Gary Smith (racing driver)

Gary Smith
Gary Smith
Born	July 6, 1968 (age 58); Malahat, British Columbia, Canada
Achievements	1997 NASCAR Winston West Series Rookie of the Year
ARCA Menards Series West career
	44 races run over 6 years
Best finish	3rd (1997, 1998)
First race	1996 Winston 200 Presented by Alley Chevrolet (Evergreen)
Last race	2004 Coors Light 200 (Evergreen)
First win	1997 The Exide NASCAR Select Batteries 200 (Tucson)
Last win	1998 TCI Digital Cable 200 (Portland)
	Statistics up to date as of June 8, 2026.

Gary Smith (born July 6, 1968) is a Canadian former stock car racing driver who primarily competed in the NASCAR Winston West Series from 1996 to 2004. He last competed part time in the NASCAR West Series, driving the No. 79 Chevrolet for Midgley Motorsports. Smith is the son of four-time NASCAR Winston West champion Roy Smith.

Racing Career

Smith began kart racing at the age of three, driving for over 18 years and winning four International Kart Federation championships. In 1986, he moved to stock cars, racing at his home track of Western Speedway in Langford, British Columbia. Smith won the 1992 and 1993 IMCA Modified Island Series championship.^[1]

In 1995, Smith went full time in the NASCAR Northwest Series, achieving a win at the Wenatchee Valley Super Oval. Smith would go on to finish third in the championship.^[2] Returning to the series in 1996, Smith would also make his first NASCAR Winston West Series start on June 29th at Evergreen Speedway, finishing second.

Smith went full time in the Winston West Series in 1997, recording wins at Tucson Speedway and Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Finishing third in the standings, Smith would receive the Rookie of the Year award.^[3]^[4]

Starting the 1998 season in the No. 09 Pontiac, Smith would drive for Midgley Motorsports. After a crash at California Speedway, he would move to Bill McAnally Racing, scoring a win at Portland Speedway and four runner-up finishes, again finishing third in the championship.^[5] Later that year, Smith was selected by NASCAR to compete in the Coca-Cola 500 Winston Cup exhibition race at Twin Ring Motegi in Motegi, Japan, the only Canadian in the field. With backing from Molson Brewery, Smith qualified 27th, retiring on lap 54 with an electrical issue.^[6]

Smith moved to Faustina Racing for the first two races of 1999, then competed for Midgley Racing at Phoenix International Raceway and Bernie Hilber Racing at California. After a rough start, including no top-15s and two crashes in the first four races, Smith would miss the next three races before returning to Bernie Hilber Racing, finishing the season 16th in points with a best finish of fifth.

Smith ran the first four races of 2000 with Bernie Hilber Racing in the No. 7 Pontiac, scoring a best finish of 11th at Phoenix. In 2004, Smith drove the No. 79 in the Coors Light 200 at Evergreen Speedway in honor of his late father, Roy, who passed away earlier in the year. He finished 18th.^[1]

Smith was named president of the Vancouver Island Karting Association in 2021.^[1]

Motorsports results

Cup Series

NASCAR Winston Cup 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	NWCC	Pts	Ref
1997	Gary Smith/John Strauser	45W	Chevy	DAY	CAR	RCH	ATL	DAR	TEX	BRI	MAR	SON DNQ	TAL	CLT	DOV	POC	MCH	CAL	DAY	NHA	POC	IND	GLN	MCH	BRI	DAR	RCH	NHA	DOV	MAR	CLT	TAL	CAR	PHO	ATL	79th	0	^[7]

NASCAR Winston West Series

NASCAR Winston West Series results
Year	Team	No.	Make	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	Pos.	Pts	Ref
1996	Razore Racing	79	Ford	TUS	AMP	MMR	SON	MAD	POR	TUS	EVG 2	CNS	MAD	MMR	SON	MMR	PHO	LVS	47th	175	^[8]
1997	John Strauser	45	Chevy	TUS 2	AMP 7	SON DNQ	TUS 1**	MMR 3	LVS 1	CAL 5	EVG 2*	POR 2	PPR 12	AMP 4	SON 10	MMR 3	LVS 11		3rd	2101	^[9]
1998	Midgley Motorsports	09	Pontiac	TUS 7	LVS 6	PHO 3	CAL 28												3rd	1945	^[10]
1998	Bill McAnally Racing	16	Chevy					HPT 7	MMR 2	AMP 2	POR 1*	CAL 13	PPR 31	EVG 2	SON 30	MMR 2	LVS 17		3rd	1945	^[10]
1999	Faustina Racing	6	Chevy	TUS 27															16th	1302	^[11]
	Faustina Racing	6	Pontiac		LVS 17
	Midgley Motorsports	09				PHO 22
	Bernie Hilber Racing	7					CAL 32	PPR	MMR	IRW	EVG 6	POR 19	IRW 8	RMR 5	LVS 19	MMR 5	MOT 14
2000	Bernie Hilber Racing	7		PHO 11	MMR 20	LVS 27	CAL 27	LAG	IRW	POR	EVG	IRW	RMR	MMR	IRW				26th	409	^[12]
2004	Midgley Motorsports	79	Chevy	PHO	MMR	CAL	S99	EVG 18	IRW	S99	RMR	DCS	PHO	CNS	MMR	IRW			59th	109	^[13]

References

1 2 3 "GARY SMITH 2021 INDUCTEE". Victoria Auto Racing Hall of Fame and Museum. Retrieved June 21, 2026.
↑ "Gary Smith – 1995 REB-CO Northwest Tour Season Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved July 1, 2026.
↑ "NASCAR Winston West Series Standings For 1997". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved July 1, 2026.
↑ "ARCA Menards West Series Page". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved June 21, 2026.
↑ "NASCAR Winston West Series Standings For 1998". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved July 1, 2026.
↑ "1998 NASCAR Thunder Special Motegi results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved June 21, 2026.
↑ "Gary Smith – 1997 NASCAR Winston Cup Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved June 8, 2026.
↑ "Gary Smith – 1996 NASCAR Winston West Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved July 1, 2026.
↑ "Gary Smith – 1997 NASCAR Winston West Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved July 1, 2026.
↑ "Gary Smith – 1998 NASCAR Winston West Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved July 1, 2026.
↑ "Gary Smith – 1999 NASCAR Winston West Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved July 1, 2026.
↑ "Gary Smith – 2000 NASCAR Winston West Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved July 1, 2026.
↑ "Gary Smith – 2004 NASCAR West Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved June 21, 2026.

[VARHOF-1] 1 2 3 "GARY SMITH 2021 INDUCTEE". Victoria Auto Racing Hall of Fame and Museum. Retrieved June 21, 2026.

[2] "Gary Smith – 1995 REB-CO Northwest Tour Season Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved July 1, 2026.

[3] "NASCAR Winston West Series Standings For 1997". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved July 1, 2026.

[4] "ARCA Menards West Series Page". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved June 21, 2026.

[5] "NASCAR Winston West Series Standings For 1998". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved July 1, 2026.

[6] "1998 NASCAR Thunder Special Motegi results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved June 21, 2026.

[7] "Gary Smith – 1997 NASCAR Winston Cup Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved June 8, 2026.

[8] "Gary Smith – 1996 NASCAR Winston West Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved July 1, 2026.

[9] "Gary Smith – 1997 NASCAR Winston West Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved July 1, 2026.

[10] "Gary Smith – 1998 NASCAR Winston West Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved July 1, 2026.

[11] "Gary Smith – 1999 NASCAR Winston West Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved July 1, 2026.

[12] "Gary Smith – 2000 NASCAR Winston West Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved July 1, 2026.

[13] "Gary Smith – 2004 NASCAR West Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved June 21, 2026.

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