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| Born .: | 06/07/1979 (29 Years Old) |
| Hometown .: | Bakersfield, California |
| Height .: | 5'10' |
| Weight .: | 210 lbs. |
| Spouse .: | Single |
| Children .: | None |
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Jason Small Driver Bio
Career Highlights
" Started racing ATVs at the age of 6, finished third in his first race
ever; won half of the season's races and season championship before moving on
to race Odysseys and Go-karts
" Finished second in point standings at Mesa Marin Speedway in 1998, while
a senior in high-school; won four races, missed championship by 5 points
" NASCAR Winston West Series Rookie of the Year in 1999; sat on pole in his
first NWWS race at Tucson
" Finished 1999 NWWS Series 6th in overall point standings with two top-5
finishes and eight top-10 finishes
" Made first NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series start in 2000 in family-owned
truck
" Ran limited season in NCTS in 2001 while coming back to Mesa Marin to run
a partial Late Model season; won four of ten Late Model races and finished in
the top-3 eight times
" Joined Green Light Racing for 2002 NCTS season, started season off
strongly with a ninth-place finish in the Dodge Dealers 250 at Daytona
International Speedway
Jason Small will readily admit he did not grow up the way most children do.
"I was a very busy kid growing up," Small said. "When I was six, my dad
bought me an ATV and I liked riding it so much I carved out a track with it
in our backyard and in the neighbor's back yard. My dad saw that and decided
we should take that ATV and race it. The first race out, I ended up third
and I just loved it. I have been racing ever since."
Small has, in a few short years, accomplished what some drivers wait an
entire career to do.
"In 1998, I was running for the late model championship at Mesa Marin while I
was still a senior in high school. I was honorable mention in football and
golf that year. I can remember some Saturdays feeling so sore from playing
football the night before that I could barely move. But before too long, the
adrenaline would start flowing and before I knew it, it was time to go race.
Once we got to that point, I didn't feel anything."
Small finished second in the final point standings at Mesa Marin in 1998
ending the season with 4 feature wins and missing the track championship by a
mere 5 points.
In 1999, the team added a NASCAR Winston West car to the stable.
"We took it to Tucson and the very first race I won the pole," he said.
"That helped make up our mind that we would run for the rookie of the year
that season."
Small and his family-owned team fought a hard fight in 1999, and it paid off
handsomely. Top-5 finishes at Mesa Marin and Rocky Mountain, as well as six
other top-10 finishes, helped push Small to a sixth-place finish in overall
series standings, and earned him an invitation to run in the Motegi Thunder
Special 500 at the end of the year.
"It was great going over to Japan to run with the Cup guys," he said. "Going
over, I started to get really sick on the plane. And it just lingered all
weekend. When they said 'start your engines', it just went away. We had a
really good run, too. We were in the top-5 for a long time, and ended up
finishing 9th. It was a great day and a great experience."
The 2002 season brings Small to the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series with Green
Light Racing team. For the first time in his career, Small has a teammate to
work with.
"Having Bobby Dotter as a teammate is the perfect situation for me," he said.
"It is great to have someone to help with learning some of these tracks, and
to help with setup questions. It has really expanded my horizons and it has
been a very positive, eye-opening experience."
Small started of the season with a bang, earning a ninth-place finish at the
season's marquee event, the Florida Dodge Dealers 250 at Daytona
International Speedway.
"It was a great day," Small said. "We ran well, and we missed the big wreck
late in the race. And from there, we have had some very solid runs, and the
entire team is very focused on gaining those top-10 finishes and moving up in
points. We made a concerted effort here lately to be a little more
aggressive on the racetrack, and I think it is really starting to pay off."
Small hopes his career path follows that of another driver he used to race
with, and occasionally beat, on a weekly basis at Mesa Marin.
"My career path has pretty much mirrored Kevin Harvick's," Small said. "When
I first met him, he was a few years older than me. He is one of the guys
that we got hooked up with when I first started running late models when I
was 16. It seems like we have done just about the same things, just that I
have done them a few years later than Kevin did. He's made it all the way up
to Winston Cup and won some races, so he's set the bar pretty high. I hope
to be right there with him very soon."
NASCAR Camping World Series, West Driving Stats
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| Starts .: | 40 |
| Wins .: | 0 |
| Top 5s .: | 5 |
| Top 10s .: | 16 |
| Sponsors .: | Lucas Oil |
| Make .: | Chevrolet |
| |  | Jason Small Photo Gallery
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