About Gray
Gray Leadbetter
None of this was planned. No one in my family had any previous interest or experience in motorsports. But by the age of two, I discovered that I LIKE TO GO FAST! It started with a silly little battery-powered four-wheeler, and by the age of three, I was blasting through the woods on a Yamaha PW50 motorcycle. I was hooked.
Fortunately, I had a dad who supported my passion for motorsports. At five years old, I began competing in arenacross and found out that competition makes going fast even more fun. From there, it was a natural progression to move into karts. The competition in karting is fierce because that’s where all the young drivers with dreams of NASCAR, Indy or F1 go to prove themselves. I learned that I thrive under pressure.
Opportunities to drive in other motorsports presented themselves and I jumped at the opportunity. I was driving a SXS in closed-course off-road racing, a legend car on pavement and mini-outlaw sprints on dirt ovals. Along the way I had the good fortune to meet Swedish rally champion Patrik Sandell, and trained with him on a frozen lake in Sweden. Stateside, my good fortune continued and I received personal training at the Bondurant School from 2004 Indy 500 Champion Buddy Rice.
In 2019, my big break into the pro ranks came when I signed with Dreyer and Reinbold Racing to drive in the Americas Rallycross series. What an experience! At the age of 14, it was pretty wild to be competing against drivers with Indy 500 starts to their credit. But I’m used to being the youngest driver on the track.
At 5-years old, I began competing in arenacross and found out that competition makes going fast even more fun. From there, it was a natural progression to move into karts. The competition in karting is fierce because that’s where all of the up-and-coming drivers go to prove themselves. I learned that I thrive under pressure.
Opportunities to drive in other forms of motorsports presented themselves and I found myself competing in UTVs and Mini-Outlaw Sprints. Along the way I met Swedish rally driver, Patrick Sandell, and trained with him on frozen lakes in Sweden. State-side, I had the good fortune to train at the Bondurant School with 2004 Indy 500 Champion, Buddy Rice, and I continue to train with him, today.
In 2021, I moved into the Pro class in Championship Off-Road driving a SXS Pro Mod for the Greaves Motorsports team. I was the first woman to win a Pro class race and finished third in the championship. During that year, I also joined Marc Dailey Racing and started campaigning a sprint car. I was in love. There was nothing to compare to the raw performance of a sprint car.
In 2022, in addition to a full season in sprint cars, I had to opportunity to drive the Ryan Beat Motorsports #28 Bilstein Chevy in the new Pro Spec class in Championship Off-Road. With four wins, I won the overall championship by a single point and became the first woman ever to a Pro class championship. That title earned me an Impact Award in Short Course from the Off-Road Motorsports Hall of Fame.
In 2019, my big break into the pro ranks came when I signed with Dreyer-Reinbold Racing to drive in the American Rallycross series. What an experience! At the age of 14, it was pretty wild to be competing against drivers with Indy 500 starts to their credit.
But I’m used to being the youngest driver on the track.
