Dakoda Armstrong (born July 16, 1991) is an American professional stock car racing driver. He last competed part-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driving the No. 28 Toyota Camry for JGL Racing.

Dakoda Armstrong
Armstrong at Road America in 2016
Born (1991-07-16) July 16, 1991 (age 33)
New Castle, Indiana
Achievements1998 WKA National champion
2000, 2001 Nascart champion
2004 USAC Kenyon Midget champion
Awards2010 ARCA Racing Series Rookie of the Year
NASCAR Xfinity Series career
133 races run over 6 years
2017 position17th
Best finish13th (2014, 2015, 2016)
First race2012 Ford EcoBoost 300 (Homestead)
Last race2017 VisitMyrtleBeach.com 300 (Kentucky)
Wins Top tens Poles
0 8 1
NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series career
44 races run over 3 years
2013 position12th
Best finish12th (2013)
First race2011 Coca-Cola 200 (Iowa)
Last race2013 Ford EcoBoost 200 (Homestead)
Wins Top tens Poles
0 5 0
Statistics current as of September 23, 2017.

Early career

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Armstrong's 2008 USAC Midget car

Armstrong started his racing career racing go-karts at the age of six, winning the 1998 World Karting Association championship in his first year in racing. At age 13, he became the youngest driver to win a USAC national championship when he won the 2004 USAC Mel Kenyon Midget Series. He has won over 200 races while competing in Go-Karts, Quarter Midgets, Bandoleros, Micro/Mini Sprints, Kenyon Midgets, 410 Non-Wing Sprint Cars, and Midgets.[1]

From 2007 to 2010, Armstrong entered select races of the USAC Silver Crown Series, USAC National Sprint Car Championship and USAC National Midget Series.[2][3]

ARCA Racing Series

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Armstrong signed a driver development deal with Penske Racing. As part of the deal, he would drive for Cunningham Motorsports in the ARCA Racing Series for seven races in 2009. He posted a best finish of 3rd along with two other top ten finishes and a 26th-place finish in the standings.

Armstrong returned to Cunningham Motorsports to drive the No. 22 Dodge full-time in 2010. He got his first win in just his 12th start at Talladega Superspeedway. He followed that with another win at Salem Speedway, finishing the season 7th in the standings with two wins, five top fives, 12 top tens, and one pole.

In 2011, Armstrong cut back on his ARCA schedule as he began focusing on his jump to NASCAR. He would run six races, posting one win at Winchester Speedway, two top fives, four top tens, and a 25th-place finish in the standings.

NASCAR

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Armstrong's 2012 truck

Camping World Truck Series

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In 2011, Armstrong signed on with ThorSport Racing and ran 7 races with the team with crew chief Dan Stillman. He made his Camping World Truck Series debut July 17 at Iowa Speedway, finishing 21st. He posted his first top ten October 1 at Kentucky Speedway. Armstrong attempted to run full-time with ThorSport with sponsorship from EverFi in the Truck Series in 2012. He was released from the team before the race at Iowa Speedway in September due to poor performance.[4]

In February 2013 it was announced that Armstrong would be driving for Turn One Racing for the full Truck Series season, and that he would also be running five races in the Nationwide Series for Richard Childress Racing in the No. 33 and No. 21 cars.[5] He ran the No. 19 for TriStar Motorsports at Homestead-Miami. WinField sponsored all his races.

Xfinity Series

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Armstrong racing at Road America in 2014
 
Armstrong's No. 28 JGL Racing car in 2016

On December 4, 2013, it was announced that Armstrong had been signed by Richard Petty Motorsports to compete full-time in the 2014 NASCAR Nationwide Series, driving the No. 43 Ford Mustang.[6] At Daytona, Armstrong had his first career pole for the Subway Firecracker 250 at Daytona after qualifying was cancelled due to a rainshower. He would finish 13th in the points standings in 2014.

He returned to Richard Petty Motorsports in 2015, with new chief Frank Kerr. He finished with a career best of 6th-place at Daytona after avoiding 2 Big Ones. On November 23, it was announced that he and RPM had parted ways due to poor performance.[7]

Armstrong joined JGL Racing in 2016, driving the No. 28 Toyota Camry. He would then return to JGL Racing in 2017.[8] This 2017 season, he scored two top-five finishes: At Iowa Speedway, on June 24, for the race of 2017 American Ethanol E15 250, he finished 5th place, but on 4 July weekend on July 1 (was supposed to be June 30, but postponed because of persistent rain) for the race of 2017 Coca-Cola Firecracker 250, he scored a career-best of 3rd place. However, Armstrong was released by the team on September 25 for a lack of sponsorship.[9] Later in the season, Armstrong was seen in the JGL pit area, though he did not clarify if he had any role with the organization.[10]

Later career

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In 2018, Armstrong finished 12th at the ARCA/CRA Super Series's Redbud 400 stock car race at Anderson Speedway.[11]

In 2021, he entered two USAC Sprints non-points races at the Indianapolis Raceway Park, finishing 5th at the Thursday Night Thunder Homecoming and 10th at the Hoosier Classic.[12][13]

In 2022, Armstrong finished second at Anderson's Little 500 sprint car race,[14] and was runner-up at the Indiana-based 500 Sprint Car Tour.[15] He also entered four USAC Midgets non-points races at the Indianapolis Raceway Park, with a best result of third at the Carb Night Classic.[16]

Personal life

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Beyond the racetrack, Armstrong's Indiana family corn and grain farming operation produces 1.9 million gallons of ethanol fuel per year for various energy programs. While growing up on the farm, he worked on his own racecars in the facilities on his family's property. Aside from racing, Armstrong enjoys getting back to his roots and attends open wheel events whenever he can, especially if he can be at the track to mentor his younger siblings when they're racing. His hobbies also include working out, racing his friends in iRacing and watching football.[1] On February 5, 2017, Armstrong married Karlee Hensley.

Dakoda's younger cousin Caleb (born 1992) and younger brother Dalton (born 1994), are both racing drivers as well. Caleb was a developmental driver for Venturini Motorsports like his cousin, competing in a few ARCA races for them in 2012 and 2013. Dalton has competed in the CARS Tour and marquee late model events such as the Winchester 400.

Motorsports career results

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NASCAR

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

Xfinity Series

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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
2012 Turner Motorsports 30 Chevy DAY PHO LVS BRI CAL TEX RCH TAL DAR IOW CLT DOV MCH ROA KEN DAY NHA CHI IND IOW GLN CGV BRI ATL RCH CHI KEN DOV CLT KAN TEX PHO HOM
25
135th 01 [17]
2013 Richard Childress Racing 33 Chevy DAY PHO LVS BRI CAL
15
TEX RCH TAL DAR 112th 01 [18]
21 CLT
31
DOV IOW MIC ROA KEN DAY NHA CHI
15
IND IOW GLN MOH BRI ATL RCH CHI KEN
13
DOV KAN
19
CLT TEX PHO
TriStar Motorsports 19 Toyota HOM
24
2014 Richard Petty Motorsports 43 Ford DAY
23
PHO
18
LVS
23
BRI
24
CAL
20
TEX
22
DAR
18
RCH
17
TAL
18
IOW
21
CLT
19
DOV
16
MCH
19
ROA
25
KEN
20
DAY
19
NHA
30
CHI
20
IND
17
IOW
21
GLN
25
MOH
10
BRI
28
ATL
33
RCH
7
CHI
22
KEN
19
DOV
17
KAN
25
CLT
19
TEX
10
PHO
21
HOM
20
13th 788 [19]
2015 DAY
11
ATL
20
LVS
30
PHO
18
CAL
36
TEX
16
BRI
23
RCH
27
TAL
22
IOW
21
CLT
16
DOV
14
MCH
16
CHI
28
DAY
6
KEN
17
NHA
16
IND
19
IOW
16
GLN
23
MOH
23
BRI
24
ROA
34
DAR
18
RCH
21
CHI
15
KEN
14
DOV
20
CLT
16
KAN
20
TEX
18
PHO
18
HOM
15
13th 803 [20]
2016 JGL Racing 28 Toyota DAY
14
ATL
21
LVS
22
PHO
18
CAL
22
TEX
26
BRI
30
RCH
14
TAL
34
DOV
21
CLT
21
POC
18
MCH
24
IOW
17
DAY
12
KEN
18
NHA
17
IND
20
GLN
18
MOH
21
BRI
18
ROA
13
DAR
18
RCH
16
CHI
22
KEN
18
DOV
20
CLT
19
KAN
20
TEX
20
PHO
19
HOM
19
13th 718 [21]
Joe Gibbs Racing 18 Toyota IOW
5
2017 JGL Racing 28 Toyota DAY
12
ATL
21
LVS
20
PHO
17
CAL
20
TEX
17
BRI
19
RCH
16
TAL
22
CLT
20
DOV
19
POC
20
MCH
20
IOW
5
DAY
3
KEN
17
NHA
24
IND
20
IOW
17
GLN
21
MOH
10
BRI
24
ROA
22
DAR
29
RCH
18
CHI
16
KEN
23
DOV CLT KAN TEX PHO HOM 17th 521 [22]

* Season still in progress
1 Ineligible for series points

Camping World Truck Series

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NASCAR Camping World Truck 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 NCWTC Pts Ref
2011 ThorSport Racing 98 Chevy DAY PHO DAR MAR NSH DOV CLT KAN TEX KEN IOW
21
NSH IRP
21
POC MCH
24
BRI ATL CHI
20
NHA KEN
9
LVS TAL
17
MAR TEX HOM
25
29th 172 [23]
2012 Toyota DAY
35
MAR
21
CAR
14
KAN
15
CLT
13
DOV
20
TEX
18
KEN
13
IOW
27
CHI
16
POC
12
MCH
3
BRI
30
ATL
23
IOW 20th 370 [24]
Turner Motorsports 4 Chevy KEN
31
LVS TAL MAR TEX PHO HOM
2013 Turn One Racing 60 Chevy DAY
19
MAR
7
CAR
17
KAN
12
CLT
12
DOV
21
TEX
11
KEN
21
IOW
10
ELD
11
POC
18
MCH
13
BRI
18
MSP
19
IOW
16
CHI
17
LVS
16
TAL
5
MAR
18
TEX
17
PHO
19
HOM
23
12th 628 [25]

Camping World East Series

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Camping World East Series results
Year Team No. Make 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 NCWEC Pts Ref
2009 Ken Schrader Racing 4 Chevy GRE
12
TRI
7
IOW 24th 512 [26]
52 SBO
17
GLN NHA
12
TMP ADI LRP NHA DOV

ARCA Racing Series

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

ARCA Racing 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 ARSC Pts Ref
2009 Venturini Motorsports 15 Chevy DAY SLM CAR TAL KEN TOL
20
POC MCH MFD 26th 1415 [27]
Cunningham Motorsports 4 Dodge IOW
6
KEN
11
BLN POC
29
ISF CHI TOL
13
DSF NJE SLM
3
KAN
22 CAR
8
2010 DAY
33
PBE
14
SLM
7
TEX
12
TAL
1
TOL
7
POC
8
MCH
11
IOW
4
MFD
5
POC
2
BLN
6
NJE
10
ISF
9
CHI
11
DSF
11
TOL
9
SLM
1*
KAN
11
CAR
11
7th 4705 [28]
2011 DAY
20
TAL
14
SLM
8
TOL
8
NJE CHI POC MCH WIN
1
BLN IOW IRP
4
POC ISF MAD DSF SLM KAN TOL 25th 1120 [29]
2016 Venturini Motorsports 15 Toyota DAY NSH SLM TAL TOL NJE POC MCH MAD WIN
9
IOW IRP POC BLN ISF DSF SLM CHI KEN KAN 100th 185 [30]

References

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  1. ^ a b "Career Highlights". DakodaArmstrong.com. Retrieved 2011-11-18.
  2. ^ "2009 USAC Silver Crown season review". United States Auto Club. April 20, 2020.
  3. ^ "Where it all started: USAC Indiana Midget Week comes home to the Burg Saturday". United States Auto Club. June 1, 2022.
  4. ^ Adamczyk, Jay (September 7, 2012). "Armstrong & ThorSport Racing part ways". Jayski's Silly Season Site. ESPN. Retrieved 2012-09-07.
  5. ^ "Armstrong Will Drive Limited Schedule For RCR". SPEED Channel. Fox Sports. February 8, 2012. Archived from the original on 2013-02-12. Retrieved 2013-02-08.
  6. ^ Jensen, Tom (December 4, 2013). "'The King' makes a hire: Armstrong to run NNS for RPM". Fox Sports. Retrieved 2013-12-04.
  7. ^ Spencer, Lee (November 24, 2015). "Armstrong and Richard Petty Motorsports split". Motorsport.com. Archived from the original on November 27, 2015. Retrieved November 27, 2015.
  8. ^ Spencer, Lee (January 9, 2016). "Armstrong finds new home for 2016 NASCAR Xfinity Series season". Motorsport.com. Archived from the original on January 10, 2016. Retrieved January 9, 2016.
  9. ^ "JGL Racing dismisses Dakoda Armstrong due to lack of sponsorship". Motorsport.com. September 25, 2017. Retrieved September 26, 2017.
  10. ^ "Dakoda Armstrong Aiming For 2018 XFINITY Series Return". www.frontstretch.com. 19 November 2017. Retrieved 2017-11-20.
  11. ^ Aaron Bearden (July 17, 2018). "Raphael Lessard earns redemption with Redbud 400 win". Short Track Scene.
  12. ^ "Santos doubles up with sprint win at LOR". United States Auto Club. June 18, 2021.
  13. ^ "Swanson finds missing puzzle piece in Hoosier Classic sprint win". United States Auto Club. August 15, 2021.
  14. ^ Ken de la Bastide (May 29, 2022). "Roahrig claims second Little 500 victory over Dakoda Armstrong". Yahoo!.
  15. ^ Ken de la Bastide (October 23, 2022). "Roahrig claims IRP Sprint Car Tour event". Yahoo!.
  16. ^ "The fun way: Santos 10th to 1st to win Carb Night midgets". United States Auto Club. May 28, 2022.
  17. ^ "Dakoda Armstrong – 2012 NASCAR Nationwide Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved April 7, 2023.
  18. ^ "Dakoda Armstrong – 2013 NASCAR Nationwide Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved April 7, 2023.
  19. ^ "Dakoda Armstrong – 2014 NASCAR Nationwide Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved April 7, 2023.
  20. ^ "Dakoda Armstrong – 2015 NASCAR Xfinity Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved April 7, 2023.
  21. ^ "Dakoda Armstrong – 2016 NASCAR Xfinity Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved April 7, 2023.
  22. ^ "Dakoda Armstrong – 2017 NASCAR Xfinity Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved April 7, 2023.
  23. ^ "Dakoda Armstrong – 2011 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved April 7, 2023.
  24. ^ "Dakoda Armstrong – 2012 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved April 7, 2023.
  25. ^ "Dakoda Armstrong – 2013 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved April 7, 2023.
  26. ^ "Dakoda Armstong – 2009 NASCAR Camping World East Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved May 6, 2020.
  27. ^ "Dakoda Armstrong – 2009 ARCA Re/Max Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved May 6, 2020.
  28. ^ "Dakoda Armstrong – 2010 ARCA Racing Series Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved May 6, 2020.
  29. ^ "Dakoda Armstrong – 2011 ARCA Racing Series Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved May 6, 2020.
  30. ^ "Dakoda Armstrong – 2016 ARCA Racing Series Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved May 6, 2020.
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