In a world where access to opportunity is too often determined by zip codes and price tags, few voices resonate louder than those who choose to lift others. Especially when they come from the very streets they once struggled to rise above. Every now and then, someone steps in to change a dream into reality, not with a headline, but with action, and that someone, in this case, is the basketball icon and cultural force LeBron James. Since being drafted as the No. 1 overall pick by the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2003, LeBron has amassed 4 NBA Championships, 4 league MVP awards, and 21 All-Star selections, while becoming the NBA’s all-time leading scorer in 2023, surpassing Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s long-standing record. He once said, reminiscing about his early life, “I am just a kid from Akron, Ohio, from the inner city. Every night I walk into the locker room and see an NBA jersey with my name on the back of it, I am blessed.”
LeBron’s commitment to empowering youth in his hometown has manifested in a host of life-changing initiatives. From founding I PROMISE School, a public school for at-risk youth, to launching the LeBron James Family Foundation, which has offered scholarships, mentorship, and career pipelines to thousands of students. On the other hand, his growing love and support from NASCAR has been increasingly evident over the years. Looks like he’s still trying to match Michael Jordan’s strides. No, he’s not entering NASCAR as a team owner, but has promised to fuel the career of a young athlete who wishes to follow the blueprint set by Bubba Wallace.
How LeBron’s reach fuels the next generation, from basketball to racetracks
A recent video posted on Instagram by LeBron James Family Foundation narrates the story of CeCe Wilson, a junior at STEM High School in Akron with an extraordinary dream: to become a race car driver. During an online Q&A session with James, Wilson bravely voiced what so many young motorsport fans quietly think and are sometimes never able to express. “My question is, my real passion is to be a race car driver, and that’s like a real hard to access sport, since you already have to be like, rich,” said Wilson. “Would there be like, anything that you could help people like me dream to do that?”
The question is a prominent one, as many believe that their financial conditions might just stop them from achieving the dreams that only a few from the privileged class can. Let alone fans, NASCAR veterans like Dale Jr. also expressed concerns about the estimated cost it takes to become a full-fledged driver in a high-performance sport like NASCAR, stating, “Today to get just out there and compete, you need that $50 million charter. But today to get just out there and compete you need that $50 million charter and that charter is going to be 100 million and 150 million and 200 [million]. It’s going to go to the moon over the next several years,” which might have scared some.
But this time, the young man didn’t just find a sympathetic ear for his doubt; he found the perfect man for help. LeBron didn’t hesitate before answering, “Say no more CeCe. I’ll get right on there. Over the last few years, we’ve made a lot of connections with a lot of people in NASCAR, and if that’s something that you’re super passionate about, we will make sure that you will get to some events, be able to be there, get into the cockpit, see some of the cars, how they’re built, how these guys race. We will get that done. I can’t get a lot of those things done, but I can get that done for you.”
LeBron’s powerful passion for NASCAR has surfaced in several ways. His business partner, Maverick Carter, invested in 23XI Racing in 2020, a team co-owned by NBA legend Michael Jordan and the NASCAR veteran Denny Hamlin, while James has also supported drivers like Bubba Wallace, the only Black full-time Cup Series driver at the time, who has often used his platform in advocating more inclusivity across diverse cultures in the sport.
James, also a minority partner in Fenway Sports Group, has seen his LeBron James Family Foundation logo featured on Chris Buescher‘s #17 NASCAR car in Michigan 2022. Beyond this, LeBron served as the honorary starter at the centenary 24 Hours of Le Mans in 2023, and fittingly shouted the command to start the engines to kick things off. And now, he has partnered with RFK Racing to treat CeCe Wilson with a once-in-a-lifetime experience at the NASCAR garage. The Instagram post featured Wilson, now a member of the I PROMISE program, given VIP treatment at the RFK Racing garage, complete with pit access, team meetups, and a behind-the-scenes look at racing operations.
“This was probably the best experience I’ve ever had in my entire life. Just meeting race car drivers is a crazy thing,” recalled Wilson. “I could not stop smiling. I kept on looking at my dad, he was smiling back at me. He also said this is the coolest thing he’s ever seen in his life. I think I could land some type of career with any NASCAR team because they’re always looking for engineers. I’d love to see myself be in the industry. It doesn’t even matter what I do, to get that actual experience and more from LeBron is just amazing and I appreciate it, from the bottom of my heart.” The RFK Racing team also helped personalize the experience by featuring messages and branding from I PROMISE School and the foundation on their vehicle and pit area. The student left the experience not only thrilled but also inspired.
Exposure to a professional sports setting outside basketball showed him a career possibility, from engineering and media to athletic performance and sponsorship, and that is exactly what James had promised to provide. “I will make sure that you get all the resources and things done, for you to be able to live out your passion,” James said. Through his association and deep appreciation of NASCAR, he has helped introduce new audiences to the world of motorsports, becoming a testament to how influence and passion can intersect to create meaningful, real-world impact.
Rajah Caruth sets sights on Bubba Wallace’s path to the Cup Series
While Bubba Wallace may be the only Black driver in the Cup Series at the moment, another young talent has been rising through the ranks. Rajah Caruth’s journey from iRacing prodigy to NASCAR national series winner continues to gain momentum, as the 22-year-old captured his second career Truck Series victory at the Rackley Roofing 200 at Nashville Superspeedway. Backed by Hendrick Motorsports, driving the #71 Chevrolet, Caruth won the race fending off fierce late-race charges from Corey Heim and Layne Riggs. The win marked a turning point for Caruth, whose development had been under scrutiny since his ARCA season in 2022. “I didn’t expect that at all,” Caruth told FOX Sports. “Those guys were breathing down my neck the whole run. My pit crew won that race. Yeah, they won that race for us, got us off pit road [with the lead] twice.”
It wasn’t just about speed, but about resilience. From the mental blow of his Pocono crash in 2022 to a quiet 2023 season with only flashes of his early promise, Caruth’s latest win highlighted a new level of maturity and focus. “I was just asking myself, ‘How bad do you want it?’ I don’t know, I just try my best, and we had clean air and their stuff was better, but I just did my best. That was it,” he said. “We’ve been off this year, but it was good to get it done tonight.” The victory ended a 31-race drought and locked him into the Craftsman Truck Series playoff, reaffirming that he belongs at this level and beyond.
As the only Black driver currently competing full-time in the Truck Series, Caruth’s aspirations stretch far beyond the current season. He now looks to follow in the footsteps of Bubba Wallace, another graduate of NASCAR’s Drive for Diversity program who made the jump to the Cup Series. With Spire Motorsports expanding and his own stock rising with each performance, Caruth’s latest win sends a strong message that he’s not just a developmental driver anymore; he is a future Cup contender. Caruth continues to prove that perseverance, not just pedigree, carves the road to NASCAR’s top tier.
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