Bill Lester facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Bill Lester
Lester in 2008
Born	William Alexander Lester III (1961-02-06) February 6, 1961 (age 64) Washington, D.C., U.S.
Achievements	First African-American to win a Rolex Sports Car Series race (Virginia International Raceway, 2011, GT Class)
NASCAR Cup Series career
2 races run over 1 year
Best finish	68th (2006)
First race	2006 Golden Corral 500 (Atlanta)
Last race	2006 3M Performance 400 (Michigan)
Wins Top tens Poles 0 0 0
NASCAR Xfinity Series career
1 race run over 1 year
Best finish	111th (1999)
First race	1999 Lysol 200 (Watkins Glen)
Wins Top tens Poles 0 0 0
NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series career
143 races run over 9 years
2021 position	89th
Best finish	13th (2003)
First race	2000 Line-X 225 (Portland)
Last race	2021 Fr8Auctions 200 (Atlanta)
Wins Top tens Poles 0 7 3
Rolex Sports Car Series
Years active	1998–2001, 2007–2012
Starts	52
Wins	1
Poles	2
Best finish	3rd in 2011
Last updated on: December 30, 2021.

William Alexander Lester III (born February 6, 1961) is an American professional racing driver. He is now semi-retired. He last raced part-time in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series. He drove the No. 17 Ford F-150 for David Gilliland Racing.

Bill Lester raced full-time in the Truck Series from 2002 to 2007. During this time, he was NASCAR's only full-time African-American driver. After that, he moved to sports car racing. He competed in the Rolex Sports Car Series from 2007 to 2012. He also raced part-time in that series from 1998 to 2001.

Lester also made two starts in the top-level NASCAR Cup Series in 2006. He had one start in the Busch Series (now called Xfinity Series) in 1999. Since he stopped driving, Lester has worked for NASCAR. He is a member of the NASCAR National Motorsports Appeals Panel.

Bill Lester's Racing Journey

Starting His Career

Bill Lester began his racing career on road courses. He competed in the SCCA and IMSA series. In 1990, he made his IMSA debut at Sears Point International Raceway. He started ninth and won the race in a Chevrolet Camaro. That same year, he also won an endurance race at Sears Point.

He raced in SCCA events in 1990 and then took a break. He returned to professional racing in 1996. He competed in the 24 Hours of Daytona endurance race in 1998 and 1999. He finished fifth and tenth in those races.

Racing in NASCAR

In 1999, Bill Lester made history. He became the first African-American to race in a Busch Series event. This race took place at Watkins Glen International. He started 24th and finished 21st after an accident.

The next year, he made his debut in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series. This was at Portland International Raceway. He finished 24th. In that race, he competed against Bobby Norfleet. This was the only time two African-American drivers raced in the same NASCAR event.

In 2002, Lester raced full-time in the Craftsman Truck Series. He finished 17th in points. He was also the runner-up for the Rookie of the Year award. The next year, he earned his first pole position at Lowe's Motor Speedway. He also had a tenth-place finish at Kansas Speedway. He ended the season 14th in the championship standings.

Lester joined Bill Davis Racing in 2004. He had a best finish of tenth that year. In 2005, he won two pole positions in a row. He also earned his first top-five finishes.

In 2006, Lester raced in his first NASCAR Cup Series event. This was the Golden Corral 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway. He qualified 19th, becoming the first African-American to race in a Cup Series event since 1986. He was the sixth African-American driver in the series' history. He finished 38th in that race. He raced one more time that season at Michigan, finishing 32nd.

After 2006, Lester left Bill Davis Racing. He drove for Billy Ballew Motorsports in 2007. His best finish was eighth at Kentucky. He later left NASCAR in 2008 due to sponsorship issues. He then returned to sports car racing.

On February 26, 2021, Lester announced he would return to the Truck Series. He raced at his home track in Atlanta. This was the same track where he made his Cup Series debut. He drove for David Gilliland Racing and finished 36th.

Returning to Sports Cars

2011 Rolex Sports Car Series GT car

In 2008, Bill Lester returned to sports car racing. He drove a Riley Daytona Prototype in the Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series. He moved to Orbit Racing in 2009, finishing third at Daytona. In 2010, Lester joined Starworks Motorsport. He finished 17th in points that year.

In 2011, Lester moved to the GT category with Autohaus Motorsports. He drove a Chevrolet Camaro. On May 14, 2011, Lester made sports car history. He became the first African-American driver to win in any Grand-Am division. This victory happened at the Virginia International Raceway. This track is near the home of NASCAR's first African-American winner, Wendell Scott.

About Bill Lester's Life

Bill Lester's father is William A. Lester.

In 1984, Bill Lester earned a degree in electrical engineering and computer science. He graduated from the University of California, Berkeley. After college, he worked at Hewlett-Packard for 15 years. Then, he decided to focus on auto racing full-time.

Lester lives in Windermere, Florida. He lives there with his wife, Cheryl. They have two sons, William Alexander IV (Alex) and Austin Richard.

In February 2021, he published his autobiography. It is titled Winning in Reverse.

Images for kids

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  Lester in 2008

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  2011 Rolex Sports Car Series GT car