Jesus Hernandez (born April 1, 1981) is an American professional

stock car racing Stock car racing is a form of Auto racing, automobile racing run on oval track racing, oval tracks and road courses. It originally used Production vehicle, production-model cars, hence the name "stock car", but is now run using cars specifical ...

driver. He competed in what is now the

ARCA Menards Series East The ARCA Menards Series East (formerly known by other names) is a regional stock car racing series owned and operated by the Automobile Racing Club of America (ARCA) and the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR). Races are h ...

full-time for three years from

2007 2007 was designated as the International Heliophysical Year and the International Polar Year. Events January * January 1 **Bulgaria and Romania 2007 enlargement of the European Union, join the European Union, while Slovenia joins the Eur ...

2009 2009 was designated as the International Year of Astronomy by the United Nations to coincide with the 400th anniversary of Galileo Galilei's first known astronomical studies with a telescope and the publication of Astronomia Nova by Joha ...

, while also making one start in both the

West West is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sun sets on the Earth. Etymology The word "west" is a Germanic word passed into some Romance langu ...

and

ARCA Series The ARCA Menards Series is an American stock car series, the premier division of the Automobile Racing Club of America (ARCA). It is considered a minor, semi-professional league of stock car racing, used as a feeder series into the three national ...

during the course of his career. Being a Hispanic American, Hernandez was also a member of the

Drive for Diversity The NASCAR Driver Development Program (formerly known as Drive for Diversity / D4D) program is a development system instituted by the American auto racing league NASCAR. The program's purpose is to attract minority and female individuals to the ...

program.

Racing career

Hernandez made his NASCAR debut in the West Series at

Phoenix International Raceway Phoenix Raceway (formerly known as ISM Raceway from 2018–2020, Phoenix International Raceway from 1964–1973 and 1976–2017, and FasTrack International Speedway from 1973–1976) is a dogleg oval track in Avondale, Arizona. The track has ...

in 2007, driving the No. 4

Waste Management Waste management or waste disposal includes the processes and actions required to manage waste from its inception to its final disposal. This includes the collection, transport, treatment, and disposal of waste, together with monitor ...

Chevy Monte Carlo SS. Hernandez finished fifth that race, his first and only start in that series. For the rest of the year, he full-time and for rookie of the year in the

NASCAR Busch East Series The ARCA Menards Series East (formerly known by other names) is a regional stock car racing series owned and operated by the Automobile Racing Club of America (ARCA) and the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR). Races are hel ...

with the same team, sponsor and car number.

Allstate The Allstate Corporation is an American insurance company, headquartered in Glenview, Illinois (with a Northbrook, Illinois address) since 2022. Founded in 1931 as part of Sears, Roebuck and Co., it was spun off in 1993, but was still pa ...

signed on as a sponsor for the team beginning in June of that year. Hernandez was brought over to Dale Earnhardt, Inc., when Ginn merged with DEI in July 2007. His No. 4 team skipped the race at Adirondack International Speedway during the transition, and returned in time for the next race at

Lime Rock Park Lime Rock Park is a natural-terrain motorsport road racing venue located in Lakeville, Connecticut, United States, a hamlet in the town of Salisbury, Connecticut, Salisbury, in the state's northwest corner. Built in 1956, it is the nation's thi ...

. After this merger, Hernandez joined

Jeffrey Earnhardt Jeffrey Lynn Earnhardt (born June 22, 1989) is an American professional stock car racing driver. He competes part-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driving the No. 24 Toyota GR Supra for Sam Hunt Racing. He is the son of Kerry Earnhardt, grandson ...

and

Trevor Bayne Trevor Mitchell Bayne (born February 19, 1991) is an American semi-retired professional stock car racing driver, Dirt track racing, dirt racing driver, team owner, and businessman. He is currently a pit reporter for NASCAR on Prime Video, ''NASCAR ...

as DEI's development drivers. If the merger had not happened, Hernandez was going to make his

Truck Series The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series is a pickup truck racing series owned and operated by the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR), and is the only series in NASCAR to race production pickup truck-based stock cars. The series is o ...

debut in Morgan-Dollar Motorsports' No. 47 truck, sharing the ride with fellow Ginn development driver Kraig Kinser. After DEI's merger with

Chip Ganassi Racing Chip Ganassi Racing, LLC (CGR), also sometimes branded as Chip Ganassi Racing Teams, is an American auto racing organization competing in the NTT IndyCar Series. They have formerly competed in the NASCAR Cup and Xfinity Series, Global Rally ...

to become Earnhardt Ganassi Racing, the team closed down their East Series team due to a lack of sponsorship, and Hernandez was released from his full-time ride after the season, but remained a development and test driver for the organization. He drove in the East Series for one more year in

, finishing 12th in points driving the Troy Williams Racing No. 12

Dodge Dodge is an American brand of automobiles and a division of Stellantis, based in Auburn Hills, Michigan. Dodge vehicles have historically included performance cars, and for much of its existence, Dodge was Chrysler's mid-priced brand above P ...

for nearly the full season. He was replaced by Antonio Pérez for the races at Tri-County Motor Speedway and Watkins Glen. Perez was also supposed to drive the car at

Iowa Iowa ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the upper Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west; Wisconsin to the northeast, Ill ...

(temporarily renumbered to the No. 28 due to it being a combination race with the West Series and

Paulie Harraka Paul Peter Harraka (born September 15, 1989) is an American former professional stock car racing driver and entrepreneur. He is a graduate of Duke University and a former representative of NASCAR's Drive for Diversity program. Personal life Harr ...

using the No. 12), but was unable to race for unknown reasons, and Hernandez substituted for him in that race. Perez was supposed to drive the No. 12 in more races with Hernandez in a second car for TWR, but this did not happen. Hernandez did not return to the Williams team and EGR in 2010 in order to seek a full-time ride in the ARCA or Truck Series.

Motorsports career results

NASCAR

( key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. ''Italics'' – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)

Camping World East Series

Camping World West Series

ARCA Re/Max Series

( key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. ''Italics'' – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)

References

External links

* ''Dead link'' * {{DEFAULTSORT:Hernandez, Jesus Living people 1981 births Racing drivers from Fresno, California NASCAR drivers American sportspeople of Mexican descent ARCA Menards Series drivers Dale Earnhardt Inc. drivers