ARCA winner Tristan McKee to make Truck Series debut Aug. 14 at Richmond Raceway

MOORESVILLE, N.C. – Tristan McKee, the inaugural signee of Spire Motorsports’ Ascent Driver Development Program and top prospect in the organization’s talent pipeline, is set to make his NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series debut behind the wheel of the team’s No. 77 Chevrolet Silverado RST Aug. 14 at Richmond (Va.) Raceway.

Veteran crew chief Chad Walter will lead the team’s effort for McKee’s CRAFTSMAN Truck Series debut.

McKee will celebrate his 16th birthday on Aug. 3, making him eligible to compete in CRAFTSMAN Truck Series competition on road courses and tracks measuring 1.25-miles or less. In addition to the next month’s 250-lapper at the famed Richmond oval, McKee is slated to contest four more Truck Series races in 2026 including New Hampshire Motor Speedway (Aug. 22), Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway (Sept. 17), Phoenix Raceway (Oct. 16) and Martinsville (Va.) Speedway (Oct. 30).

“This is a huge step in my career and I’m incredibly thankful for the opportunity to drive for Spire Motorsports in the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series,” said McKee. “I can’t thank Jeff Dickerson, Dan Towriss, Bill Anthony, and everyone at Spire Motorsports enough for believing in me and making this possible. I’ve worked for this opportunity my entire life and I’m thrilled to take this next step in my career.”

By any measure, McKee’s talent has been undeniable, even before his transformative teenage years.

He began turning heads three seasons ago when, at just 12-years-old, he won a 100-lap CARS Pro Late Model feature race at Dillon (S.C.) Motor Speedway to become the youngest winner in CARS Tour history.

Since then, the Williamsburg, Va., native has gone on to collect CARS Tours wins at North Wilkesboro (N.C.) Speedway and Caraway (N.C.) Speedway. McKee has also been identified as a rising star by Chevrolet and is mentored by Josh Wise through his driver development program ‘Wise Optimization’.

In addition to his late-model accolades, McKee claimed the 2025 Cube 3 Architecture TA2 Series (TA2) championship on the strength of four wins, 11 top-five and 13 top-10 finishes, to become the youngest champion in series’ history. Additionally, he earned the first of two ARCA Menards Series national tour wins in his series’ debut just five days after turning 15-years-old at Watkins Glen (N.Y.) International.

This season, the Kannapolis, N.C., resident has competed across multiple disciplines, including his pursuit of ARCA Menards Series East championship honors where he’s compiled three wins and four top fives in five races and sits just three markers outside the points lead.

McKee has collected ARCA Menards Series East checkered flags at Hickory (N.C.) Speedway and Rockingham (N.C.) Speedway. Meanwhile he posted the win in an ARCA East/National tour combination race at Toledo (Ohio) Speedway in May. Additionally, he picked up his fifth career TA2 series win earlier this month at Watkins Glen.

“We look at Tristan McKee and see someone with a huge upside and potential to make a positive impact across Spire Motorsports’ driver lineup,” said Spire Motorsports co-owner Jeff Dickerson. “Make no mistake, Tristan has earned this opportunity, and we expect he’ll make the most out of it. We’re not going to define success or failure based off one race, or a specific result. We’ll be looking at the totality of these five races and how those results line up with our goals heading into each race. He’s a tremendous young man, with undeniable talent who comes from a great family. We’re more than optimistic to start a new chapter in his developmental process.”

The Black’s Tire 250 from Richmond Raceway will be televised live FOX Friday, Aug. 14, beginning at 7:30 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time. The 17th of 25 races on the 2026 NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series schedule will also be broadcast live on the NASCAR Racing Network and SIRIUS XM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.