The Toyota-backed driver Mia Lovell has been carving out a promising path through NASCAR’s developmental series. As she continues to gain experience in the ARCA Menards Series West, the young driver remains focused on reaching her ultimate goal of making it to the NASCAR Cup Series. 

The 18-year-old entered NASCAR’s lower series with Nitro Motorsports at the beginning of the 2026 season. In seven out of 13 races, she has finished in the Top 10, including two Top 5s. Moreover, at Sonoma Raceway earlier this month, she finished second, marking her career-best result. 

In an interview with NASCAR reporter Joseph Srigley, she was asked if winning a race was always on her radar coming into her rookie year in the series.

"You know the goal is always to win, but I think this season I really wanted to focus on progress," Lovell said during the interview shared by Joseph Srigley on his X account. "I think when you're so focused on winning, it's really easy to make mistakes and want to make shortcuts, and for me that wasn't what this is all about."

She further explained that her focus is on laying the groundwork for future progress. Lovell further added,

"Like my goal is to be a NASCAR Cup Series driver, and to do that you have to build a really strong foundation, and so that's what my goal was for this year, was to just focus on learning and so that when I'm ready to win I'm going to do it with a bang.

"I mean, it's hard to say I expect this amount of wins in a season because there's so many variables that come into racing, but I am very proud of the progress and actually being able to fight for wins this early."

Before entering the ARCA Menards Series West, she competed in the Trans Am Series Presented by Pirelli West TA2 class. During her campaign in the series, she earned multiple podiums and was awarded Rookie of the Year honors. 

While her maiden victory continues to elude her in the ARCA Menards Series West, Lovell continues to lay the groundwork through podium finishes for her ultimate goal in NASCAR. 

Mia Lovell felt "proud" of herself after career-first ARCA podium at Sonoma Raceway

In the ARCA Menards Series West race at Sonoma Raceway in June, Mia Lovell secured a career-best second-place finish. The rising NASCAR junior put up a fight with her Nitro Motorsports teammate for the lead of the race before settling for second.

Post-race, while talking to Frontstretch about her run, she opened up about how this second-place finish has made her hungry for a race win.

"There were a couple of times where I could fight for the lead," said Lovell (via Frontstretch on YouTube). "And man, getting that taste just makes me want it more. But there's definitely a lot to be proud of today. So, I'm really happy with second.

Although she narrowly missed out on the win, that did not dampen Lovell’s spirits. In fact, it served as an encouraging sign for her journey in her stock car career.

Read more at the Daytona Racing Digest!

Written by

Chionia Libania Colaco

Edited by

Yash Kotak