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Chad Little

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Chad Little
Little in 1998
BornCharles Glen Little Jr.
(1963-04-29) April 29, 1963 (age 61)
Spokane, Washington, U.S.
Achievements1987 NASCAR Winston West Series Champion
Awards1986 Winston West Series Rookie of the Year
West Coast Stock Car Hall of Fame (2013)
NASCAR Cup Series career
217 races run over 16 years
2002 position77th
Best finish15th (1998)
First race1986 Budweiser 400 (Riverside)
Last race2002 MBNA Platinum 400 (Dover)
Wins Top tens Poles
0 16 0
NASCAR Xfinity Series career
134 races run over 9 years
2002 position69th
Best finish2nd (1995)
First race1992 Fay's 150 (Watkins Glen)
Last race2002 Sam's Town 300 (Las Vegas)
First win1995 Goody's 300 (Daytona)
Last win1995 Ford Credit 300 (South Boston)
Wins Top tens Poles
6 44 1
NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series career
1 race run over 1 year
1995 position69th
Best finish69th (1995)
First race1995 Fas Mart Supertruck Shootout (Richmond)
Wins Top tens Poles
0 0 0

Charles Glen Little Jr. (born April 29, 1963) is an American former professional stock car racing driver. He holds a degree in marketing from Washington State University and a J.D. degree from Gonzaga University. While attending Washington State University, he joined the Delta Upsilon fraternity.

Little currently works at NASCAR as managing director for technical inspection and officiating. Little had previously been director of the Camping World Truck Series, as well as the director of racing development for Mexico and the Whelen Modified Tour.[1] He keeps regular office hours in the sanctioning body's research and development center in Concord, North Carolina. He also was a part-time studio analyst for Speed Channel. He is the father of Jesse Little.

Early years

[edit]

Little began racing the short tracks in Washington in the mid-1980s. He soon began racing in the American Speed Association West late model series, the NASCAR Northwest Tour Series and the NASCAR Winston West Series. One year after being named the NASCAR Winston West Rookie of the Year, Little clinched that series' championship in 1987.

Little made his NASCAR Winston Cup debut in 1986 at Riverside International Raceway, driving the No. 28 Ford owned by George Jefferson. He started 25th and finished 13th. He ran the other Riverside race that year but finished 35th after suffering engine failure. He ran both the Riverside races the next year, finishing 15th both times in the No. 95 Coors Ford.

The following year, Little was eligible for NASCAR Winston Cup Rookie of the Year honors and signed to drive the No. 90 for Junie Donlavey. However, his best finish was an eighteenth, at the Coca-Cola 600, and he was released early in the season. In 1989, he missed United Airlines Flight 232. About a third of the passengers aboard the flight perished during its emergency landing in Iowa. In 1990, Little and his father Chuck teamed to field their own entry, the No. 19 Ford sponsored by Bull's Eye Barbecue Sauce. He ran eighteen races and had seven top-twenty finishes, garnering a 33rd-place points finish. The following season, Little made his first full-time attempt at winning the NASCAR Winston Cup Series Championship, qualifying for 28 out of 29 races and posting a tenth-place finish at Charlotte Motor Speedway, finishing 27th in points.

Busch Series

[edit]

In 1992, Little signed to drive the No. 66 TropArctic-sponsored Ford for Cale Yarborough but was released six races into the season. Later, he caught on to the No. 9 Ford fielded by Melling Racing and had an eighth-place finish at Talladega. He also made his Busch Series debut that year, starting and finishing 29th in the No. 37 Maxx Race Cards-sponsored Oldsmobile at Watkins Glen International.

In 1993, Little, along with Greg Pollex and former NFL quarterback Mark Rypien, formed Mark Rypien Motorsports, running the No. 23 If It's Paper-Bayer Select-sponsored Ford on a limited basis that year, posting a second-place finish at Dover International Speedway. The next year, the team went full time and Little had 10 top-five finishes, finishing third in points. He also drove the No. 97 Ford at the Daytona 500 that season, finishing 29th. In 1995, Little broke through and won six races during the course of the season, including the first two races of the season, at Daytona and Rockingham, and finished second in points, behind Johnny Benson. His other wins were at Loudon, Charlotte, Talladega and South Boston. Little did not win a race the following season, however, and slipped to sixth in points. He also ran nine Winston Cup Series races, five in Pollex's No. 97 Sterling Cowboy-sponsored Pontiac Grand Prix, and another four for Diamond Ridge Motorsports, posting a 20th-place finish at Darlington Raceway,

Winston Cup

[edit]
Little's 1997 Winston Cup car

In 1997, Little returned to the Winston Cup Series, running the No. 97 Pontiac for Pollex with a sponsorship from John Deere. He finished seventh at the Food City 500, but the team struggled to make races. Late in the year, Jack Roush purchased the team to be added to his stable for 1998. Little ended 1997 36th in points.

In 1998, Little drove for Roush full time with Jeff Hammond as crew chief. Running 32 out of 33 races, he had seven top-tens, including a second-place run at Texas, finishing behind Mark Martin, and finished a career-high 15th in points. He was unable to duplicate that performance in 1999, posting just five top-tens and finishing 23rd in points. After just one top-ten in 2000, Roush announced Little would not drive the 97 the following season. Late in the year, Little was pulled out of the car and replaced by his successor, Kurt Busch, with Hammond still as crew chief. During the season, he also ran a handful of races in the Busch Series. Originally running the No. 30 for Innovative Motorsports, he was released and posted a top-ten in a one-race deal with PPI Motorsports.

Little had 217 career Cup starts in all.

Final years as driver

[edit]

In 2001, Little signed to drive the No. 74 Staff America-sponsored Chevrolet Monte Carlo for BACE Motorsports in the Busch Series. He had six Top 10’s and finished ninth in points. He started off 2002 running for BACE, but the team closed after three races due to sponsor issues. He made his final Cup start in a BACE car at Dover that year, finishing 33rd. He has not run NASCAR since.

Post-driving career

[edit]

In 2004, Chad called several Truck and Xfinity races from the booth.

Chad later provided competition support for the NASCAR Mexico Corona Series, and became the tour director for the Whelen Modified Tour.

Starting in 2013, Chad took on the role of NASCAR Camping World Truck Series managing director.[2] On February 2, 2015, NASCAR announced that Little would be moving into a new role, as a managing director of technical inspection and officiating. His role as director was replaced by another former driver, Elton Sawyer.[3]

Motorsports career results

[edit]

NASCAR

[edit]

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

Winston Cup Series

[edit]
NASCAR Winston Cup 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 34 35 36 NWCC Pts Ref
1986 Jefferson Racing 28 Ford DAY RCH CAR ATL BRI DAR NWS MAR TAL DOV CLT RSD
13
POC MCH DAY POC TAL GLN MCH BRI DAR RCH DOV MAR NWS CLT CAR ATL RSD
35
70th 182 [4]
1987 95 DAY CAR RCH ATL DAR NWS BRI MAR TAL CLT DOV POC RSD
15
MCH DAY POC TAL GLN MCH BRI DAR RCH DOV MAR NWS CLT CAR RSD
15
ATL 60th 236 [5]
1988 Stoke Racing 19 Ford DAY RCH CAR ATL DAR BRI NWS MAR TAL CLT DOV RSD
23
POC MCH DAY POC TAL GLN CLT
DNQ
NWS CAR 45th 405 [6]
Autosports Enterprises MCH
27
BRI DAR RCH DOV
15
MAR
Jefferson Racing PHO
19
ATL
1989 Donlavey Racing 90 Ford DAY
36
CAR ATL
35
RCH
22
DAR
37
BRI NWS MAR
26
TAL
34
CLT
18
DOV SON POC MCH DAY POC TAL GLN MCH
26
BRI DAR RCH DOV MAR CLT NWS CAR PHO ATL 38th 602 [7]
1990 Little Racing 19 Ford DAY
DNQ
RCH
16
CAR ATL
19
DAR
16
BRI
DNQ
NWS MAR TAL
15
CLT
24
DOV SON
37
POC
18
MCH DAY
27
POC TAL
19
GLN MCH
22
BRI
DNQ
DAR
35
RCH
32
DOV MAR
17
NWS
24
CLT
40
CAR
25
ATL
27
33rd 1632 [8]
Moroso Racing 20 Olds PHO
21
1991 Little Racing 19 Ford DAY
14
RCH
16
CAR
22
ATL
18
DAR
36
BRI
14
NWS
DNQ
MAR
27
TAL
38
CLT
25
DOV
29
SON
28
POC
23
MCH
26
DAY
29
POC
12
TAL
12
GLN
11
MCH
25
BRI
14
DAR
36
RCH
34
DOV
16
MAR
24
NWS
21
CLT
10
CAR
23
PHO
30
ATL
21
27th 2678 [9]
1992 Cale Yarborough Motorsports 66 Ford DAY
39
CAR
22
RCH
23
ATL
23
DAR
33
BRI
23
NWS MAR TAL CLT 31st 1669 [10]
Melling Racing 9 Ford DOV
26
SON POC
37
MCH
21
DAY
24
POC
17
TAL
8
GLN MCH
17
BRI DAR
34
RCH
27
DOV
29
MAR NWS CLT
33
CAR
24
PHO ATL
17
1993 DAY
24
CAR RCH ATL DAR BRI NWS MAR TAL SON CLT
34
DOV POC MCH DAY NHA POC TAL GLN MCH BRI DAR RCH DOV MAR NWS 51st 216 [11]
Mark Rypien Motorsports 19 Ford CLT
33
CAR PHO ATL
1994 97 DAY
29
CAR RCH ATL DAR BRI NWS MAR TAL SON CLT DOV POC MCH DAY NHA POC TAL IND GLN MCH BRI DAR RCH DOV MAR NWS CLT CAR PHO ATL 68th 81 [12]
1995 DAY
DNQ
CAR RCH ATL DAR BRI NWS MAR TAL SON CLT
42
DOV POC MCH DAY NHA POC TAL
18
IND GLN MCH BRI DAR RCH DOV MAR NWS CLT
DNQ
CAR PHO
DNQ
ATL 53rd 146 [13]
1996 Pontiac DAY
33
CAR RCH ATL DAR BRI NWS MAR TAL
DNQ
CLT
43
DOV POC MCH DAY NHA POC TAL
DNQ
IND GLN MCH
36
CLT
22
CAR PHO ATL
22
44th 627 [14]
JTC Racing 45 Chevy SON
DNQ
Diamond Ridge Motorsports 29 Chevy BRI
23
DAR
20
RCH
40
DOV
41
MAR
DNQ
NWS
1997 Mark Rypien Motorsports 97 Pontiac DAY
DNQ
CAR
DNQ
RCH
34
ATL
19
DAR
27
TEX
26
BRI
8
MAR
42
SON
DNQ
TAL
34
CLT
DNQ
DOV
31
POC
DNQ
MCH
25
CAL
19
DAY
42
NHA
30
POC
28
IND
42
GLN
42
36th 2081 [15]
Roush Racing MCH
42
BRI
20
DAR
11
RCH
40
NHA
28
DOV
29
MAR
35
CLT
23
TAL
40
CAR
16
PHO
25
ATL
18
1998 Ford DAY
7
CAR
21
LVS
10
ATL
DNQ
DAR
17
BRI
35
TEX
2
MAR
16
TAL
34
CAL
6
CLT
35
DOV
37
RCH
13
MCH
16
POC
30
SON
23
NHA
22
POC
16
IND
28
GLN
16
MCH
10
BRI
23
NHA
14
DAR
18
RCH
12
DOV
17
MAR
36
CLT
8
TAL
8
DAY
20
PHO
20
CAR
40
ATL
11
15th 3423 [16]
1999 DAY
9
CAR
21
LVS
14
ATL
9
DAR
28
TEX
13
BRI
24
MAR
17
TAL
42
CAL
22
RCH
35
CLT
24
DOV
28
MCH
28
POC
32
SON
16
DAY
29
NHA
24
POC
22
IND
43
GLN
14
MCH
6
BRI
30
DAR
20
RCH
42
NHA
28
DOV
7
MAR
31
CLT
18
TAL
36
CAR
21
PHO
16
HOM
39
ATL
6
23rd 3193 [17]
2000 DAY
23
CAR
18
LVS
19
ATL
6
DAR
15
BRI
23
TEX
13
MAR
27
TAL
25
CAL
15
RCH
39
CLT
20
DOV
20
MCH
32
POC
17
SON
25
DAY
16
NHA
42
POC
20
IND
19
GLN
12
MCH
22
BRI
30
DAR
21
RCH
29
NHA
33
DOV MAR CLT TAL
18
CAR PHO HOM ATL 32nd 2634 [18]
2002 BACE Motorsports 74 Chevy DAY CAR LVS ATL DAR BRI TEX MAR TAL CAL
DNQ
RCH CLT
DNQ
DOV
33
POC MCH SON DAY CHI NHA POC IND GLN MCH BRI DAR RCH NHA DOV KAN TAL CLT MAR ATL CAR PHO HOM 77th 64 [19]
Daytona 500
[edit]
Year Team Manufacturer Start Finish
1989 Donlavey Racing Ford 28 36
1990 Little Racing Ford DNQ
1991 30 14
1992 Cale Yarborough Motorsports Ford 14 39
1993 Melling Racing Ford 17 24
1994 Mark Rypien Motorsports Ford 17 29
1995 DNQ
1996 Pontiac 30 33
1997 DNQ
1998 Roush Racing Ford 21 7
1999 26 9
2000 29 23

Busch Series

[edit]
NASCAR Busch 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 34 NBGNC Pts Ref
1992 Little Racing 37 Olds DAY CAR RCH ATL MAR DAR BRI HCY LAN DUB NZH CLT DOV ROU MYB GLN
29
VOL NHA TAL IRP ROU MCH NHA BRI DAR RCH DOV CLT MAR CAR HCY 120th 76 [20]
1993 Mark Rypien Motorsports 23 Ford DAY CAR RCH DAR
33
BRI HCY ROU MAR NZH CLT
7
DOV
2
MYB GLN MLW TAL
29
IRP
37
MCH
33
NHA
37
BRI
22
DAR
3
RCH DOV ROU CLT
14
MAR CAR
41
HCY ATL
23
32nd 1171 [21]
1994 DAY
3
CAR
15
RCH
22
ATL
14
MAR
27
DAR
18
HCY
22
BRI
24
ROU
15
NHA
5
NZH
11
CLT
34
DOV
17
MYB
5
GLN
8
MLW
7
SBO
5
TAL
6
HCY
8
IRP
5
MCH
2
BRI
12
DAR
5
RCH
14
DOV
15
CLT
4
MAR
5
CAR
5
3rd 3662 [22]
1995 DAY
1
CAR
1*
RCH
32
ATL
29*
NSV
2
DAR
4
BRI
3
HCY
23*
NHA
1
NZH
19
CLT
1
DOV
9
MYB
32
GLN
2*
MLW
8
TAL
1
SBO
1*
IRP
20
MCH
21
BRI
4
DAR
40
RCH
16
DOV
13
CLT
34
CAR
35
HOM
26
2nd 3284 [23]
1996 Pontiac DAY
19
CAR
33
RCH
20
ATL
15
NSV
15
DAR
37
BRI
12
HCY
11
NZH
11
CLT
13
DOV
29
SBO
8
MYB
16
GLN
8
MLW
21
NHA
32
TAL
21
IRP
27
MCH
11
BRI
25
DAR
12
RCH
3
DOV
9
CLT
4
CAR
10
HOM
7
5th 2984 [24]
1998 Roush Racing 9 Ford DAY CAR LVS NSV DAR BRI TEX HCY TAL NHA NZH CLT DOV RCH PPR GLN MLW MYB CAL SBO IRP MCH BRI DAR
30
RCH DOV CLT GTY CAR ATL HOM 108th 73 [25]
2000 Innovative Motorsports 30 Chevy DAY CAR LVS ATL DAR BRI TEX
DNQ
NSV TAL
DNQ
CAL
12
RCH
DNQ
NHA CLT
31
DOV
DNQ
SBO MYB GLN MLW NZH PPR GTY IRP 66th 398 [26]
PPI Motorsports 97 Ford MCH
10
BRI DAR RCH DOV
BACE Motorsports 74 Chevy CLT
DNQ
CAR
32
MEM PHO HOM
DNQ
2001 DAY
9
CAR
15
LVS
16
ATL
15
DAR
24
BRI
12
TEX
31
NSH
27
TAL
11
CAL
18
RCH
20
NHA
14
NZH
20
CLT
21
DOV
11
KEN
6
MLW
20
GLN
16
CHI
17
GTY
13
PPR
16
IRP
3
MCH
16
BRI
9
DAR
13
RCH
6
DOV
4
KAN
36
CLT
17
MEM
16
PHO
13
CAR
17
HOM
27
9th 3846 [27]
2002 DAY
14
CAR
24
LVS
21
DAR BRI TEX NSH TAL CAL RCH NHA NZH CLT DOV NSH KEN MLW DAY CHI GTY PPR IRP MCH BRI DAR RCH DOV KAN CLT MEM ATL CAR PHO HOM 69th 312 [28]

SuperTruck Series

[edit]
NASCAR SuperTruck 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 NSTSC Pts Ref
1995 RPM Racing 11 Ford PHO TUS SGS MMR POR EVG I70 LVL BRI MLW CNS HPT IRP FLM RCH
32
MAR
DNQ
NWS
DNQ
SON MMR PHO 69th 162 [29]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "Chad Little new director of Truck Series; Wayne Auton takes over Nationwide Series".
  2. ^ "NASCAR revises competition personnel structure". NASCAR.com. Retrieved 18 December 2012.
  3. ^ "NASCAR moves Chad Little to inspection role; Elton Sawyer to lead Truck Series". Fox Sports. February 2, 2015. Retrieved February 2, 2015.
  4. ^ "Chad Little – 1986 NASCAR Winston Cup Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved August 20, 2015.
  5. ^ "Chad Little – 1987 NASCAR Winston Cup Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved August 20, 2015.
  6. ^ "Chad Little – 1988 NASCAR Winston Cup Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved August 20, 2015.
  7. ^ "Chad Little – 1989 NASCAR Winston Cup Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved August 20, 2015.
  8. ^ "Chad Little – 1990 NASCAR Winston Cup Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved August 20, 2015.
  9. ^ "Chad Little – 1991 NASCAR Winston Cup Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved August 20, 2015.
  10. ^ "Chad Little – 1992 NASCAR Winston Cup Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved August 20, 2015.
  11. ^ "Chad Little – 1993 NASCAR Winston Cup Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved August 20, 2015.
  12. ^ "Chad Little – 1994 NASCAR Winston Cup Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved August 20, 2015.
  13. ^ "Chad Little – 1995 NASCAR Winston Cup Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved August 20, 2015.
  14. ^ "Chad Little – 1996 NASCAR Winston Cup Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved August 20, 2015.
  15. ^ "Chad Little – 1997 NASCAR Winston Cup Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved August 20, 2015.
  16. ^ "Chad Little – 1998 NASCAR Winston Cup Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved August 20, 2015.
  17. ^ "Chad Little – 1999 NASCAR Winston Cup Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved August 20, 2015.
  18. ^ "Chad Little – 2000 NASCAR Winston Cup Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved August 20, 2015.
  19. ^ "Chad Little – 2002 NASCAR Winston Cup Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved August 20, 2015.
  20. ^ "Chad Little – 1992 NASCAR Busch Grand National Series Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved August 21, 2015.
  21. ^ "Chad Little – 1993 NASCAR Busch Grand National Series Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved August 21, 2015.
  22. ^ "Chad Little – 1994 NASCAR Busch Grand National Series Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved August 21, 2015.
  23. ^ "Chad Little – 1995 NASCAR Busch Grand National Series Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved August 21, 2015.
  24. ^ "Chad Little – 1996 NASCAR Busch Grand National Series Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved August 21, 2015.
  25. ^ "Chad Little – 1998 NASCAR Busch Grand National Series Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved August 21, 2015.
  26. ^ "Chad Little – 2000 NASCAR Busch Grand National Series Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved August 21, 2015.
  27. ^ "Chad Little – 2001 NASCAR Busch Grand National Series Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved August 21, 2015.
  28. ^ "Chad Little – 2002 NASCAR Busch Grand National Series Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved August 21, 2015.
  29. ^ "Chad Little – 1995 NASCAR SuperTruck Series by Craftsman Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved August 21, 2015.
[edit]
Achievements
Preceded by NASCAR Winston West Series champion
1987
Succeeded by