Cassie Gannis (born April 7, 1991) is an American professional stock car racing driver.

Racing career

Gannis started racing in quarter midgets in 1999; from 1999–2003, she recorded 15 top fives in 18 races. In 2005, she started

Legends car racing Legends car racing is a style of auto racing designed primarily to promote exciting racing and to keep costs down. The race car bodyshells are 5/8-scale replicas of American automobiles from the 1930s and 1940s, powered by Yamaha XJ1250, FJ1200 ...

, and two years later, began racing

super late model A late model car is a car which has been recently designed or manufactured, often the latest model. (An early model car or classic car is a car old enough to be of historical interest; there is no usual intermediate term.) The precise definition ...

s. At

Tucson Raceway Park Tucson Speedway is a paved oval racetrack located at the Pima County Fairgrounds, off Interstate 10 just south of Tucson, Arizona. It is one of only three paved ovals in the state of Arizona (the others are Phoenix Raceway and Havasu 95 Speed ...

, she was the youngest female driver to race at the track. From 2009–2011, Gannis was named a member of

NASCAR The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. The privately owned company was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1948, and ...

Drive for Diversity The Drive for Diversity (D4D) program is a development system instituted by the American auto racing league NASCAR. The program's purpose is to attract minority and female individuals to the sport, primarily as drivers, but also including ownersh ...

program. In 2010, she ran a USAR Pro Cup Series race at Langley Speedway, suffering mechanical problems and failing to complete a lap. A year later, she started racing in the

K&N Pro Series West The ARCA Menards Series West, formerly the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West, NASCAR AutoZone West Series, NASCAR Winston West Series and NASCAR Camping World West Series, is a regional stock car racing series owned and operated by the Automobile Racin ...

for Greg Rayl, recording a best finish of 16th at

Colorado National Speedway Colorado National Speedway is a paved oval in Dacono, Colorado spanning . The track is currently a member of the NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series and hosts the ARCA Menards Series West (former NASCAR K&N Pro Series West), thKing of the Wi ...

and Spokane County Raceway. The following year, she raced for Rayl, Nancy Cano and John Gomez, with her best finish being 15th at Havasu 95 Speedway. She eventually won the series' Most Popular Driver Award. In 2013, Gannis auditioned for a spot in the PEAK Stock Car Dream Challenge, a contest with the prize being a ride with Michael Waltrip Racing, and was named a finalist. In 2015, Gannis tested for

Carter 2 Motorsports Roger Carter II (born October 23, 1969) is an American professional stock car racing driver and team owner who competes part-time in the ARCA Menards Series driving the No. 03 Ford for Clubb Racing Inc. Racing career Carter would attempt to ma ...

in the

ARCA Racing Series The ARCA Menards Series is an American stock car series, the premier division of the Automobile Racing Club of America (ARCA). It is considered a minor, semi-professional league of stock car racing, used as a feeder series into the three nationa ...

Daytona International Speedway Daytona International Speedway is a race track in Daytona Beach, Florida, United States. Since opening in 1959, it has been the home of the Daytona 500, the most prestigious race in NASCAR as well as its season opening event. In addition to NASC ...

, and eventually joined the team to make her series debut at the season-opening Lucas Oil 200. Despite being 33rd fastest in a field of 49 drivers, she failed to qualify for the race. On November 6, Gannis announced that she would make her Camping World Truck Series debut in the

Lucas Oil 150 The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Championship Race is a NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race that takes place at Phoenix Raceway. The race has been the last race of the year for the Truck Series since 2020. History From 1995 until 1998, two rac ...

at Phoenix International Raceway for

Mike Harmon Racing Mike Harmon Racing with Gary Keller, formerly Elite 2 Racing, is an American professional stock car racing team that fields the No. 74 Chevrolet Camaro full-time for TBA in the NASCAR Xfinity Series. The team has also competed in the NASCAR Campin ...

, but once again, she failed to qualify. In 2019, Gannis attempted to qualify for a women's-only Formula 3 series, but failed to progress beyond the evaluation day.

Personal life

Gannis works as a veterinarian technician at a

Phoenix Phoenix most often refers to: * Phoenix (mythology), a legendary bird from ancient Greek folklore * Phoenix, Arizona, a city in the United States Phoenix may also refer to: Mythology Greek mythological figures * Phoenix (son of Amyntor), a ...

-based animal hospital. A spokesman for the Boys & Girls Clubs of Arizona, she is a speaker on teen driving safety; she also works as a host for HopeKids of AZ and a member of the

Cystic Fibrosis Foundation The Cystic Fibrosis Foundation (CFF) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization in the United States established to provide the means to cure cystic fibrosis (CF) and ensure that those living with CF live long and productive lives. The Foundation pr ...

's Arizona branch board. She often visits military bases, being awarded the Safety Chesty Award Certificate of Commendation. Asides from racing, she works as a ride-along driver for the

Rusty Wallace Russell William "Rusty" Wallace Jr. (born August 14, 1956) is an American former NASCAR racing driver. He has won the 1984 NASCAR Cup series Rookie of the Year and the 1989 NASCAR Winston Cup Championship. Over the course of his successful care ...

Racing Experience. Her sister played college basketball at the University of Portland and is a firefighter for the City of Phoenix.

Motorsports career results

NASCAR

( key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. ''Italics'' – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)

Camping World Truck Series

K&N Pro Series West

ARCA Racing Series

( key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. ''Italics'' – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.) Season still in progress
Ineligible for series points

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Gannis, Cassie Living people 1991 births NASCAR drivers Racing drivers from Phoenix, Arizona Racing drivers from Arizona