Shelby Blackstock facts for kids

Shelby Steven McEntire Blackstock was born on February 23, 1990. He is an American race car driver. Shelby is known for his exciting career in motorsports. He is the son of famous country music singer Reba McEntire. His father is Narvel Blackstock. Shelby also has an older half-brother, Brandon. Brandon was married to singer Kelly Clarkson. Shelby has two older half-sisters named Shawna and Chassidy.

Shelby's Racing Journey

Shelby Blackstock started his racing journey in college. He attended a special racing school called Bob Bondurant race school. He loved it so much that he decided to leave college. He wanted to become a full-time race car driver.

Early Races and Achievements

Shelby first competed in the Skip Barber series in 2010 and 2011. In 2011, he made his professional racing debut. He drove a Ford Mustang in the Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge. That same year, he finished fifth in the Skip Barber National Championship.

In 2012, Shelby joined the U.S. F2000 National Championship. He raced with a team called Andretti Autosport. He finished eighth overall in points. His best race finish was fourth place at Road America.

Moving Up in Racing

Shelby continued with Andretti Autosport in 2013. He moved up to the Pro Mazda Championship. This was a big year for him! He finished third in the championship points. He also won a race at Canadian Tire Motorsports Park. He stood on the podium (finished in the top three) six times in 16 races. In 2014, he stayed in Pro Mazda with Andretti. He finished fourth in points. He still had six podium finishes, even though he didn't win a race that year.

Indy Lights Series

In 2015, Shelby signed up to race in the Indy Lights series. He raced for Andretti Autosport and Belardi Auto Racing. He competed in 50 Indy Lights races over three seasons. He finished on the podium twice. Both times were at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. His best overall finish in points was eighth place in 2016. He was a very consistent driver. He rarely had to drop out of a race.

Shelby raced in the first weekend of the 2018 Indy Lights season. He joined Team Pelfrey. He finished second in one race. This was his best finish ever in Indy Lights. After this, he stopped racing in the Indy Lights series.

Touring Car Racing

In 2019, Shelby changed to touring car racing. He competed in the IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge. He finished fourth in points in the TCR class. He drove a Honda Civic in these races. In 2020, he raced in the GT World Challenge America. He drove an Acura NSX. He and his co-driver, Trent Hindman, won the Silver Cup. They were the only team in their class to race in every event.