This is a VERY In-Depth Tour about Pursuing Professional Stock Car Careers

We created this nine page tour to answer 98% of your questions about Driver Development in general, and Ron Sutton's Winner's Circle specifically.  We hope you both enjoy it and learn a lot. 

The goal of this tour is to provide families with key information and clarity to make an informed decision, before sending the driver's application to RSWC. We suggest you read it thoroughly ... as this is a big decision ... a lot like deciding which college is best for your son or daughter.  To go to the next page, click on the arrow in the bottom right of each page.

If the Path to a Professional Racing Career was Cheap, Easy & Simple ...

every good young driver could become a professional race car driver. But in the most expensive sport in the world ... car racing ... the reality is the path for most young racers and their families is unclear, complex, and unfortunately expensive.

Ron Sutton's Winner's Circle is simply the most comprehensive Driver Career Development Program. That will become clear as you take the time to go through this tour.

Ron Sutton's Winner's Circle (aka RSWC) receives hundreds of resumes each year from drivers and/or their parents ... 933 last year. After resume review and interviews, each year we narrow it down to approximately 40 drivers to do full race track testing and try-outs at an event we call "The Shoot-Out". The few drivers chosen from the the Shoot-Out, that showed us they have what it takes, are invited to join in the Ron Sutton's Winner's Circle Driver Career Development Program.

We are not a typical rent-a-ride business. This is a comprehensive driver career development program with 30 race teams, 12 driver coaches, 26 training classes and more. While we do have sizable sponsorship money available, this is not a free ride. We wish we had the funding to do that. But, if a driver races ... someone has to pay for it. While RSWC does raise sponsor money for our drivers, it is only a portion of what is needed.  The family has to raise the majority of the money through sponsors and/or benefactors. We are VERY good at teaching families how to raise the funding to race. More on that later in the tour.

We are not the "official" anything for NASCAR or individual Cup Teams. (NASCAR does not endorse any development programs.) We are an independent talent scout and driver development program focused on finding and developing young talent. If a driver has what it takes ... RSWC is the best program to train, coach, race and develop them towards a career in professional Stock Car racing.

Some recent RSWC successes are:

• Getting a talented female RSWC driver, Jessica Brunelli, into NASCAR's Drive for Diversity program.
• Having 4 RSWC Drivers test at a Talent Combine with key personnel from top Cup teams. (Read MORE)
• Coordinating an individual RSWC Driver test with Penske's Development Team, Cunningham Motor Sports.
• That driver, Joey Licata, racing in ARCA, nearly wins Daytona in 2011. (Read MORE)

In this web site, we will explain how we view the racing environment ... and what is involved in getting young drivers all the way to a career with top racing teams.

We all know, only a percentage of drivers really have the talent to be professional car racers in the top circuits like CART, IRL, NASCAR, F1, etc. The sad fact is ... capable drivers do not always make it ... and often watch from the stands ... while drivers with similar talent, but with better funding or the right connections are in the cars on the track. The main challenge for up and coming drivers is ... there has been no single "standardized" path to a racing career ... like there is in basketball, football, baseball, etc.

There are a plenty of veteran racers, shop owners, fans, etc ... with opinions on how to become a professional race car driver, but when we look at their results, it is clear that they do not really know how to get drivers to the big show. Opinions are cheap ... facts are hard to come by. One easy fact: There is no single clear, straight-forward path. Unlike the NFL, there is no college draft structure in place. There is no one predefined "system" that all the teams use.

Many of today's stars, like Kasey Kahne, Ryan Newman, Carl Edwards, Danica Patrick, Denny Hamlin and others were "developed" before RSWC existed.  Talented drivers like these were part of the inspiration to create the program that is RSWC today. 

Professional racing is very fragmented, with no standardized process for scouting, recruiting and developing new talent. Each of these stars were developed different ways.  The individual team owners & management, have varied beliefs and philosophies about who they want to drive their cars ... and why. They are influenced by their sponsors, their budget ... or lack thereof ... the people they trust ... and their own unique belief system, likes, dislikes, tastes, etc.

What is clear now ... is that the top Cup teams in NASCAR are signing talented drivers ... at much younger ages than 15-20 years ago. A few teams started the trend of finding young talent and paying for them to race and develop their skills in the mid levels of racing. Other teams that were used to going to those mid level racing series ... and signing drivers ... started finding the talented drivers were already signed to a team. Those teams have now been forced to follow suit ... and scout, recruit and develop young talent for their race teams also.

Things have changed ... for the better ... for families of young talented drivers. For most families, the thought of paying a half million to several million dollars a year for their young driver to race at these upper levels is unrealistic. Starting in the late 1990's and increasing after 2000, if top Cup Teams were impressed enough, they would sign a driver and pay for their racing up through K&N Pro Series, ARCA, Trucks, Nationwide, etc.

The current horrible economy has temporarily reduced the number of teams capable of doing that. There are currently only a few Cup teams funding drivers in development today, and we are clear who they are.  But all indicators are that most of top Cup teams will return to funding young development drivers as the economy turns around. They need to insure the have future stars, as that is their product.


Just for reference, here are some annual budgets to field a winning operation in upper level "feeder" series:

• Formula Pro Mazda: $400,000+
• NASCAR K&N Pro Series East/West: $400,000-700,000+
  
• Indy Lights Series: $600,000+
  
• ARCA Stock Car Series: $1,200,000+
  
• NASCAR Camping World Truck: $2,000,000+
  
• NASCAR Nationwide Stock Car Series: $4,000,000+
  

Unless a family is very wealthy, or has an incredible sponsor already in their pocket, these series are out of reach. Fifteen to twenty years ago, drivers had to work their way through these series on their own ... and win at these levels ... to be "noticed." Today, the situation has changed. The top race teams are signing drivers BEFORE they get to these series ... then running them in these same upper-level series ... BUT on the team's money. It is a major difference. A difference that means families with talented young drivers and less money ... still have a shot.

Please do not misunderstand our message ... racing your young driver still costs you money. In the most expensive sport in the world, someone has to pay for the driver to race at all levels ... until they get hired by a top tier team. But unlike 15-20 years ago ... your family does not have to personally fund all the way to the top levels to get hired by a top team.

There are three basic myths about achieving a career in racing

Myth #1: "If I just win races ... it will work out."
Myth #2: Professional teams are watching the ladder system for their next driver.
Myth #3: There is a ladder system.

First, winning is only a part of the equation. Winning is absolutely necessary! But winning alone won't get a driver to a racing career. Unfortunately there are extremely talented racers that won a zillion races ... watching racing from the stands or their sofa today. There is a whole lot more to getting to the pros than just winning races.

Second, the Cup team scouts are not watching entry level racing series to find their next star. Why not? Two reasons. One, because they have so many talented drivers knocking down their doors ... everyday. Good drivers, with winning resumes, talent, personality, dedication, motivation, good looks, etc. And, they have driver development programs, like RSWC, referring talented drivers to them.

Third, the concept that there is a "ladder system" in racing. There are many different levels or steps in racing ... but there is no "ladder" that automatically leads to a career. Open Wheel has had official ladders, but they haven proven to not work well. NASCAR does not pretend to have a ladder system, although they do sanction racing at the local & regional level. They know the teams are going to pick their drivers, their own ways ... and not from a predefined feeder system.

Most young Drivers coming into NASCAR's upper tiers over the past 20 years have come one of two routes: USAC Open Wheel or NASCAR Modifieds and Late Model Stock Cars. This is why RSWC develops drivers in these series.

So, what does it take for a young driver to make it to the pros?
We have asked and listened to the key decision makers of top Cup teams over the last several years, and compiled the 23 key ingredients. The list is long, more or less in order ... and each one is critical.

Top Teams ... and therefore top Driver Development Programs ... look for:

1. Youth with experience: 12-18 years old with several years of racing experience. Drivers 20 or over are almost too old ... to go into a development program, because Cup Teams want to put their young drivers in the upper-level development series by 18-22. Drivers around 23-24 is the upper limits we have seen signed by cup teams, with a few rare exceptions.
2. Lots of winning results in age appropriate series. Wins and/or championships in karts, legends, bandeleros, quarter midgets, TQs, Micros for early teens ... and in full-size cars by mid-teens.
   
3. Natural gifts of talent and the senses that great race drivers possess.
   
4. Self motivation, persistence & dedication - winning teams like drivers that give their all, never give up and "just keep digging."
   
5. Great "real" personality is key ... because people have to work with, like and trust this driver.
   
6. Charisma - that immeasurable quality that makes people like someone is powerful at all levels.
   
7. Good looks can help with sponsors. Style & class are always an asset.
   
8. Driver confidence - in self and in race cars at speed. Teams want to see the driver OWN that cockpit and embrace the speed.
   
9. No arrogance. Pro teams know that up & coming drivers don't know squat ... yet. So when a young driver is cocky, arrogant or full of themselves ... Teams simply pass. Same goes for parents of young drivers. This eliminates WAY more drivers that you can imagine.
   
10. Coachable, open minded, hungry to learn and trainable drivers ... is the number one thing top Development Programs look for. Young drivers need to learn the skills, methods, race strategies and techniques of the great experienced drivers. Again, the teams know young drivers don't have success in big cars yet and if the driver doesn't listen or isn't coachable ... they pass.
    
11. Character & integrity ... because pro teams are going to invest their money, reputation, career, business, and life on this "driver."
    
12. No bulls*** - everyone get too much of it as it is. Phonies, fakes, hype, over blown claims, big promises, blah-blah-blah ... does not work with Development Programs or Teams.
    
13. Most Development Programs just look for drivers and families with MONEY to fund the racing and learning curve up to the point of being signed by a team. RSWC is very different in that we help our families raise the money.
    

The list above, the driver needs to bring to the table.  If chosen by a good Driver & Career Development Program, the young driver can gain the next 10 that are needed to get to a career:

14. Advanced driver training, techniques, terminology and strategies to develop to their fullest potential.
15. Experience working with a crew of individuals that are "not their family" ... that doesn't love them unconditionally. This is a big deal, and is often overlooked by most racers and their families.
    
16. Communication skills - Not necessarily an eloquent speaker - Just be able to speak well ... and actually say something meaningful.
    
17. People relationship skills - because the driver is just one person in a very complex team. Team players win. Loners lose ... regardless of talent.
    
18. Ability to give accurate, thorough feedback in terms stock car teams are used to.
    
19. Impressive Results ... in in real race cars. Poles, track records, wins ... and solid finishes outside of the wins ... in race cars ... not karts, legends, bandeleros, quarter midgets, TQs or Micros. Cup Teams need to see an impressive resume of results in full size race cars, in SEVERAL competitive series to be impressed enough to give a driver a look. This is an important key to opening doors.
    
20. Networking strategies ... to effectively communicate with sponsors, motorsports companies, press, race team owners, crew personnel and further up the ladder Cup team owners & management.
    
21. Connections to the right people: Driver coaches, quality race teams, friends in the press, resources, race officials, VIPs and other key people that can help their career development. And finally ... if proven to be star level talent, fully trained & developed and armed with an impressive resumes of winning ... introductions  to top Cup Teams.
    
    
22. An opportunity to show top teams the Driver's talent & performance. RSWC coordinates "Driver Talent Combines" with certain NASCAR Cup Teams to come look at several RSWC drivers at one time.  We also coordinate tests with our drivers testing with individual teams. The photo at the right is a RSWC combine at Caraway Speedway in North Carolina, where four of our drivers tested in front of top tier teams.
    
23. But, the most important thing for parents of young drivers on a career track ... is to make the right decisions on
    
    
    
    • Driver development program
    • Driver coaches & mentors
    • Career development program
    • Series to run each year
    • Race teams to run with
    • Talent Scouts to connect with
    • Learning how to raise the money

Each of these decisions are critical ... because if you make the wrong choice ... you can't turn back the clock and make your driver "young" again.


To go to the next page ... click on the arrow in the lower right of each page.