RACES AND RESULTS

LEILANI'S 2019 PLANS - SCROLL DOWN FOR RACE RESULTS

Leilani currently races in the ARCA Racing Series, she does not have sponsorship to compete beyond the ARCA Series season opener at Daytona on February 9, 2019. At this time, she is expecting to retire after Daytona. Leilani has 9 top five finishes and 21 top ten finishes in 61 career starts. Leilani does not work with companies that produce fossil fuels, meat or dairy products,  fur or leather, or any companies that test on animals. If your company meets these ethical standards and is interested in sponsorship, please download Leilani's PDF for more information. 

RACE HISTORY

Leilani started racing in 2001 and has raced from short tracks to superspeedways in both open wheel and stock cars, although most of her career has been in stock car racing. Leilani has proven herself on the track as a fast and competitive race car driver earning  9 top fives, 21 top tens, and 37 top 15 finishes in 61 starts. She started racing in 2001 and has raced in the following divisions: ARCA Racing Series, Indy Pro Series (FIA), NASCAR Elite Division Southwest, ASA Late Models, ROMCO Super Late Model Series, USRA Super Late Model Series, NASCAR Weekly Racing Series, and the Allison Legacy Series. In 2015, NASCAR approved Leilani's license to race in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, the second highest level of NASCAR, on tracks 1.0 miles and smaller, and in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series on tracks 1.5 miles and smaller.

PAST RACES - PRACTICE, QUALIFYING AND RACE RESULTS

More detailed notes on races are at the bottom of this page, under "Year By Year."

RACE HISTORY - YEAR BY YEAR

2018

Leilani started the season with a strong run at Daytona, she qualified 5th of 39 race cars. She was running 5th in the race coming into the first pit stops of the race. She slid her tires coming into her pit and was forced to pit twice (first stop was fuel, second stop was for new tires which were flat spotted from the slide). She came out of the pits in 31st place. Leilani raced her way back to an 8th place finish for her first top ten finish at Daytona.

2017

Leilani made her debut in the No. 15 Vegan Powered entry for Venturini Motorsports. She qualified 17th but made her way all the way up to 4th place with 25 laps to go. She was running in 6th place with just 15 laps to go when another car made heavy contact with the back of her car on the backstretch, she finished 19th. Leilani ran the No. 98 entry for Mason Mitchell Motorsports at Talladega Superspeedway. With qualifying rained out, Leilani had to start the race based on points from the previous season so she started 28th. She was plagued with mechanical issues and was forced to retire the car after 38 laps, finishing 28th of 36 entries.

2015

Leilani returned to race at Daytona in the #66 Energy Freedom entry for Venturini Motorsports. She was 14th quick in practice and qualified 10th of 49 race cars with a speed of 186. 587 mph. Leilani ran in the top ten for much of the race, running as high as 7th. She came out of pit stops on lap 38 in 12th place. On lap 53, Leilani was running 15th when going three wide into turn 3 she and the car to her outside touched and wrecked. It was discovered after the wreck that Leilani had severe carbon monoxide poisoning and she was put on oxygen for several hours before doctors would release her from Daytona's infield care center. 

2014

Leilani was 5th quick of 43 race cars in drafting practice at Daytona and 2nd quickest in single car runs. She qualified 7th of 43 cars but after ARCA tech reported a spring was sitting incorrectly, she started the race 33rd. Leilani raced her way from 33rd all the way up to 9th place in just 22 laps just to get taken out by a spinning car. In April 2014, Leilani took her first laps at Talladega Superspeedway, the largest oval in the world. She was fast right out of the box posting the 4th quickest time of 20 race cars testing with a speed of 183.367 mph on the 2.66 mile speedway. She returned to have a strong debut race at Talladega Superspeedway, qualifying 8th of 37 race cars with a speed of 180.976 mph. She ran as high as 4th and stayed in the top 8 cars the entire race until the final restart with 13 laps to go, when she was bumped from behind and was shuffled back for a 14th place finish. Leilani's next race was in the #66 PrairieGold Solar race car at Chicagoland Speedway where she impressed by qualifying 16th and finishing 12th on the lead lap in her first start on a 1.5 mile track in over four years. She followed up Chicagoland with another 12th place finish at Kansas Speedway. Leilani participated in ARCA pre-season testing at Daytona where at one point Leilani was the top of the leaderboard in all three sessions she participated in. She ended up 7th of 52 cars overall in the two day test. 

2013

After over a year passed without sitting in a race car, Leilani got behind the wheel of the #55 Go 100% Renewable! entry of Venturini Motorsports in the ARCA Racing Series. She was fast right out of the box, posting the 6th quickest time of 78 race cars testing with a speed of 183.303 mph at Daytona in ARCA pre-season testing in December 2013. Leilani was the fastest female driver at Daytona testing. She ran a tribute to Nikola Tesla on her race car at the Daytona test. 

2012

Leilani drove the #12 The Cove entry for Mark Gibson Racing in her second ARCA race at Daytona in the first ever ocean awareness race car. The car was crowd funded by donations from individuals and organizations all over the world that were touched by the documentary. Leilani was 25th of 52 cars in practice with a speed of 181.873 mph, she qualified 26th of 54 cars for the race. On lap 13, Leilani's left rear tire's inner liner blew out coming out of turn two and she finished 36th. Later in the year, Leilani returned to ARCA with Mark Gibson Racing for her first race at Kansas Speedway. She was 16th quick when she tested Kansas Speedway for the first time, but when Leilani returned to race her engine overheated after just 5 laps.

2011

Leilani drove a Ford owned by Andy Hillenburg to 14th quick on the charts with a lap of 181.815 mph on the final day of Daytona pre-season ARCA testing. This was Leilani's fourth test at Daytona, but her first time since they repaved the racetrack. 

2010

Leilani made her debut at Daytona International Speedway in the ARCA Racing Series. 51 drivers attempted to qualify for Daytona's ARCA race, Leilani qualified 25th and was one of the only three women to qualify for the event on speed along with Danica Patrick and Alli Owens. Leilani was 2/10 of a seconds faster than the leaders and had just turned the fastest lap of the race up when she was caught up in "The Big One" after a veteran driver spun and collected 10 race cars, including Leilani's #59 GREENandSAVE Dodge entry of Mark Gibson Racing.  

2009

Leilani tested the #59 NextEra Energy Resources Dodge owned by Mark Gibson Racing at Daytona International Speedway in pre-season testing for the ARCA Racing Series. More than 80 drivers participated and Leilani was 7th quick in the final practice with a speed of 181.77 mph. She spent several laps drafting with the #88 of Danica Patrick (who was making her debut in stock cars) and later reflected to the press on the historic nature of having two women drafting together at Daytona, something that had not likely happened before. Leilani also drove a hydrogen fuel cell Ford Focus across Norway in the Viking Rally, a zero emissions rally for hydrogen and electric cars.  She finished 2nd in the hillclimb, beaten only by World Rally driver Hennig Solberg. 

2008

Leilani returned to stock cars testing at Daytona International Speedway with James Hylton's #48 ARCA team. Even with a very small, underfunded team Leilani drove the team to 20th quick of 56 race cars testing with a speed of 179.551 mph. Her lap was quick enough to put her 16th on the starting grid of the Daytona ARCA race but due to the team's lack of funding, she was unable to participate.

2007

Leilani became the fourth woman in history to compete in the Indy Pro Series, the second highest level of IndyCar Racing. Leilani signed with Championship Indy Pro Series team Sam Schmidt Motorsports to run Kentucky Speedway and Chicagoland Speedway in the SMART Papers Dallara after an impressive performance during her rookie test for the Indy Pro Series in May. She impressed IndyCar veterans across the board when she qualified 5th for her debut open wheel race at Kentucky Speedway and turned in the 5th-fastest lap of the race with a speed of 192.399 mph. She had trouble on a restart and dropped back to 13th but dazzled the crowd by racing her way back up to the front of the field. She was about to pass for 4th place when she was collected in a multi-car accident when another car cut a tire.  Four-time Indy 500 champion Rick Mears, IndyCar driver Jaques Lazier, and many others in the IndyCar community spoke very highly of Leilani after her debut. After running another race in the Indy Pro Series at Chicagoland Speedway, finishing 13th, due to lack of open wheel sponsorship, Leilani moved back to stock car racing.

2006

Leilani set the record for the highest finishing position for a female driver in the history of Texas Motor Speedway when she finished 4th. She also became the first woman to qualify in the 45 year history of the Bettenhausen Classic.  Leilani raced against NASCAR Nextel Cup Champions Tony Stewart and Matt Kenseth and Madison International Speedway, posting a time that was only 3/10 of a second off of Stewart's quickest time. Leilani completed her rookie test at Daytona International Speedway in the ARCA Racing Series. With just two runs, Leilani was 24th quick of 59 race cars testing with a speed of 177.644 mph.

2005

Leilani began working as an instructor for Andy Hillenburg's Fast Track High Performance Driving School, giving ride-alongs and instructing at Charlotte Motor Speedway, Nashville Speedway, Kentucky Speedway, and Atlanta Motor Speedway - gaining valuable seat time behind the wheel on 1.5 mile speedways.

2004

Debuted in the ROMCO Super Late Model Series with an impressive run. In her first super late model race and her first race on a 1.5 mile speedway, Leilani was 6th fastest of 26 race cars in practice. Leilani set the record for the highest qualifying effort  in the history of Texas Motor Speedway when she qualified 4th for the First Convenience Bank 100. She started 4th and finished 7th on the lead lap and closing. This same year Leilani signed as a special correspondent with NASCAR.com, bringing race fans behind-the-scenes footage from inside the NASCAR Sprint Cup garage in her weekly segment "Leilani Reports."

2003

Signed a multi-year driver development contract with Team Bristol Motorsports, home of the #54 NASCAR Busch Series team. After an impressive test where Leilani turned lap times just 2/10 of a second off the pole position, Leilani debuted in the NASCAR Dodge Weekly Racing Series with a 9th place finish in the Coor's Light 150 at South Boston Speedway. In the final laps of this 150 laps race, Leilani was turning the same lap times as the leader. Two weeks later, Team Bristol Motorsports encountered financial difficulties that forced the team to retire from competition. 

2002

Relocated to North Carolina, worked at a racing school, tested late models. Studied race car set up, geometry, and aerodynamics. 

2001

Started racing stock cars in the Allison Legacy Series where she fought for the lead for several laps in her first heat race. She spun attempting to make a pass for the lead and finished fourth. Qualified and finished seventh in main event. Prior to her first race, Leilani attended various racing schools while earning her degree in biology from the University of California.