
  • Humor (45)
  • Kids (820)
  • Law (3)
  • Letters to the Editor (12)
  • Media (63)
  • METCO (5)
  • Military (3)
  • Morses Pond (97)
  • Music (545)
  • Natick Report (28)
  • Neighbors (252)
  • Obituaries (61)
  • Outdoors (588)
  • Parenting (60)
  • Police (702)
    • Crime (356)
  • Politics (545)
  • Real estate (293)
  • Religion (127)
  • Restaurants (306)
  • Safety (143)
  • Scouts (1)
  • Senior citizens (111)
  • Shopping (123)
  • Sports (906)
  • STEM (106)
  • Technology (157)
  • Theatre (383)
  • Town Meeting (22)
  • Transportation (212)
  • Travel (12)
  • Uncategorized (1,212)
  • Volunteering (319)
  • Weather (168)
  • Wellesley Election 2019 (21)
  • Wellesley Free Library (259)
  • Wellesley's Wonderful Weekend (5)
RSS Feed Icon Subscribe to RSS Feed

© 2021 The Swellesley Report
Site by Tech-Tamer · Login