Preston Pardus

Preston Pardus
Preston Pardus
	Pardus at Sonoma Raceway in 2024
Born	Preston J. Pardus; February 15, 1997 (age 27); New Smyrna Beach, Florida, U.S.
Achievements	2023 SCCA National Championship Runoffs champion (Spec Miata); 2021 SCCA National Championship Runoffs champion (Spec Miata); 2020 SCCA Super Sweep (Spec Miata); 2020 SCCA National Championship Runoffs champion (Spec Miata); 2017 SCCA National Championship Runoffs champion (Spec Miata)
NASCAR Xfinity Series career
	23 races run over 5 years
Car no., team	No. 50 (Pardus Racing); No. 36 (DGM Racing)
2023 position	49th
Best finish	36th (2021)
First race	2019 CTECH Manufacturing 180 (Road America)
Last race	2023 Pennzoil 150 (Indianapolis G.P.)
	Statistics current as of December 24, 2023.

Preston J. Pardus (born February 15, 1997) is an American professional racing driver who competes in the Sports Car Club of America as well as part-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driving the No. 50 Chevrolet Camaro for his own team, Pardus Racing, and the No. 36 Camaro for DGM Racing. Pardus won the Spec Miata class at the 2017 SCCA National Championship Runoffs and claimed the 2020 Super Sweep in the Spec Miata division. He is the son of former NASCAR driver Dan Pardus.

Racing career

Racing Spec Miatas, Pardus won the 2017 SCCA National Championship Runoffs on a last-lap pass.^[1] Pardus was also selected by Mazda Motorsports as a finalist to compete at the Mazda Road to 24 Shootout in late 2017.^[2] In 2019, Pardus started the Super Tour off with a win at Sebring International Raceway in January, competing in the Central Florida region of the SCCA.^[3] He went on to win the SCCA Majors Southeast Conference Championship that year, topping a series with over 150 entrants.^[4]

Pardus in his Xfinity Series debut in 2019 at Road America

In August 2019, Pardus made his NASCAR Xfinity Series debut in the 2019 CTECH Manufacturing 180 at Road America. While the start came with his family Pardus Racing Inc. team, Pardus' car was an old Chip Ganassi Racing chassis, was powered by an Earnhardt Childress Engines engine, and the at-track effort was headed by Tony Furr, who served as crew chief.^[5] He returned to the series in July 2020 for the Pennzoil 150 on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course, driving for DGM Racing.^[6] After starting 19th, Pardus ended the race in tenth for his first top-ten finish in NASCAR.^[7] At the SCCA Runoffs that year, Pardus avoided a first-lap melee and went from seventh to the lead on the final lap to claim his second Runoffs victory in the Spec Miata class. In doing so, he also garnered the 2020 Super Sweep award for the Spec Miata division, awarded to any driver who wins the Runoffs, point standings and a major conference championship in the same season.^[8]

In 2021, Pardus returned to DGM for the second year in a row to run the road course races in the Xfinity Series. In his first race on his schedule, the Daytona Road Course, he was entered in the team's No. 91, a new part-time fourth car for them, but due to there being over 40 cars on the entry list and the race not having qualifying, the No. 91 was excluded and missed the field as a result of being too low in owner points. DGM then moved Pardus to their full-time No. 90 car, which was to be driven by Caesar Bacarella that weekend until he was replaced by Pardus.^[9] He came back to the 91 at the Pit Boss 250. Pardus posted his best finish of 7th at the Charlotte Roval.

In 2023, Pardus returned to driving for his own team in the Xfinity Series, which he last did in 2019. However, "Inc." was no longer a part of the re-started Pardus family team's name and the No. 43, which the team used in 2019, was taken by Alpha Prime Racing starting in 2023, so the team switched to the No. 50, a number that Pardus' father Dan used in the Cup Series in 1999 driving for Midwest Transit Racing. The first Xfinity Series race Preston and his team would run in 2023 was Circuit of the Americas.^[10] He would race two more races for his own team, which were at the Chicago Street Course^[11] and the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course.^[12] Also, he would race for SS-Green Light Racing in 2023.^[13]

Personal life

Pardus' father Dan formerly competed in the NASCAR Winston Cup Series, NASCAR Busch Series and ARCA Re/Max Series.^[14] He graduated from Spruce Creek High School in 2015.^[14]

His family owns Danus Utilities, Inc., an underground utility company that Pardus works for when he is not racing. Danus Utilities has also sponsored his race cars.^[6]

Motorsports career results

SCCA National Championship Runoffs

Year	Track	Car	Engine	Class	Finish	Start	Status
2015	Daytona	Mazda Miata	Mazda	Spec Miata	19	5	Running
2017	Indianapolis	Mazda Miata	Mazda	Spec Miata	1	2	Running
2018	Sonoma	Mazda Miata	Mazda	Spec Miata	5	10	Running
2019	VIR	Mazda Miata	Mazda	Spec Miata	2	2	Running
2020	Road America	Mazda Miata	Mazda	Spec Miata	1	9	Running
2021	Indianapolis	Mazda Miata	Mazda	Spec Miata	1	2	Running

NASCAR

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

Xfinity Series

NASCAR Xfinity Series results
Year	Team	No.	Make	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31	32	33	NXSC	Pts	Ref
2019	Pardus Racing Inc.	43	Chevy	DAY	ATL	LVS	PHO	CAL	TEX	BRI	RCH	TAL	DOV	CLT	POC	MCH	IOW	CHI	DAY	KEN	NHA	IOW	GLN	MOH	BRI	ROA 36	DAR	IND	LVS	RCH	CLT 27	DOV	KAN	TEX	PHO	HOM	73rd	11	^[15]
2020	DGM Racing	36	Chevy	DAY	LVS	CAL	PHO	DAR	CLT	BRI	ATL	HOM	HOM	TAL	POC	IND 10	KEN	KEN	TEX	KAN	ROA 8	DAY 31	DOV	DOV	DAY	DAR	RCH	RCH	BRI	LVS	TAL						44th	74	^[16]
2020		90																														CLT 32	KAN	TEX	MAR	PHO	44th	74	^[16]
2021		91		DAY	DAY DNQ									COA 14	CLT																						36th	127	^[17]
2021		90			DAY 33	HOM	LVS	PHO	ATL	MAR	TAL	DAR	DOV			MOH 25	TEX	NSH	POC	ROA 16	ATL	NHA	GLN 23	IND 35	MCH	DAY	DAR	RCH	BRI	LVS	TAL	CLT 7	TEX	KAN	MAR 18	PHO	36th	127	^[17]
2022		91		DAY	CAL	LVS	PHO	ATL	COA 14	RCH	MAR	TAL	DOV	DAR	TEX	CLT	PIR	NSH	ROA 11	ATL	NHA	POC	IND 29	MCH	GLN 21	DAY	DAR	KAN	BRI	TEX	TAL	CLT 21	LVS	HOM	MAR	PHO	42nd	100	^[18]
2023	Pardus Racing	50	Chevy	DAY	CAL	LVS	PHO	ATL	COA 36	RCH	MAR	TAL	DOV	DAR	CLT				CSC 12	ATL	NHA	POC	ROA	MCH	IRC 24	GLN	DAY	DAR	KAN	BRI	TEX	ROV DNQ	LVS	HOM	MAR	PHO	49th	45	^[19]
2023	SS-Green Light Racing	08	Ford													PIR 31	SON	NSH																			49th	45	^[19]
2024	Pardus Racing Inc.	50	Chevy	DAY	ATL	LVS	PHO	COA DNQ	RCH	MAR	TEX	TAL	DOV	DAR	CLT		SON 25	IOW	NHA	NSH	CSC 32	POC	IND	MCH	DAY	DAR	ATL	GLN	BRI	KAN	TAL	ROV	LVS	HOM	MAR	PHO	-*	-*	^[20]
2024	DGM Racing	36	Chevy													PIR 38																					-*	-*	^[20]