Michael Lira (racing Driver)
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Michael Lira (born July 16, 1997) is a
Peruvian-American Peruvian Americans are Americans of Peruvians, Peruvian descent. According to the United States Census Bureau, U.S. Census Bureau 2021 American Community Survey 1-Year Estimates, , 720,626 U.S. residents identify themselves as being of Peruvi ...
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.


Early life and early career

Lira was born in Daytona Beach, Florida (Volusia County). He began his motorsports career racing quarter-midgets at Little New Smyrna Speedway, in New Smyrna Beach, Florida. When he turned 12, Lira started racing in the FASCAR Pro Trucks Series. When he was 15, he competed in both the FASCAR Pro Truck and Florida United Pro Truck Series. He was the 2012 New Smyrna Speedway Pro-Trucks Track Champion, and he tied for the Pro-Truck Track Championship at Orlando Speedworld.


ARCA Racing Series

Lira began competing in the ARCA Racing Series in 2013, at the age of 16. He drove for Kimmel Racing, making his debut at Berlin Raceway on August 10. Lira competed in a total of four races with Kimmel Racing in 2013, and another 11 races with the team in 2014. His best finish in those two years was 7th at Salem Speedway. His best qualifying effort in those two years was 4th at Pocono Raceway. Although not permitted to race in events at tracks over one mile in length due to track age restrictions, Before his 18th birthday, Lira participated in multiple ARCA Racing Series test sessions at
Daytona International Speedway Daytona International Speedway is a race track in Daytona Beach, Florida, Daytona Beach, Florida, United States, about north of Orlando, Florida, Orlando. Since opening in 1959, it has been the home of the Daytona 500, the most prestigious race ...
and one test at
Talladega Superspeedway Talladega Superspeedway (Alabama International Motor Speedway from 1969 to 1989) is a tri-oval superspeedway in Lincoln, Alabama. Built in 1969, the track has hosted a variety of racing events, primarily races sanctioned by NASCAR. The track is ...
. Switching to his family owned team of
Lira Motorsports Lira Motorsports is an American professional stock car racing team that competes in the ARCA Menards Series and ARCA Menards Series East. Owned by Carlos and Amanda Lira, the team made its debut in the ARCA Menards Series in 2015, fielding multip ...
in 2015, Lira plans on competing in 16 of the 20 races on the ARCA Racing Series schedule. Age restrictions do not allow him to race at 4 of the tracks that have races scheduled before his 18th birthday. Through the first 10 races of the year, Lira's best finish was 8th at Mobile International Speedway, and he qualified 4th at three different tracks (Nashville Speedway, Toledo Speedway and New Jersey Motorsports Park).


IMSA and SCCA road course racing

Lira competed in a
Sports Car Club of America The Sports Car Club of America (SCCA) is a non-profit American automobile club and sanctioning body supporting Autocross, Rallycross, HPDE, Time Trial, Road Racing, RoadRally, and Hill Climbs in the United States. Formed in 1944, it runs ...
(SCCA) road-course event at Daytona International Speedway in May 2014. In his first official SCCA start, he finished 8th overall and 4th in class. In January 2015, Lira made his
International Motor Sports Association The International Motor Sports Association (IMSA) is a North American sports car racing sanctioning body based in Daytona Beach, Florida, under the jurisdiction of the ACCUS arm of the FIA. It was started by John Bishop, a former executive dir ...
(IMSA) Tudor United SportsCar Championship debut in the Rolex 24 at Daytona International Speedway driving for Muehlner Motorsports America. The car suffered from mechanical issues during the race and was brought to the garage four separate times for more than eight hours of race time. The car finished 17th in the Daytona-GTD Class. Also in January 2015, Lira competed in the IMSA Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge BMW Performance 200 at Daytona International Speedway. In that race he started 8th and finished 13th. He competed in a second IMSA Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge event, the Monterey Grand Prix at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, in May 2015. In that race, he started 15th and finished 14th with co-driver Nick Galante. Michael's third and final IMSA Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge race of 2015 was at
Road Atlanta Road Atlanta (known for sponsorship reasons as Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta) is a road course located just north of Braselton, Georgia, United States. The facility is utilized for a wide variety of events, including professional and amateur spo ...
on October 2. In that race, Lira finished 10th along with co-driver
David Levine David Levine (December 20, 1926 – December 29, 2009) was an American artist and illustrator best known for his caricatures in ''The New York Review of Books''. Jules Feiffer has called him "the greatest caricaturist of the last half of the ...
.


Family

Lira's father, Carlos Lira, is an accomplished sports car racer. He has been racing since the age of 18. He has earned five national championships in SCCA Ford Mustang road course competition. He also has experience in Grand Am, Rolex Sports Car Series and Pirelli World Challenge competition. Carlos Lira is a native of Lima, Peru.


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.)


Xfinity Series

Season still in progress
Ineligible for series points


ARCA Menards Series

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


ARCA Menards Series East


References


External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Lira, Michael 1997 births Living people Racing drivers from Daytona Beach, Florida ARCA Menards Series drivers NASCAR drivers American sportspeople of Peruvian descent Michelin Pilot Challenge drivers