Joseph A. Graf Jr. (born July 12, 1998) is an American professional
stock car racing
Stock car racing is a form of automobile racing run on oval tracks and road courses measuring approximately . It originally used production-model cars, hence the name "stock car", but is now run using cars specifically built for racing. It or ...
driver. He last competed part-time in the
NASCAR Xfinity Series
The NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS) is a stock car racing series organized by NASCAR. It is promoted as NASCAR's second-tier circuit to the organization's top level Cup Series. NXS events are frequently held as a support race on the day prior to a ...
, driving the Nos. 07 and 08
Ford Mustang
The Ford Mustang is a series of American automobiles manufactured by Ford. In continuous production since 1964, the Mustang is currently the longest-produced Ford car nameplate. Currently in its sixth generation, it is the fifth-best selli ...
s for
SS-Green Light Racing, the No. 38 Mustang for
RSS Racing
RSS Racing (also known as Ryan Shane Sieg Racing) is an American professional stock car racing team that currently competes in the NASCAR Xfinity Series and the ARCA Menards Series. The team is owned by Rod Sieg and Pamela Sieg. The main spons ...
and the No. 5 Mustang for
B. J. McLeod Motorsports.
Racing career
At the beginning of his career, Graf drove
Bandolero cars at
Elko Speedway
Elko Speedway, is a 3/8 mile asphalt oval NASCAR-sanctioned race track located in Elko New Market, Minnesota. Elko Speedway is a track in the NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series. The track is located in the former Elko portion of the merged ...
. He later raced
Modifieds at
Stafford Speedway.
ARCA Menards Series
Graf ran the whole season in 2018 save for the season-opening race at Daytona. The deal originally started out as a six-race schedule, but eventually expanded to 19 races. In his third race at
Talladega, Graf raced on a foot he had recently broken and finished second to
Zane Smith in the closest finish in series history.
At
Berlin Raceway
Berlin Raceway is a 7/16 mile long paved oval race track in Marne, Michigan, United States, near Grand Rapids. The track races weekly as part of the NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series. It has also held touring series events on the ARCA Menar ...
in August, Graf spun
Chandler Smith
Chandler Smith Sr. (born June 26, 2002) is an American professional stock car racing driver. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driving the No. 16 Chevrolet Camaro for Kaulig Racing. He was a member of Toyota Racing Development's ...
on the would-be final lap and then, after losing the lead to Zane Smith on the ensuing restart, pushed Smith up the track in turn four on the final lap to claim his first checkered flag in ARCA competition.
Xfinity Series
In April 2019, Graf joined
Richard Childress Racing
Richard Childress Racing (RCR) is an American professional stock car racing team that currently competes in the NASCAR Cup Series and the NASCAR Xfinity Series. The team is based in Welcome, North Carolina, and is owned and operated by Richard Ch ...
's
driver development program
A driver development program (or driver development team) is a system or structure designed for young kart and race car drivers to learn and perfect their racing skills. These programmes are devised by racing teams, external companies and funded ...
, which enabled him to run five
NASCAR Xfinity Series
The NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS) is a stock car racing series organized by NASCAR. It is promoted as NASCAR's second-tier circuit to the organization's top level Cup Series. NXS events are frequently held as a support race on the day prior to a ...
races for the team starting with
Michigan International Speedway
Michigan International Speedway (MIS) is a moderate-banked D-shaped speedway located off U.S. Highway 12 on more than approximately south of the village of Brooklyn, in the scenic Irish Hills area of southeastern Michigan. The track ...
's
LTi Printing 250. He also became a marketing and communications intern for the team.
After failing to qualify at Michigan, he made his series debut in
Iowa Speedway
Iowa Speedway is a 7/8-mile (1.4 km) paved oval motor racing track in Newton, Iowa, United States, approximately east of Des Moines. It has over 25,000 permanent seats as well as a unique multi-tiered RV viewing area along the backstretc ...
's
CircuitCity.com 250, where he finished 19th. Graf later said that he hopes to use the schedule as a lead-up to a full-time Xfinity schedule in 2020. At
Richmond Raceway
Richmond Raceway (RR) is a , ''D''-shaped, asphalt race track located just outside Richmond, Virginia in unincorporated Henrico County. It hosts the NASCAR Cup Series, NASCAR Xfinity Series and the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series. Known as ...
in September, Graf blew the tire of
John Hunter Nemechek
John Hunter Nemechek (born June 11, 1997) is an American professional stock car racing driver. He currently competes full time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driving the No. 20 Toyota Supra for Joe Gibbs Racing. He is the son of NASCAR driver Joe ...
when Graf moved Nemechek, a driver competing in the NASCAR playoffs, on the last lap. In retaliation, Nemechek spun Graf's car, in turn, one after the checkered flag.
On January 16, 2020,
SS-Green Light Racing announced Graf would race for the team full-time in the
Xfinity Series that year, replacing
Gray Gaulding in the team's No. 08 car. He finished 22nd in points with a best finish of 13th on three occasions.
Graf moved to the team's No. 07 in 2021.
Prior to the start of the season, Graf hired
Buffalo Bills
The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division ...
player
Antonio Williams as an advisor; the two had befriended each other through a mutual acquaintance. At the conclusion of the
Martinsville race, a fight broke out on pit road between Graf and
Gray Gaulding after Gaulding wrecked Graf on lap 177. He missed the
Pit Boss 250 at
Circuit of the Americas
Circuit of the Americas (COTA) is a Grade 1 FIA-specification motor racing track and facilities located within the extraterritorial jurisdiction of Austin, Texas, in the United States. The facility is home to the Formula One United States G ...
due to a strained left knee and was replaced by
Ross Chastain; Graf had run the weekend's practice but ranked 40th due to the injury affecting his braking ability.
In 2022, Graf would return to
SS-Green Light Racing in the No. 07 and the No. 08. After failing to qualify the No. 08 in the
Production Alliance Group 300, he replaced
Timmy Hill
Timothy G. Hill (born February 25, 1993) is an American professional stock car racing driver and team owner. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, driving the No. 56 Toyota Tundra for his own team, Hill Motorsports and par ...
in
RSS Racing's No. 38 and finished 15th.
Personal life
Raised in
Mahwah, New Jersey, Graf attended
Don Bosco Preparatory High School and played high school sports for two years before choosing to focus on his driving.
Graf attends
New York University
New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then- Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin.
In 1832, th ...
.
He is not related to
Klaus Graf who is also a racing driver.
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.)
Xfinity Series
ARCA Menards Series
(
key) (
Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. ''Italics'' – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)
ARCA Menards Series East
Season still in progress
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Graf, Joe Jr.
1998 births
Living people
ARCA Menards Series drivers
Don Bosco Preparatory High School alumni
New York University alumni
Racing drivers from New Jersey
People from Mahwah, New Jersey
Sportspeople from Bergen County, New Jersey
NASCAR drivers
Richard Childress Racing drivers