Preston Pardus
Preston Pardus (born February 15, 1997) is an American professional racing driver. He currently competes part-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driving the No. 36 Chevrolet Camaro for DGM Racing. Also a sports car racer, Pardus won the Spec Miata class at the 2017 SCCA National Championship Runoffs.
Preston Pardus | |||||||
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Pardus in 2019 | |||||||
Born | New Smyrna Beach, Florida | February 15, 1997||||||
Achievements | 2017 SCCA National Championship Runoffs champion (Spec Miata) | ||||||
NASCAR Xfinity Series career | |||||||
5 races run over 2 years | |||||||
Car no., team | No. 36 (DGM Racing) | ||||||
2019 position | 73rd | ||||||
Best finish | 73rd (2019) | ||||||
First race | 2019 CTECH Manufacturing 180 (Road America) | ||||||
Last race | 2020 UNOH 188 (Daytona) | ||||||
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Statistics current as of August 15, 2020. |
Racing career
Racing Spec Miatas, Pardus won the 2017 SCCA National Championship Runoffs on a last-lap pass.[1] Pardus was also selected by Mazda Motorsports as a finalist to compete at the Mazda Road to 24 Shootout in late 2017.[2] In 2019, Pardus started the Super Tour off with a win at Sebring International Raceway in January, competing in the Central Florida region of the SCCA.[3] He went on to win the SCCA Majors Southeast Conference Championship that year, topping a series with over 150 entrants.[4]
In August 2019, Pardus made his NASCAR Xfinity Series debut in the 2019 CTECH Manufacturing 180 at Road America. While the start came with his family Pardus Racing Inc. team, Pardus' car was an old Chip Ganassi Racing chassis, was powered by an Earnhardt Childress Engines engine, and the at-track effort was headed by Tony Furr, who served as crew chief.[5] He returned to the series in July 2020 for the Pennzoil 150 on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course, driving for DGM Racing.[6] After starting 19th, Pardus ended the race in tenth for his first top-ten finish in NASCAR.[7]
Personal life
Pardus' father Dan formerly competed in the NASCAR Winston Cup Series, NASCAR Busch Series and ARCA Re/Max Series.[8] He graduated from Spruce Creek High School in 2015.[8]
His family owns Danus Utilities, Inc., an underground utility company that Pardus works for when he is not racing. Danus Utilities has also sponsored his race cars.[6]
Motorsports career results
SCCA National Championship Runoffs
Year | Track | Car | Engine | Class | Finish | Start | Status |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2015 | Daytona | Mazda Miata | Mazda | Spec Miata | 19 | 5 | Running |
2017 | Indianapolis | Mazda Miata | Mazda | Spec Miata | 1 | 2 | Running |
2018 | Sonoma | Mazda Miata | Mazda | Spec Miata | 5 | 10 | Running |
2019 | VIR | Mazda Miata | Mazda | Spec Miata | 2 | 2 | Running |
NASCAR
Xfinity Series
NASCAR Xfinity Series results | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Year | Team | No. | Make | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 31 | 32 | 33 | NXSC | Pts | Ref | ||
2019 | Pardus Racing Inc. | 43 | Chevy | DAY | ATL | LVS | PHO | CAL | TEX | BRI | RCH | TAL | DOV | CLT | POC | MCH | IOW | CHI | DAY | KEN | NHA | IOW | GLN | MOH | BRI | ROA 36 |
DAR | IND | LVS | RCH | CLT 27 |
DOV | KAN | TEX | PHO | HOM | 73rd | 11 | [9] | ||
2020 | DGM Racing | 36 | Chevy | DAY | LVS | CAL | PHO | DAR | CLT | BRI | ATL | HOM | HOM | TAL | POC | IND 10 |
KEN | KEN | TEX | KAN | ROA 8 |
DAY 31 |
DOV | DOV | DAY | DAR | RCH | RCH | BRI | LVS | TAL | CLT | KAN | TEX | MAR | PHO | -* | -* | [10] |
* Season still in progress
1 Ineligible for series points
References
- "Preston Pardus Tops 72-Car Spec Miata Field". Speed Sport. Retrieved August 28, 2019.
- "$100,000 Mazda Road to 24 Shootout Finalists Announced". BFGoodrich Racing. Retrieved November 22, 2017.
- "SCCA Super Tour Season Begins in Sebring". Speed Sport. Retrieved August 28, 2019.
- "U.S. Majors Tour Southeast Conference 2019 Point Champions". SCCA. Retrieved April 6, 2020.
- Kelly, Godwin. "Volusia's Pardus Racing seeks to make NASCAR debut in in[sic] Xfinity race". Daytona Beach News-Journal. Retrieved August 28, 2019.
- Srigley, Joseph (July 3, 2020). "Preston Pardus Looking to Use Advantage of Indy Road Course Experience to Record Solid Finish in Saturday's Pennzoil 150". TobyChristie.com. Retrieved July 3, 2020.
- Cain, Holly (July 4, 2020). "Chase Briscoe Earns Hard-Fought NASCAR Xfinity Win at Indianapolis". Autoweek. Retrieved July 4, 2020.
- Kelly, Godwin (May 8, 2013). "Family affair: Former NASCAR driver Pardus introduces his kids to Daytona". The Daytona Beach News-Journal. Retrieved August 19, 2019.
- "Preston Pardus – 2019 NASCAR Xfinity Series". Racing Reference. Retrieved August 28, 2019.
- "Preston Pardus – 2020 NASCAR Xfinity Series". Racing Reference. Retrieved August 16, 2020.
External links
- Preston Pardus driver statistics at Racing-Reference