This article needs more citations. (December 2025) |
| Nick Joanides | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Joanides in 2025 | |||||||
| Born | Nicholas Joanides (1970-06-17)June 17, 1970 Woodland Hills, California, U.S. | ||||||
| Died | December 5, 2025(2025-12-05) (aged 55) | ||||||
| NASCAR O'Reilly Auto Parts Series career | |||||||
| 0 races run over 1 year | |||||||
| Best finish | N/A (2009) | ||||||
| |||||||
| ARCA Menards Series career | |||||||
| 1 race run over 1 year | |||||||
| Best finish | 107th (2024) | ||||||
| First race | 2024 General Tire 150 (Phoenix) | ||||||
| |||||||
| ARCA Menards Series East career | |||||||
| 1 race run over 1 year | |||||||
| Best finish | 53rd (2006) | ||||||
| First race | 2006 New England 125 (Loudon) | ||||||
| |||||||
| ARCA Menards Series West career | |||||||
| 38 races run over 9 years | |||||||
| Best finish | 10th (2024) | ||||||
| First race | 2004 King Taco 200 (Fontana) | ||||||
| Last race | 2025 Star Nursery 150 (Las Vegas Bullring) | ||||||
| |||||||
| Statistics up to date as of October 11, 2025. | |||||||
Nicholas Joanides (June 17, 1970 – December 5, 2025) was an American professional stock car racing driver who last competed part-time in the ARCA Menards Series West, driving the No. 77 Toyota for Performance P–1 Motorsports. He also competed in the NASCAR Nationwide Series, ARCA Menards Series East (when it was the NASCAR Busch East Series), and the now-defunct AutoZone Elite Division Southwest & Midwest Series in the past.
Racing career
[edit]In 2009, Joanides became the first driver in the history of Toyota Speedway at Irwindale to win championships in the top two premier divisions, and he did so in the same season. 2009 saw Joanides win the NASCAR AC-Delco Super Late Model Championship, NASCAR Auto Club Late Model Championship, NASCAR Whelen All-American Series California State Championship, and the Lucas Oil Slick Mist 200 Championship. He ended up third in the NASCAR All-American Series National standings. In total, Joanides competed in 42 races and scored seventeen wins, 33 podiums, 37 top fives, and 41 top-ten finishes.[1][2]
On October 17, Joanides announced that he would be joining Rick Ware Racing for his NASCAR Nationwide Series debut at Memphis Motorsports Park on October 24, 2009.[3]
Joanides retired from full-time racing following the 2010 season. He came out of retirement late in 2015. Through the first 35 events, posted fifteen wins and 26 top-five finishes. In 2016, an engine failure in the third event of the 2016 season resulted in a 32 point loss. Joanides would go on to finish second in the final point standings, 24 points shy of the championship.[citation needed]
Joanides returned to Performance P-1 Motorsports in 2018 for a part-time schedule in NASCAR K&N Pro Series West, scoring a top-five finish at All American Speedway in Roseville, California.[4]
Joanides returned to the team in 2021 for a one-race deal in the 4th of July weekend race at Irwindale Speedway, posting the team's only top-ten finish of the season.[5]

Joanides had one scheduled start in 2022 for Performance P-1 Motorsports in the March Race at Irwindale. With no other race on his schedule, Joanides was called by team owner Lowden Motorsports late in the afternoon to fill in for their driver, who was suffering from food poisoning. Joanides arrived just before the race, with no practice, qualifying or power steering, brought home The Hard Charger award by passing the most cars in coming from last on the grid to finish eleventh.[6] On September 17, 2022, Joanides entered his first Spears SRL Pro-Late Model Series race and came away with the win. He nearly backed it up a year later, falling just short to finish second in the same event.

In 2023, Joanides competed in five of the first eight ARCA West series races for No. 77 PP1M Team. On September 25, 2023, it was announced that Joanides would drive the No. 71 Ford owned by himself, beginning at All-American Speedway, the site of his career best ARCA West Series finish.
In 2024, Joanides got up to full-time with Jan's Towing Racing. Joanides posted two top-fives and five top-ten finishes. He also won his first and only Pole Award at Irwindale Speedway on July 6.[7] Joanides would miss the final four races of the season due to health issues, but returned for the exhibition race at Irwindale Speedway in December.[8]

In 2025, Joanides made three starts for PP1M and the No. 77, getting a best finish of fourteenth at Madera Speedway.
Death
[edit]Motorsports career results
[edit]NASCAR
[edit](key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. Italics – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)
Nationwide Series
[edit]| NASCAR Nationwide 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 | NNSC | Pts | Ref |
| 2009 | Rick Ware Racing | 31 | Chevy | DAY | CAL | LVS | BRI | TEX | NSH | PHO | TAL | RCH | DAR | CLT | DOV | NSH | KEN | MLW | NHA | DAY | CHI | GTY | IRP | IOW | GLN | MCH | BRI | CGV | ATL | RCH | DOV | KAN | CAL | CLT | MEM DNQ |
TEX | PHO | HOM | N/A | 0 | [11] |
Busch East Series
[edit]| NASCAR Busch East Series results | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Team | No. | Make | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | NBESC | Pts | Ref |
| 2006 | MacDonald Motorsports | 72 | Chevy | GRE | STA | HOL | TMP | ERI | NHA 20 |
ADI | WFD | NHA | DOV | LRP | 53rd | 103 | [12] |
ARCA Menards Series
[edit](key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. Italics – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most 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 |
| 2022 | Performance P-1 Motorsports | 77 | Toyota | DAY | PHO Wth |
TAL | KAN | CLT | IOW | BLN | ELK | MOH | POC | IRP | MCH | GLN | ISF | MLW | DSF | KAN | BRI | SLM | TOL | N/A | 0 | [13] |
| 2024 | Jan's Towing Racing | 71 | Ford | DAY | PHO 26 |
TAL | DOV | KAN | CLT | IOW | MOH | BLN | IRP | SLM | ELK | MCH | ISF | MLW | DSF | |||||||
References
[edit]- ↑ "Series All-Star spotlight - Nick Joanides".
- ↑ "Joanides Wins Another Track Championship. | MidValleySports.Com". October 4, 2009.
- ↑ "Woodland Hills native Joanides takes his show Nationwide". October 24, 2009.
- ↑ "Cole Rouse Gets His Redemption at All American". October 14, 2018.
- ↑ "Jesse Love rallies at Irwindale for first West Series win of 2021". July 4, 2021.
- ↑ "ARCA West at Kern County: Teams Reactions and Analysis". April 28, 2022.
- ↑ Calloni, Josh (July 6, 2025). "Nick Joanides to Lead ARCA West Race to Green at Irwindale". Frontstretch.com. Retrieved February 26, 2025.
- ↑ Winningham, Brett (December 22, 2024). "ARCA West: Trevor Huddleston Bid Farewell to Irwindale Speedway With Exhibition Victory - Speedway Digest - Home for NASCAR News". Speedway Digest. Retrieved February 26, 2025.
- ↑ Linder, Brian (December 7, 2025). "NASCAR world rocked by death of second driver during weekend: 'Lost a great person'". PennLive.com. Retrieved December 7, 2025.
- ↑ Frost, Sam (December 6, 2025). "NASCAR hit with another crushing loss as beloved motorsports star dead at 55". the-express.com. Retrieved December 10, 2025.
- ↑ "Nick Joanides – 2009 NASCAR Nationwide Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved October 19, 2018.
- ↑ "Nick Joanides – 2006 NASCAR Busch East Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved October 19, 2018.
- ↑ "Nick Joanides – 2022 ARCA Menards Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved March 13, 2022.
- ↑ "Nick Joanides – 2024 ARCA Menards Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved March 8, 2024.
- ↑ "Nick Joanides – 2004 NASCAR West Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved October 19, 2018.
- ↑ "Nick Joanides – 2005 NASCAR West Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved October 19, 2018.
- ↑ "Nick Joanides – 2018 NASCAR K&N Pro Series West Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved October 27, 2018.
- ↑ "Nick Joanides – 2019 NASCAR K&N Pro Series West Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved March 31, 2019.
- ↑ "Nick Joanides – 2021 ARCA Menards Series West Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved July 25, 2021.
- ↑ "Nick Joanides – 2022 ARCA Menards Series West Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved March 13, 2022.
- ↑ "Nick Joanides – 2023 ARCA Menards Series West Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved April 2, 2023.
- ↑ "Nick Joanides – 2024 ARCA Menards Series West Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved March 8, 2024.
- ↑ "Nick Joanides – 2025 ARCA Menards Series West Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved July 11, 2025.
External links
[edit]- Official website
- Nick Joanides driver statistics at Racing-Reference