Todd Souza (born December 13, 1964) is an American professional stock car racing driver who competes part-time in the ARCA Menards Series West, driving the No. 3 Toyota for his own team, Central Coast Racing. He has also previously driven in what is now the NASCAR Xfinity Series, making two starts in 2007, and part-time in what is now the ARCA Menards Series East.

Todd Souza
Souza at Sonoma Raceway in 2024
Born (1964-12-13) December 13, 1964 (age 59)
Watsonville, California
NASCAR Xfinity Series career
2 races run over 2 years
2007 position117th
Best finish117th (2007)
First race2007 Telcel-Motorola Mexico 200 (Mexico City)
Last race2007 Arizona Travel 200 (Phoenix)
Wins Top tens Poles
0 0 0
ARCA Menards Series career
5 races run over 4 years
ARCA no., teamNo. 3 (Central Coast Racing)
Best finish57th (2023)
First race2021 General Tire 150 (Phoenix)
Last race2024 General Tire 150 (Phoenix)
Wins Top tens Poles
0 2 0
ARCA Menards Series East career
3 races run over 3 years
Best finish51st (2006)
First race2005 Burnham Hydronics 200 (Lime Rock)
Last race2015 Bully Hill Vineyards 125 (Watkins Glen)
Wins Top tens Poles
0 0 0
ARCA Menards Series West career
130 races run over 17 years
ARCA West no., teamNo. 3 (Central Coast Racing)
Best finish4th (2022)
First race2006 Blue Lizard Australian Suncream 200 (Sonoma)
Last race2024 NAPA Auto Parts 150 (Kern County)
First win2008 NASCAR Camping World Series 125 (Tooele)
Wins Top tens Poles
1 74 0
Statistics current as of October 23, 2024.

Racing career

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Souza's No. 13 car at Sonoma in 2017
 
Souza's No. 13 car at Sonoma Raceway in 2023.
 
Souza's No. 3 car at Sonoma Raceway in 2024

He attempted to make his debut in the NASCAR Busch Series (now the Xfinity Series) in 2005 at the series' inaugural race at the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez road course in Mexico City. Fielding his own No. 97 Chevrolet, Souza failed to qualify. He returned later that year at the other road course on the schedule, Watkins Glen, and did not qualify again. After not entering any races in 2006, Souza returned to the Busch Series in 2007, again at Mexico City, but now using the No. 13, his West Series car number. Unlike two years earlier, he made the field this time. After finishing a solid 23rd in his debut, he attempted one other race that year, Phoenix in November, where he successfully qualified for the race but crashed out and finished 40th. That race is his last start in the series to date.

Souza has competed in NASCAR's West Series since 2006. He has one career win in the series, coming at Miller Motorsports Park in Utah in 2008.[1] He completed his first full-time season in 2017 before scaling back to part-time for the 2018 season.[2]

Souza's 2019 season was highlighted by two top-three finishes: a third-place run at Colorado National Speedway (his first podium in two years)[3] and a runner-up finish at Meridian Speedway.[4] He also made headlines at Gateway after on-track contact with Hailie Deegan, calling her "spoiled and rotten" and deeming her move "disrespectful."[5]

Souza's crew chief is Michael Muñoz, who has worked with him since the late 2000s.[6]

On April 14, 2022, Souza stated in an interview for the ARCA website that he might only run part-time in the West Series in 2023 in a new second car for his own team with someone else replacing him in his No. 13 car full-time.[7] Although Souza did return for another full season in 2023, which he confirmed would be his final season as a driver,[8] he and his team did debut a second part-time car, the No. 3, at Shasta with him driving that car and Tyler Reif driving his No. 13 car in that race.[9]

On January 3, 2024, it was announced that Reif will run full-time in the No. 13 car in 2024, with Souza returning to the series part-time in the No. 3 car.[10]

Motorsports career results

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NASCAR

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(key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. Italics – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)

Busch Series

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NASCAR Busch 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 33 34 35 NBSC Pts Ref
2005 Central Coast Racing 97 Chevy DAY CAL MXC
DNQ
LVS ATL NSH BRI TEX PHO TAL DAR RCH CLT DOV NSH KEN MLW DAY CHI NHA PPR GTY IRP GLN
DNQ
MCH BRI CAL RCH DOV KAN CLT MEM TEX PHO HOM N/A 0 [11]
2007 Central Coast Racing 13 Chevy DAY CAL MXC
23
LVS ATL BRI NSH TEX PHO TAL RCH DAR CLT DOV NSH KEN MLW NHA DAY CHI GTY IRP CGV GLN MCH BRI CAL RCH DOV KAN CLT MEM TEX PHO
40
HOM 117th 137 [12]

K&N Pro Series East

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NASCAR K&N Pro Series East results
Year Team No. Make 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 NKNPSEC Pts Ref
2005 Central Coast Racing 13 Chevy STA HOL ERI NHA WFD ADI STA DUB OXF NHA DOV LRP
16
TMP 54th 115 [13]
2006 GRE STA HOL TMP ERI NHA ADI WFD NHA DOV LRP
16
51st 115 [14]
2010 Central Coast Racing 13 Chevy GRE SBO IOW
DNQ
MAR NHA LRP LEE GRE NHA DOV N/A 0 [15]
2015 Central Coast Racing 13 Toyota NSM GRE BRI IOW BGS LGY COL NHA IOW GLN
20
MOT VIR RCH DOV 56th 24 [16]

ARCA Menards Series

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(key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. Italics – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led. ** – All laps led.)

ARCA Menards 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 AMSC Pts Ref
2021 Central Coast Racing 13 Ford DAY PHO
8
TAL KAN TOL CLT MOH POC ELK BLN IOW WIN GLN MCH ISF MLW DSF BRI SLM KAN 81st 36 [17]
2022 DAY PHO
12
TAL KAN CLT IOW BLN ELK MOH POC IRP MCH GLN ISF MLW DSF KAN BRI SLM TOL 88th 32 [18]
2023 DAY PHO
11
TAL KAN CLT BLN ELK MOH
7
IOW POC MCH IRP GLN ISF MLW DSF KAN BRI SLM TOL 57th 70 [19]
2024 3 Toyota DAY PHO
19
TAL DOV KAN CLT IOW MOH
Wth
BLN IRP SLM ELK MCH ISF MLW DSF GLN BRI KAN TOL 97th 25 [20]

ARCA Menards Series West

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ARCA Menards Series West results
Year Team No. Make 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 AMSW Pts Ref
2006 Central Coast Racing 13 Chevy PHO PHO
DNQ
S99 IRW SON
6
DCS IRW
12
EVG S99 CAL
17
CTS AMP 26th 414 [21]
2007 CTS PHO
7
AMP ELK IOW CNS SON
14
DCS IRW MMP
15
EVG CSR
18
AMP 25th 499 [22]
2008 AAS PHO CTS IOW CNS SON
35
IRW DCS EVG MMP
1
IRW AMP
25
AAS
4
23rd 491 [23]
2009 CTS AAS PHO
12
MAD IOW DCS SON
6
IRW PIR
8
MMP
7
CNS IOW AAS 21st 570 [24]
2010 AAS
10
IOW
DNQ
DCS
7
SON
6
IRW
28
PIR
13
MRP
10
CNS
8
MMP
12
AAS
21
9th 1496 [25]
Toyota PHO
8
PHO
14
2011 PHO
16
AAS MMP IOW LVS 32nd 472 [26]
Chevy SON
10
IRW EVG PIR
23
CNS MRP SPO AAS PHO
13
2014 Central Coast Racing 13 Chevy PHO IRW S99 IOW KCR SON
11
SLS CNS IOW EVG KCR MMP
12
AAS PHO 37th 65 [27]
2015 Toyota KCR IRW
25
TUS
16
IOW SHA PHO
17
26th 84 [28]
Ford SON
34
SLS IOW EVG CNS MER AAS
2016 Toyota IRW
24
KCR TUS OSS CNS SON
16
SLS IOW EVG DCS MMP
11
MMP
5
MER AAS 22nd 120 [29]
2017 TUS
22
KCR
10
IRW
11
IRW
10
SPO
12
OSS
3
CNS
10
SON
8
EVG
8
DCS
8
MER
4
AAS
11
KCR
13
6th 468 [30]
3 IOW
18
2018 13 KCR
22
TUS
10
TUS
14
OSS
8
CNS
12
SON
19
DCS
Wth
IOW EVG
12
GTW LVS
18
MER AAS KCR
9
10th 272 [31]
2019 LVS
5
IRW
11
TUS
8
TUS
16
CNS
3
SON
27
DCS
7
IOW
16
EVG
6
GTW
10
MER
2
AAS
5
KCR
5
PHO
9
6th 486 [32]
2020 LVS
8
MMP
6
MMP
6
IRW
7
EVG
7
DCS
11
CNS
8
LVS
5
AAS
2
KCR
7
PHO
17
6th 550 [33]
2021 Ford PHO
8
SON
5
PHO
16
7th 410 [34]
Toyota IRW
7
CNS
7
IRW
7
PIR
17
LVS
16
AAS
4
2022 Ford PHO
12
IRW
9
KCR
6
IRW
10
EVG
5
AAS
4
LVS
10
PHO
5
4th 563 [35]
Toyota PIR
3
SON
8
PIR
2
2023 Ford PHO
11
IRW
11
KCR
9
PIR
22
SON
8
IRW
4
6th 503 [36]
3 SHA
10
EVG
10
AAS
5
LVS
7
MAD
2
PHO
26
2024 Toyota PHO
19
KER
9
PIR
22
SON
29
IRW
10
IRW
7
SHA
7
TRI
4
MAD
11
AAS
Wth
KER
12
PHO
14
9th 390 [37]

* Season still in progress

References

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  1. ^ Coon, John (August 3, 2008). "Souza seizes fortuitous moment to finally win". Deseret News. Retrieved October 27, 2019.
  2. ^ Segal, Davey (October 10, 2018). "Todd Souza Looking Towards The Future in K&N Pro Series". NASCAR Home Tracks. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved October 27, 2019.
  3. ^ Southers, Tim (June 9, 2019). "Hailie Deegan wins K&N West race in wild finish". Motorsport.com. Motorsport Network. Retrieved October 27, 2019.
  4. ^ "Kraus Gets Another in Meridian K&N West Run". SpeedSport. September 29, 2019. Retrieved October 27, 2019.
  5. ^ Segal, Davey (August 28, 2019). "Hailie Deegan, Todd Souza Trade Barbs Following Gateway". NASCAR Home Tracks. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved October 27, 2019.
  6. ^ Segal, Davey (July 10, 2019). "Michael Munoz Living His Dream: "I've Always Wanted To Be A Crew Chief"". NASCAR Home Tracks. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved October 27, 2019.
  7. ^ Fenwick, Adam (April 14, 2022). "Todd Souza believes milestone 100th West Series start can result in victory at Kern County". ARCARacing.com. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved July 10, 2023.
  8. ^ "Todd Souza Retiring from Driving After 2023". Frontstretch. 11 July 2023. Retrieved October 2, 2023.
  9. ^ "Tyler Reif joins Central Coast Cabinets Racing for West Series race at Shasta Speedway". ARCARacing.com. July 10, 2023.
  10. ^ Branscum, Benjamine (February 1, 2024). "Tyler Reif, Todd Souza, And Central Coast Racing Return For Full-Time Racing In The ARCA Menards Series West". TobyChristie.com. Retrieved February 6, 2024.
  11. ^ "Todd Souza – 2005 NASCAR Busch Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved October 27, 2019.
  12. ^ "Todd Souza – 2007 NASCAR Busch Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved October 27, 2019.
  13. ^ "Todd Souza – 2005 NASCAR Busch North Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved October 28, 2019.
  14. ^ "Todd Souza – 2006 NASCAR Busch East Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved October 28, 2019.
  15. ^ "Todd Souza – 2010 NASCAR K&N Pro Series East Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved October 28, 2019.
  16. ^ "Todd Souza – 2015 NASCAR K&N Pro Series East Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved October 28, 2019.
  17. ^ "Todd Souza – 2021 ARCA Menards Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved March 14, 2021.
  18. ^ "Todd Souza – 2022 ARCA Menards Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved March 12, 2022.
  19. ^ "Todd Souza – 2023 ARCA Menards Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved March 12, 2023.
  20. ^ "Todd Souza – 2024 ARCA Menards Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved March 8, 2024.
  21. ^ "Todd Souza – 2006 NASCAR AutoZone West Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved October 30, 2019.
  22. ^ "Todd Souza – 2007 NASCAR West Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved October 30, 2019.
  23. ^ "Todd Souza – 2008 NASCAR Camping World West Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved October 30, 2019.
  24. ^ "Todd Souza – 2009 NASCAR Camping World West Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved October 30, 2019.
  25. ^ "Todd Souza – 2010 NASCAR K&N Pro Series West Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved October 30, 2019.
  26. ^ "Todd Souza – 2011 NASCAR K&N Pro Series West Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved October 30, 2019.
  27. ^ "Todd Souza – 2014 NASCAR K&N Pro Series West Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved October 30, 2019.
  28. ^ "Todd Souza – 2015 NASCAR K&N Pro Series West Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved October 30, 2019.
  29. ^ "Todd Souza – 2016 NASCAR K&N Pro Series West Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved October 30, 2019.
  30. ^ "Todd Souza – 2017 NASCAR K&N Pro Series West Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved October 30, 2019.
  31. ^ "Todd Souza – 2018 NASCAR K&N Pro Series West Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved October 30, 2019.
  32. ^ "Todd Souza – 2019 NASCAR K&N Pro Series West Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved October 30, 2019.
  33. ^ "Todd Souza – 2020 ARCA Menards Series West Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved November 7, 2020.
  34. ^ "Todd Souza – 2021 ARCA Menards Series West Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved November 7, 2021.
  35. ^ "Todd Souza – 2022 ARCA Menards Series West Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved November 19, 2022.
  36. ^ "Todd Souza – 2023 ARCA Menards Series West Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved March 12, 2023.
  37. ^ "Todd Souza – 2024 ARCA Menards Series West Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved March 8, 2024.
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