History was made at the Hickory Motor Speedway Saturday night, as professional racer Dystany Spurlock became the first African-American woman to compete in a NASCAR-affiliated series.

Spurlock finished seventh while completing all 200 laps at the iconic North Carolina short track in her No. 66 Foxxtecca Chevrolet.

The Virginia native made her debut in the ARCA Menards Series East, marking a major milestone as she continues working toward her goal of competing in a national series event this spring.

“This is phenomenal,” Spurlock told Nexstar’s WJZY. “Like I tell everyone, this isn’t for me. This is for the little ones that look up to me and are coming up after me.”

In the race's early goings, Spurlock held the eighth spot through multiple restarts. But the show started at the midway point when she battled it out with Isaac Kitzmiller for the seventh spot.

It took Spurlock the final 20 laps of the race to secure the seventh berth, capitalizing 10 laps later by deftly avoiding a spin among the leaders.

“I had a great time out there,” she told pit reporter Jacklyn Drake moments after the race. “First and foremost, thank you, God, thank you to my ancestors, thanks to my family, my friends, and most of all my sponsors, Foxxtecca, and Carl at MBM."

"When I said they gave me a rocket tonight, they gave me a rocket tonight. Of course, I’m still learning, but I said the car feels good, so we’re going for it.” She added.

Spurlock started in motorcycle drag racing before she switched to stock cars, which worked wonders as she became the first woman to win the Real Street class in the XDA Motorcycle Drag Racing Series and also set a world record.

She also became only the second Black woman to compete in the NHRA Pro Stock Motorcycle category last year, with the intention of racing again this time.

After this historic achievement, the road to the NASCAR Cup series feels less of a dream and more of a reality for Spurlock.

Spurlock explained in an interview last week that she will ideally debut in the NASCAR O'Reilly Auto Parts Series at the end of the season and become a full-time performer starting next year, before heading to the big leagues.

Fans React to Dystany Spurlock's Historic Achievement

Fans were impressed with Spurlock's resiliency till the end of the race, as they sang her praises throughout social media.

"Amazing for her and the team, can't wait for Rockingham," one fan is already excited to watch Spurlock's next race. "She did an amazing job out there tonight! Can't wait to see more of her performance at the Rock!" another fan shared a similar sentiment.

"She showed a lot more in that one race than a lot of drivers have showed in their entire career," a third one said.

Another one said, "Great job! Now, please don’t rush her like every other female driver and let her develop. It would be awesome to see her get a fair shot!" One fan opined that Spurlock should receive even more time after her career-best performance, which showed immense potential.

So, do you think Dystany Spurlock can excel her game even further to the point she eventually reaches the mountaintop - the NASCAR Cup series?

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Written by

Joy Bassy

Edited by

Souvik Roy