Paul Menard facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Paul Menard |
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Menard at the 2018 Can-Am 500
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| Born | John Paul Christian Menard August 21, 1980 Eau Claire, Wisconsin, U.S. |
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| Height | 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) | ||||||
| Weight | 180 lb (82 kg) | ||||||
| Achievements | 2024 SCCA Trans-Am TA Series Champion 2011 Brickyard 400 winner |
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| NASCAR Cup Series career | |||||||
| 471 races run over 16 years | |||||||
| 2019 position | 19th | ||||||
| Best finish | 14th (2015) | ||||||
| First race | 2003 Sirius Satellite Radio at the Glen (Watkins Glen) | ||||||
| Last race | 2019 Ford EcoBoost 400 (Homestead) | ||||||
| First win | 2011 Brickyard 400 (Indianapolis) | ||||||
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| NASCAR Xfinity Series career | |||||||
| 220 races run over 16 years | |||||||
| 2019 position | 84th | ||||||
| Best finish | 5th (2010) | ||||||
| First race | 2003 Trace Adkins Chrome 300 (Nashville) | ||||||
| Last race | 2019 ROXOR 200 (Loudon) | ||||||
| First win | 2006 AT&T 250 (Milwaukee) | ||||||
| Last win | 2015 Road America 180 (Road America) | ||||||
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| NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series career | |||||||
| 8 races run over 3 years | |||||||
| 2021 position | 45th | ||||||
| Best finish | 42nd (2003) | ||||||
| First race | 2003 GNC 200 (Milwaukee) | ||||||
| Last race | 2021 United Rentals 176 (Watkins Glen) | ||||||
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| Statistics current as of November 4, 2024. | |||||||
John Paul Christian Menard (born August 21, 1980) is an American stock car racing driver. He is currently a full-time racer in the Trans-Am Series, driving the No. 3 Ford Mustang for 3GT Racing. Paul Menard won the 2024 Trans-Am Series championship in the TA class.
Menard raced full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series from 2007 to 2019. He drove for several teams, including Dale Earnhardt Inc., Yates Racing, Richard Petty Motorsports, Richard Childress Racing, and Wood Brothers Racing. He stopped racing full-time after the 2019 season. He also competed in the NASCAR Xfinity Series and won one Cup Series race (the 2011 Brickyard 400), three Xfinity Series races, and one ARCA Menards Series race.
Paul is the son of John Menard Jr., who started the Menards chain of home improvement stores.
Paul Menard's Racing Journey
Starting His Racing Career
Paul Menard began racing when he was eight years old. He won the Briggs Junior Karting Class Championship in his hometown of Eau Claire, Wisconsin. He then moved up to the Briggs Medium Class Championship.
When he was 15, Paul started ice racing. He won 10 events in the International Ice Racing Association. He still competes in these events in Wisconsin. In the summer, he raced legends cars on short tracks. He even borrowed a Late Model car for a week and finished well. Paul decided to build his own late model car and raced it often. He chose stock car racing because there wasn't a clear path to IndyCar racing in Wisconsin.
In 2000, he started racing part-time in the NASCAR Re/Max Challenge Series. He finished 13th in points. In 2001, he won a pole position and a race at Road America in Wisconsin, finishing ninth in points. In 2002, Menard raced in several series. He competed in ReMax Challenge, SCCA Trans-Am, and Grand Am Cup. He also raced in the NASCAR Southwest Tour, winning a race at Phoenix.
In 2003, Menard joined Andy Petree Racing. He raced in the NASCAR Cup Series, Busch Series, and Truck Series. He also continued to race in ARCA. In his first ARCA race, he finished fourth. Later that year, he won his first ARCA race at Talladega Superspeedway. He also had good finishes in the Busch and Truck Series races.
Racing with Dale Earnhardt, Inc. (2004–2008)
In 2004, Paul Menard started racing in the NASCAR Busch Series. He later moved to Dale Earnhardt, Inc. (DEI). He earned his first pole position at Kansas Speedway. In 2005, with Dan Stillman as his crew chief, Menard led many laps at Daytona. He got his first top-10 and top-five finish at Kentucky Speedway. He ended the season in sixth place overall.
In 2006, Menard raced part-time for DEI in the NASCAR Nextel Cup Series. He got his first top-10 finish at Atlanta Motor Speedway. On June 24, he won his first Busch Series race at his home track, the Milwaukee Mile. He held off Kevin Harvick to win. Menard finished 2006 in sixth place in the Busch Series standings. He had 16 top-10 finishes and 7 top-5 finishes.
In 2007, Menard raced his first full-time Cup season. He struggled at first, but after DEI joined with Ginn Racing, he was able to race in all the remaining events. His best finish was 12th. In the Busch Series, he had 5 top-5 finishes.
In 2008, Menard won his first Sprint Cup Series pole position at Daytona. He stayed in the top 35 in owner's points all season. At Talladega, he had his best career race, leading laps and finishing second. He ended the season 26th in points, which was his best finish at that time.
Yates Racing and Richard Petty Motorsports (2009–2010)
For the 2009 season, Menard moved to Yates Racing to drive the No. 98 Ford. He showed some improvement but often had bad luck. For example, he crashed while running well at Las Vegas. He finished 31st in the final point standings.
In 2010, his team moved to Richard Petty Motorsports. He finished 13th in the 2010 Daytona 500. He then had a fifth-place finish at Atlanta Motor Speedway, which was his second-best Cup Series finish. He also had other top-10 finishes. Even though many thought he would finish around 30th, he ended up 23rd in points.
In 2010, Menard also raced in the Rolex 24 hours at Daytona. He almost won the Nationwide Series race at Road America in his home state of Wisconsin.
Time with Richard Childress Racing (2011–2017)
Paul Menard joined Richard Childress Racing in 2011, driving the No. 27 car. On July 31, 2011, Menard won his first and only Sprint Cup race. This was the Brickyard 400 at the famous Indianapolis Motor Speedway. He made his last pit stop with 36 laps to go. He led the race late and held off Jeff Gordon to win. He was the first person in the Menard family to win at Indianapolis.
In 2012, Menard did not win any races. In 2013, he got closer to making the Chase for the Sprint Cup. However, an engine problem during the Coke Zero 400 stopped him from qualifying. In the last race of 2013, his tire exploded when he stopped in his pit box.
In 2014, Menard had 13 top-10 finishes, which was his career best. He was in a good position to make the Chase for most of the season. But two tough races at Atlanta and Richmond caused him to miss out. Menard won the Nationwide race at Michigan in June 2014. He won after Joey Logano had a tire problem with only four laps left.
In 2015, Menard won the pole position for the Sprint Unlimited race at Daytona. He led the first 7 laps but was in a big crash. He later had top-5 finishes at Auto Club and Talladega. He made the Chase for the first time in his career. He finished a career-best 14th in the standings. In August 2015, Menard won the Road America Xfinity Series race. This was a big win for him because he grew up near the track.
In the 2016 Sprint Unlimited, Menard finished third, his best result in that race. To start 2017, Menard finished fifth in the Daytona 500. He also had a ninth-place finish at Talladega and a third-place finish at the Coke Zero 400.
Wood Brothers Racing (2018–2019)
On July 26, 2017, it was announced that Paul Menard would replace Ryan Blaney in the No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing Ford starting in 2018. On June 30, 2018, Menard earned his second-ever NASCAR Cup Series Pole Award at Chicagoland Speedway.
On September 10, 2019, Paul Menard announced that he would retire from full-time racing after the 2019 season.
ThorSport Racing (2021)
On May 17, 2021, the Truck Series team ThorSport Racing announced that Menard would return to NASCAR. He raced part-time in the No. 66 truck at Circuit of the Americas. This was his first NASCAR race since retiring from full-time racing. It was also his first Truck Series race since 2007.
Paul Menard's Personal Life
Paul Menard was born in Eau Claire, Wisconsin. His father, John Menard Jr., founded the Menards home improvement stores. Paul studied business at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire. He now lives in the Charlotte, North Carolina area with his wife, Jennifer. They have a daughter, born in 2014, and a son, born in 2017. Paul Menard is a Roman Catholic. He enjoys power metal music. He does not use social media because he believes there is "so much more to life than looking at other people's lives behind a screen."
Images for kids
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Menard in his No. 15 at Homestead-Miami Speedway in 2006
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Menard leads at Talladega in 2006
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2008 NASCAR Cup Series car
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2010 Sprint Cup Series car at Charlotte Motor Speedway
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2010 Nationwide Series car at Road America
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2012 Sprint Cup car
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Fans waving to Menard, celebrating his third Xfinity Series win at Road America.
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Menard's 2018 No. 21 car
