T. J. Duke III (born September 21, 1993) 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 ori ...
driver. He has driven in the
NASCAR Nationwide 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 ...
for
Key Motorsports
Key Motorsports (formerly The Motorsports Group and Circle Sport – The Motorsports Group) was an American professional stock car racing team that last competed in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series. The team was founded by Virginia businessma ...
and
Go Green Racing
Go Green Racing is an American professional stock car racing team that is currently on hiatus in the NASCAR Xfinity Series. The team debuted in NASCAR competition in 2009, competing in the Nationwide Series, before adding a part-time Sprint Cup ...
, the
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series
The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series is a pickup truck racing series owned and operated by the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, and is the only series in NASCAR to race production pickup truck based stock cars. The series is one of th ...
for
SS-Green Light Racing
SS-Green Light Racing is an American professional stock car racing team that currently competes in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, fielding the No. 07 Ford primarily for Joe Graf Jr. and the No. 08 for primarily for David Starr. They also have a tech ...
and has also raced
late models
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 ...
around
Florida
Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...
.
Racing career
NASCAR
Duke started his Truck career at the age of eighteen, driving for
SS-Green Light Racing
SS-Green Light Racing is an American professional stock car racing team that currently competes in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, fielding the No. 07 Ford primarily for Joe Graf Jr. and the No. 08 for primarily for David Starr. They also have a tech ...
at
Martinsville Speedway
Martinsville Speedway is a NASCAR-owned stock car racing short track in Ridgeway, Virginia, just south of Martinsville. At in length, it is the shortest track in the NASCAR Cup Series. The track was also one of the first paved oval tracks in s ...
. With funding from
Merrill Lynch
Merrill (officially Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated), previously branded Merrill Lynch, is an American investment management and wealth management division of Bank of America. Along with BofA Securities, the investment bank ...
, he finished 34th of 36 trucks, 41 laps behind race winner
Denny Hamlin
James Dennis Alan Hamlin (born November 18, 1980) is an American professional stock car racing driver and NASCAR team owner. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 11 Toyota Camry for Joe Gibbs Racing. He co-owns and oper ...
. Three weeks later, Duke was hired by
Key Motorsports
Key Motorsports (formerly The Motorsports Group and Circle Sport – The Motorsports Group) was an American professional stock car racing team that last competed in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series. The team was founded by Virginia businessma ...
to drive the team's No. 40 car in the penultimate race of the 2011 season at
Phoenix. He avoided multiple crashes to finish 23rd, and turned in another top-30 effort the following week at
Homestead-Miami Speedway.
A return to SS-Green Light was in store for 2012, as Duke ran the season-opening
NextEra Energy Resources 250
The NextEra Energy 250 is the first race of the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series season at Daytona International Speedway and as of 2004 has been held under the lights. It is the Truck Series event of Speedweeks – the series of races leading u ...
but was swept up in one of the race's many crashes. Although he didn't return to NASCAR that year, he continued racing, competing in the
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 ...
division at Citrus County Speedway.
In 2013, Duke returned for one race at
Dover International Speedway
Dover Motor Speedway (formerly Dover Downs International Speedway and later Dover International Speedway) is a race track in Dover, Delaware. The track has hosted at least one NASCAR Cup Series race each year since 1969, including two per yea ...
with
Go Green Racing
Go Green Racing is an American professional stock car racing team that is currently on hiatus in the NASCAR Xfinity Series. The team debuted in NASCAR competition in 2009, competing in the Nationwide Series, before adding a part-time Sprint Cup ...
, finishing 25th.
After NASCAR
Duke has continued to run late models around the southeast, competing around tracks like
New Smyrna Speedway
New Smyrna Speedway is a 1/2-mile asphalt oval racetrack located near New Smyrna Beach, Florida, that races the NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series every Saturday night. It also has a smaller track, known as "Little New Smyrna Speedway" in t ...
Motorsports career results
NASCAR
(
key
Key or The Key may refer to:
Common meanings
* Key (cryptography), a piece of information that controls the operation of a cryptography algorithm
* Key (lock), device used to control access to places or facilities restricted by a lock
* Key (map ...
) (
Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. ''Italics'' – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)
Nationwide Series
Camping World Truck Series
Season still in progress
Ineligible for series points
References
External links
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Duke, T. J.
Living people
1993 births
People from Southwest Ranches, Florida
Racing drivers from Miami
NASCAR drivers
CARS Tour drivers
Sportspeople from Broward County, Florida