After spending many years working as a presenter for various NASCAR and motorsports programs and networks, Rutledge Wood is getting behind the wheel of a race car, joining forces with Precision Racing LA.
Wood will be competing in four different race weekends with the Toyota GAZOO Racing North America GR Cup, piloting the No. 18 Fun Times Soda Pop Toyota GR86.
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The 44-year-old native of Birmingham, Alabama will make his debut in the Toyota-backed division at Circuit of The Americas in April, before returning to the series for events at Road America (August), Barber Motorsports Park (September), and Indianapolis Motor Speedway’s Road Course (October).
“I couldn’t be more excited to jump into the driver’s seat and join the Toyota GR Cup Series for four race weekends in 2025,” said Rutledge Wood. “Cars have always been a huge part of my life, and having the opportunity to have some fun in the incredible Toyota GR86 is a dream come true.”
The Toyota GR Cup provides amateur drivers and teams the opportunity to compete at some of the most iconic venues in North America, while also providing Toyota engineers with real world data to support the design of future vehicles.
“I need to give a huge thank you to Mario [Biundo, President and Team Principal] and his team at Precision Racing LA for helping start the idea around this program, and everyone at Toyota for making it happen. I had the privilege of racing in the Toyota Pro Celebrity event years ago and can’t wait to get behind the wheel in this incredible series as well.”
This season’s championship will feature a 14-race schedule at seven exciting circuits across the United States, with Toyota once again offering one million dollars in purse and prizes thanks to several partners that have teamed with TGRNA.
“Rutledge has been a great friend of Toyota and has an undeniable passion for cars and for racing,” said Paul Doleshal, Group Manager, Motorsports, Toyota Motor North America. “We’re looking forward to seeing Rutledge on track this season and can’t wait for fans to see what he can do behind the wheel.”
Rutledge Wood spent more than a decade working in the NASCAR industry, first with SPEEDTV, where in addition to serving as a correspondent for NASCAR’s pre-race show, NASCAR RaceDay, he also hosted a number of other shows and events, including SPEED Road Tour Challenge, NASCAR Smarts, and NASCAR Live.
When NASCAR on NBC returned to air in 2015, Rutledge Wood joined the network to serve as a travelling reporter, checking out landmarks near the racetrack each weekend, or the in-track activation and fan experience.
Wood went on to host several shows with Netflix, including Hyperdrive, Floor is Lava, and American Barbecue Showdown, and remains with NBC as the host of the new competition series Hot Wheels: Ultimate Challenge.
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Joseph Srigley covers NASCAR for TobyChristie.com, Racing America, and OnSI, and is the owner of the #SrigleyStats brand. With a higher education in the subjects of business, mathematics, and data analytics, Joseph is able to fully understand the inner workings of the sport through multiple points of perspective.
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