| Dawson Cram | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
.jpg) Cram atLas Vegas Motor Speedway in 2024 | |||||||
| Born | Dawson Kevin Cram (2001-09-12)September 12, 2001 (age 24) San Diego, California, U.S. | ||||||
| NASCARO'Reilly Auto Parts Series career | |||||||
| 38 races run over 5 years | |||||||
| 2025 position | 59th | ||||||
| Best finish | 46th (2023) | ||||||
| First race | 2021Ambetter Get Vaccinated 200 (New Hampshire) | ||||||
| Last race | 2025NASCAR Xfinity Series Championship Race (Phoenix) | ||||||
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| NASCARCraftsman Truck Series career | |||||||
| 33 races run over 7 years | |||||||
| 2025 position | 105th | ||||||
| Best finish | 30th (2021) | ||||||
| First race | 2018Alpha Energy Solutions 250 (Martinsville) | ||||||
| Last race | 2024Rackley Roofing 200 (Nashville) | ||||||
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| ARCA Menards Series career | |||||||
| 1 race run over 1 year | |||||||
| Best finish | 62nd (2020) | ||||||
| First race | 2020General Tire 150 (Phoenix) | ||||||
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| Statistics up to date as of November 1, 2025. | |||||||
Dawson Kevin Cram (born September 12, 2001) is an American professionalstock car racing driver, mechanic, and team owner. He last competed part-time in theNASCAR Xfinity Series, driving the No. 74Chevrolet Camaro SS forMike Harmon Racing, and part-time in theNASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, driving the No. 74Toyota Tundra TRD Pro for MHR. He has previously competed in theARCA Menards Series.
From2017 to2021, Cram ran for his own race team that he co-owned with his family, being the youngest team owner inNASCAR history at only the age of 16.[citation needed]
In 2007, at the age of five, Cram started racing in Mini Dwarf race cars in his hometown,San Diego, California.[1][2] He later moved toMooresville, North Carolina and started to race in the INEXBandolero Series. After winning thirteen times in Bandoleros,[3] he made the move tolegend cars in 2014. His racing slate in 2017 included various starts in legends cars, Super Trucks, andlate models in theWhelen All-American Series and an attempt at aNASCAR Camping World Truck Series event.[4]
On October 24, 2017, Cram was announced to be driving forCram Racing Enterprises in the No. 11 truck atMartinsville Speedway in 2017Texas Roadhouse 200. A blown engine during practice ended the team's weekend, forcing the No. 11 team and Cram to withdraw.[5]
Cram returned to Martinsville in the spring of 2018, driving forBeaver Motorsports. In his first race withlive pit stops, Cram accidentally hit a crew member on his first pit stop and climbed to a seventeenth place finish on the lead lap.[6] Cram's third attempt was also at Martinsville; this time it was a joint effort between his family Cram Racing Enterprises andCopp Motorsports. He finished 24th and also ran the next race on the schedule atISM Raceway in the No. 83.[7]
In 2020, Cram served as a mechanic for the No. 6NASCAR Xfinity Series team ofJD Motorsports. He also ran Truck races for Long Motorsports andReaume Brothers Racing.[8] Cram left Long Motorsports in August for financial reasons,[9] but later purchased the team and ran the No. 41 under the Cram Racing Enterprises banner for the rest of the 2020 Truck season.[10]
Ahead of the 2021 Truck season, Cram voiced his plans to run the full schedule.[11] In July, he joinedMike Harmon Racing for his NASCAR Xfinity Series debut atNew Hampshire Motor Speedway.[12]
In 2022, Cram announced that he would attempt the Xfinity Series' September Darlington race driving the No. 35 car forEmerling-Gase Motorsports. He qualified for the race and finished 30th. He would also attempt to qualify for two races in theMike Harmon Racing No. 47 car but failed to qualify. He also drove theMBM Motorsports No. 13 in the season-finale at Phoenix, which he did qualify for, and finished 31st.
In 2023, Cram would run the majority of the Xfinity Series season in the No. 74 car forCHK Racing (formerly Mike Harmon Racing). However, he and the team would fail to qualify for the majority of the races they attempted. After one of the races that they did qualify for, Charlotte in May, Cram and the team lost 10 driver and owner points due to the car having an air duct violation. He became one of the few drivers in NASCAR history to have a negative point total in the standings at some point in a season. (Michael Waltrip in2007 in the Cup Series is another example after he was penalized duringDaytona 500 Speedweeks that year.)[13] He would also drive theSS-Green Light Racing No. 07 car atMartinsvillein April and theAlpha Prime Racing No. 44 car atDarlingtonin September.[14] He would also drive theG2G Racing No. 47 in the Truck Series race at Darlingtonin May. His team would later be penalized with the loss of 25 owner points for having an outdated window net in that race.[15]
On December 6, 2023, it was announced that Cram will run full-time in the Xfinity Series in2024, driving the No. 4 car forJD Motorsports.[16] After four races, Cram would be scaled back to a part-time schedule. In July 2024, it was reported that back in April 2024,JD Motorsports had filed forChapter 11 Bankruptcy and laid off several of their employees. Starting atPocono, Cram would return toMike Harmon Racing in their No. 74 car and would qualify for the race after his original team,JD Motorsports withdrew their No. 6 entry. This would be the first race that MHR had qualified for all year. Cram would crash on Lap 1 and would finish the race in 38th. AtDarlington he would back in the No. 74 but would fail to qualify. The next week atAtlanta he would qualify for the race but would retire after 18 laps due to engine troubles. He would once again fail to qualify atBristol. On September 10, it was announced that Cram would drive forDGM Racing in their No. 92 entry for five races starting atKansas.[17]
Cram's father Kevin Cram is a formercrew chief in all threeNASCAR national series and his uncle Clinton Cram is still in the profession, crew chiefing Dawson's first Truck attempt.[18][19][20]
(key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time.Italics – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)
* Season still in progress
1 Ineligible for series points
2 Switched to Truck points mid season
(key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time.Italics – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)
| ARCA Menards 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 | AMSC | Pts | Ref |
| 2020 | Fast Track Racing | 11 | Toyota | DAY | PHO 11 | TAL | POC | IRP | KEN | IOW | KAN | TOL | TOL | MCH | DRC | GTW | I44 | TOL | BRI | WIN | MEM | ISF | KAN | 62nd | 33 | [34] |
@dawsoncram41 joins the team lineup this weekend at @TooToughToTame! He will honor @kylepetty and his 2003 colors.