Cole Custer is an American professional race car driver best known for his impressive victory at the 2020 Quaker State 400 at Kentucky Speedway. As a rising star in NASCAR, he has gained recognition for both his raw talent and steady progression in competitive racing.
Cole Matthew Custer was born on January 23, 1998, in Ladera Ranch, California. From a young age, Custer showed an interest in motorsports, a passion likely influenced by his father, Joe Custer, who has held executive roles in NASCAR and with Stewart-Haas Racing. This early exposure helped set the foundation for his racing career.
Custer began competing in the NASCAR Xfinity Series in 2017 as a full-time rookie driver. He finished his debut season with notable momentum, capturing his first career win at the Ford EcoBoost 300 at Homestead-Miami Speedway. During that race, he led a commanding 182 laps—the most ever in a single Xfinity race at Homestead—and earned a perfect driver rating of 150.0. His performance also included seven top-five and 19 top-10 finishes, totaling 301 laps led over the season.
Building on this strong foundation, Custer’s 2019 season marked a major development in his racing trajectory. That year, he secured a career-high of seven wins and six pole positions, along with 17 top-five and 24 top-10 finishes. Over the course of the season, he led 922 laps and came in second in the championship standings for the second straight year. These achievements positioned him as a standout talent in the series and a prime candidate for advancement.
Following his standout 2019 season, Cole Custer was promoted to the Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR) NASCAR Cup Series team for the 2020 season. He joined a high-profile lineup that included drivers Kevin Harvick, Aric Almirola, and Clint Bowyer. Driving the No. 41 Ford, Custer made an immediate impact at the top level of stock car racing.
His breakthrough moment came in July 2020, when he claimed his first Cup Series win at the Quaker State 400 at Kentucky Speedway. In the final laps of the race, Custer surged ahead in a dramatic four-wide battle to steal the win from teammate Kevin Harvick and others. At 22 years old, he became the first rookie to win a Cup Series race since 2016. Reflecting on the unexpected victory, Custer remarked, “I'm surprised, yes! We have definitely done a better job these last few weeks. We started putting the whole picture together, and you've gotta just have the whole thing working together, whether it's pit stops and restarts, or me doing my job, or having the car perfectly right."
| Birth Date: | 23 Jan, 1998 |
| Age: | 22 yrs |
| Occupations: | Racing driver |
| Citizenship: | United States of America |
| Birth Place: | Ladera Ranch |
| Gender: | Male |
| Description: | American stock car racing driver |
