Lavar Scott wants to become a name everyone in the NASCAR garage knows. Fortunately, the 22-year-old New Jersey native has a great mentor: NASCAR Hall of Famer Mark Martin.
Recently, Martin, who doesn’t just issue compliments out of the blue, said âcan drive. Heâs got skills that are unbelievable.â And there is a reason why Martin truly believes in Scott’s potential.
Scott, a NASCAR Drive for Diversity graduate, signed with Alpha Prime Racing this year after making a pair of O’Reilly Auto Parts Series starts in 2025. He is now piloting the No. 45 Chevrolet full-time in the series, and he sits 25th in the standings through 15 events.
“It’s been amazing,” Scott said of his rookie campaign. “Definitely a lot of ups and downs and some bad races. But we’re racing every single week, so you’re going to have some good races and bad races. In the grand scheme of things, it’s been amazing. Traveling the country racing cars has never been a job. It’s been awesome and I have a great team around me, and we’re keeping each other confident. We know when we have good races that our speed is good and we can contend.”
Lavar Scott’s NASCAR journey
Scott’s mother and grandfather were both racers when he and his older brother were growing up. But they didn’t drive around ovals like he does today. They were drag racers, focused on going as fast as possible in a straight line.
“It was a true racing family,” Scott said. “I have an older brother who is three years older than me and he started racing. Once he started racing, I knew I had to do it, and I wanted to compete against my brother because I’m competitive. You always want to beat your older brother. My grandpop built me a car, and my brother tested it out the year before me and won some races. I got into it, won my first race, and that was the start of it.
“Once I won that first race, I knew this is what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. I chased that feeling of racing and winning. There aren’t many feelings that can equate standing on the top of your car and celebrating with your team, family, and friends. I chase that feeling 24/7.”
Eventually, Scott worked his way into the world of stock car racing. He caught the eye of the NASCAR Drive for Diversity program, led by Max Siegel. From there, he set sail on a new career path. From legends cars to late models, he won his way through the rankings until he made it to the ARCA Menards Series.
Scott performed well after making his ARCA debut in 2023. From there-on-out, he was a force to be reckoned with. While he did not win in ARCA, he developed a reputation for consistently running at the front of the pack. He finished runner-up in the standings in both 2024 and 2025, making a path to compete in the O’Reilly Series.
Scott said: “It’s definitely been a long journey with a lot of on-track practice over the years has prepared me for where I am now.”
Competing For Alpha Prime Racing
Tommy Joe Martins and Caesar Bacarella teamed up to form Alpha Prime Racing, and the team has slowly but surely grown over the years. With Brennan Poole as the veteran force of the unaffiliated team, Scott has a great teammate to learn from.
“We’re learning so much,” Scott said. “This year has been a crazy tough thing to deal with. Wherever we’ve been, something happens, like Watkins Glen I made a mistake. It’s been a good year of learning and going through things. Everything is so easy when you have a great team around you and have great guys to support you. You have good days and bad days.
“What everybody is telling me is that no matter what, you have to go racing again this weekend. It’s a true blessing to go out there every single week to have a chance to get better and get my name out there more. I need to evolve more with my team. It’s an honor to be in the situation that I’m in. I always dreamt of being a full-time NASCAR driver, and it’s pretty remarkable that it’s actually happening.”
Scott is also developing quite the sponsorship portfolio, highlighted by a multi-race deal with Sunoco, which has rarely sponsored a driver while serving as NASCAR’s official fuel.
“Sunoco is a Philadelphia company and I’m from south Jersey,” Scott said. “It’s really natural and organic, and they’re awesome people. They’ve been amazing and very cool to work with. They love how the car came out, how the suits came out, and the stuff we’ve been doing on social media. If you told me two years ago that Sunoco is going to be one of my primary sponsors for the year, I wouldn’t have believed you. It’s one of the things that wake you up in the morning to continue to work hard, because I have brands like that on the side of my car that I have to do well for.”
As Scott continues to hone in on his craft with Alpha Prime Racing, he is already thinking about his next steps. Whether he continue with Alpha Prime Racing and have the team grow around him or jump ship to a larger organization, he’s just thankful to have an opportunity.
“I always want to continue growing, but growing is a process,” Scott said. “Growing takes time, and I’m not in a rush. I feel like we’re doing something big and good at Alpha Prime. We have Jusan Hamilton, and he’s the man who’s making things happen. I don’t know what next year or the next two years look like for me. If I’m at Alpha Prime, that’s a great thing for me.”
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