Bradley Smith (born October 9, 1968) 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 who competes full-time in the

ARCA Menards Series The ARCA Menards Series is an American stock car racing, 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 ...

, driving the No. 48

Ford Fusion The Ford Fusion is an automobile nameplate by Ford. * Ford Fusion (Americas), mid-size car produced between the 2006 and 2020 model years ** Ford Fusion Hybrid, gasoline-electric hybrid powered version ** Ford Fusion Energi, plug-in hybrid ...

for his team,

Brad Smith Motorsports Brad Smith Motorsports (formerly known as Hartje Racing, Hylton Engineering and James Hylton Motorsports) is a former NASCAR and current ARCA race team. It was one of the oldest professional race teams in the United States, running from 1964 to ...

. Smith is a veteran of the series, having made over 400 starts in it since 1988. He made his debut in 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 ...

2020 The year 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of even ...

and

ARCA Menards Series West The ARCA Menards Series West, formerly the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West, NASCAR AutoZone West Series, NASCAR Winston West Series, NASCAR Winston Transcontinental Series and NASCAR Camping World West Series, is a regional stock car racing series ow ...

2021 Like the year 2020, 2021 was also heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, due to the emergence of multiple Variants of SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19 variants. The major global rollout of COVID-19 vaccines, which began at the end of 2020, continued ...

, and he and his team have also competed part-time in those series since then. He is the younger brother of fellow driver Jeff Smith.

Racing career

48 Brad Smith 2017 Road America 100 ARCA

An oil fire 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 ...

in 2003 burned Smith's face and arms, resulting in a hospital stay. In the late 2000s, Smith hosted students from the

University of Northwestern Ohio The University of Northwestern Ohio (UNOH) is a private university in Lima, Ohio, United States. It was founded in 1920 and grants associate degrees, bachelor's degrees, and master's degrees across more than 50 disciplines within five constitue ...

on his racing crew. During the 2015 International Motorsports Hall of Fame 200 at Talladega,

Austin Wayne Self Austin Wayne Self (born March 5, 1996) is an American professional stock car racing driver. He last competed part-time in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, driving the No. 22 Ford F-150 for his family team, AM Racing. He has also competed in the ...

spun in the tri-oval, and collected Smith's racecar, which went pinballing off both the outside and inside retaining walls. Press reports indicated that the crash fractured Smith's left ankle, although Smith later described the injury as a sprain. A planned full-time season was derailed, as Smith needed a wheelchair for five months following the crash. He returned for a full season the following year and received the General Tire Spirit Award. Smith was driving for James Hylton Motorsports in 2018 when Hylton was killed in a hauler accident. The team completed the 2018 season and rebranded as Smith Brothers Racing, led by Smith and his brother

Jeff Jeff is a masculine name, often a short form (hypocorism) of the English given name Jefferson or Jeffrey, which comes from a medieval variant of Geoffrey. Music * DJ Jazzy Jeff, American DJ/turntablist record producer Jeffrey Allen Townes ...

. The group retained many of the same personnel from Hylton's team. In 2020, Smith claimed his first series top-ten at

Winchester Speedway Winchester Speedway is a paved oval motor racetrack in White River Township, Randolph County, just outside Winchester, Indiana, approximately 90 miles (144.8 km) northeast of Indianapolis. It seats 5,000 spectators. It is also known as the "Wo ...

; the finish came in his 363rd start. Despite not having much success in 2021, only finishing three races under power and missing Daytona, Smith was able to score his career best points finish, 5th. In 2022, Smith would finish nine races under power and would earn his second career top 10, 10th at Berlin despite retiring from the event with handling issues, and ended the season 8th in points. 2023 would see Smith complete five races and improve to 6th in points. Smith was only able to finish under power in three races in 2024. He also failed to qualify at Phoenix and withdrew from the race at

Dover Dover ( ) is a town and major ferry port in Kent, southeast England. It faces France across the Strait of Dover, the narrowest part of the English Channel at from Cap Gris Nez in France. It lies southeast of Canterbury and east of Maidstone. ...

. His best result came in the season finale at

Toledo Toledo most commonly refers to: * Toledo, Spain, a city in Spain * Province of Toledo, Spain * Toledo, Ohio, a city in the United States Toledo may also refer to: Places Belize * Toledo District * Toledo Settlement Bolivia * Toledo, Or ...

, where he finished twelfth. He would also end the season twelfth in points. In 2025, he scored his best finish in ARCA competition when he finished eighth in the

race at

Flat Rock Speedway Flat Rock Speedway is a race track in Monroe County in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is located in Ash Township just south of the city of Flat Rock along U.S. Route 24. Opened in 1953, it is owned by NASCAR and is the sister track to Toledo ...

Personal life

Smith was an engineer at

General Motors General Motors Company (GM) is an American Multinational corporation, multinational Automotive industry, automotive manufacturing company headquartered in Detroit, Michigan, United States. The company is most known for owning and manufacturing f ...

before being laid off in 2019. He has been married and divorced twice. Smith graduated from Utica Eisenhower High School.

Motorsports career results

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

ARCA Menards Series West

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Brad 1968 births Living people People from Oceana County, Michigan Racing drivers from Michigan ARCA Menards Series drivers