Fast Facts: Norm Benning

credit: Getty Images/John Harrelson

Norm Benning’s battle to get into the inaugural Mudsummer Classic at Eldora Speedway last July drew the appreciation of numerous drivers and teams in the garage area – so much so that a number of them helped the owner/driver make repairs to his Camping World Truck Series No. 57 before the historic green flag fell. Learn more about this veteran competitor in this week’s Fast Facts.

• Norm Benning Jr. was born Jan. 16, 1952 in Level Green, Pennsylvania. A second-generation driver, he began racing in the figure-eight division at Heidelberg Raceway in Pennsylvania, where his father was track champion in 1964; Benning was just 15 at the time, in spite of the fact that he was supposed to be at least 18 to race. His earliest experiences in racing were on both dirt and asphalt.
• Benning made his first NASCAR start in 1989, competing in the Budweiser 500 Cup Series race at Dover International Speedway. He raced four times in the Cup Series and three times in the Nationwide Series, but has spent most of his NASCAR career in the Truck Series. Since his first start in 2002, Benning has made 115 starts in the series, with a career-best finish of 12th at Talladega in October 2013.
• Benning has also competed in the ARCA Racing Series, where he earned 32 top 10 finishes in 281 starts between 1995 and 2009.
• Learn more about Benning at his website, normbenningracing.com.