In April, Richmond International Raceway (Richmond) launched a new grassroots digital platform, RacingVirginia.com, with the mission to promote racing at the grassroots level along with more than 26 motorsports venues in the Commonwealth. Today, the Racing Virginia platform grows as Team Racing Virginia (TRV) is launched to showcase a group of outstanding young racers who are poised to be a big part of the future of motorsports.
The backbone of any sport is its future and in Virginia, the racing scene has a strong population of young drivers who are developing their skills at local tracks. TRV was formed to promote and support the future development of local drivers and race teams under the Racing Virginia platform. All members of TRV are from Virginia, under 18 years of age, and compete regularly in the Commonwealth, or in a national touring series.
The inaugural class of TRV racers include Chase Burrow, Macy Causey, Zach Lightfoot, and Timmy Tyrell. The class was introduced to fans and media at Richmond International Raceway.
“Racing Virginia was formed to help grow motorsports at the grassroots level, and that’s not limited to tracks,” said Mike Waddell, Richmond Vice President of Marketing & Communication. “Our goal is to help shine the spotlight on outstanding athletes who are beginning their racing journey and making an impact in the Virginia racing community. The four athletes in Team Racing Virginia are already amazing drivers, and we look forward to following them as they move up and are part of the extraordinary youth movement we are witnessing in the sport. The next Denny Hamlin, Elliott Sadler, or Kyle Larson are getting their starts at local tracks and Racing Virginia is committed to showcasing those efforts and telling the stories of the people behind the wheel.”
Chase Burrow is the driver of the No. 0 in the Sportsman division at Bill Sawyer’s Virginia Motor Speedway. This is Burrow’s first year racing on a dirt track, but he began his racing career in Arena Racing USA. He was named the 2013-14 Arena Racing USA Rookie of the Year in the Youth Division and won consecutive championships in the division in 2015-16. Burrow comes from a long line of racers starting with his grandfather Linwood Burrow, who is the Director of Track Services at Richmond.
Macy Causey is a Yorktown, V.A. native and comes from a long line of racers. Her grandmother, Diane Teel, was a trailblazer in NASCAR when she became the first woman to win a NASCAR sanctioned race in 1978. Causey has been successful in numerous divisions, starting her career in a dirt sportsman car and eventually winning a championship in the Bandoleros series. In 2015, Causey was honored with the NASCAR Virginia State Rookie Award as well as the Rookie of the Year award at Langley Speedway. Last year, she received the 2016 NASCAR Young Racer Award and was invited to participate in NASCAR’s Drive for Diversity program for the second consecutive year.
Smithfield native Zach Lightfoot was diagnosed at age five with Asperger’s Syndrome, but has overcome to become a prominent racer in Virginia. Lightfoot’s first season behind the wheel was in 2013 with the Hampton Roads Kart Club (HRKC), where he collected nine wins to earn the HRKC JR 1 Sportsman Championship and Rookie of the Year award. He continued his success the following year as he repeated as HRKC champion and won the Rookie of the Year award and Bandolero Championship at Langley Speedway. In 2015, Lightfoot was awarded the Langley Speedway INEX Bandolero Track Championship as well as the INEX Virginia State Bandolero Championship. He is currently competing in the Legends division at Langley.
Timmy “Mini” Tyrell of Manassas, V.A. began racing go karts at King George Speedway in 2011, and quickly moved his way up the racing ranks. Currently, Tyrell races late model stock cars at Shenandoah Speedway, where he became the youngest late model winner at the track at age 10. He also competes in Arena Racing USA at the Richmond Coliseum. Tyrell has a passion for raising funds and awareness for pediatric cancer. “Mini’s Mission” was created after Tyrell learned his best friend was diagnosed with a brain tumor at age six. Since that time, Tyrell and “Mini’s Mission” has raised over $420,000.
All four drivers will be featured throughout the year on the Racing Virginia’s website and social channels. Visit racingvirgina.com to read their driver profiles.
Richmond’s 2017 NASCAR season concludes with two nights of racing “under the lights” on September 8-9. The fall race weekend, presented by Who’s Your Driver, will see history on display as Dale Earnhardt Jr. makes his final, career, two-race appearance at Richmond.
Fan Appreciation Weekend kicks into high gear Saturday morning with a full schedule of interactive events for NASCAR’s best fans, including the return of Gridside Live, which moves to The Classic Amphitheater. Stay connected to Richmond’s primary social channels on Twitter and Facebook as more announcements are set for the coming weeks, outlining some new, unprecedented elements to the Richmond fan experience, giving our Richmond Nation season ticket holders unparalleled access.
Witness history in the Federated Auto Parts 400 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race on Saturday, September 9 as the regular season champion will be crowned along with Earnhardt’s final regular season Cup race at Richmond. Saturday night is also the last chance for many drivers to make it to the playoffs. The NASCAR weekend gets started on Friday, September 8, when the rising stars of tomorrow compete along with Earnhardt in the Virginia529 College Savings 250 NASCAR XFINITY Series race following practice and qualifying for both series.
Tickets are available now for both the Monster Energy Series and NXS races at Richmond. To purchase tickets, visit rir.com or call 866-455-7223.
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