USAC News: Toyota signs Jade Avedisian as development driver
Toyota Racing Development (TRD) announced a multi-year commitment to Jade Avedisian, which will see the California-native continue her development with dirt and pavement opportunities as a part of the Toyota Racing family.
For the 2024 motorsports season, Avedisian will compete in USAC National Midget and XTREME National Midget races with Keith Kunz Motorsports (KKM), while also running the complete Toyota GR Cup schedule with Nitro Motorsports to begin her development on pavement and give her experience in road course racing. TRD partner, ExxonMobil, will be featured throughout the season on Avedisian’s efforts, with additional sponsorship to be announced at a later date.
“I’m honored to continue my motorsports career with Toyota Racing and their driver development program in the years ahead,” said Avedisian. “Everyone at Toyota has quickly become family and have provided me with all the tools necessary to achieve my dreams in racing. This commitment means so much, and I’m beyond grateful to the entire team at TRD for believing in me!”
The 17-year-old made history throughout 2023 as part of the KKM team. Avedisian started the season by becoming the first woman to finish on the podium on a Chili Bowl preliminary night before claiming Rookie of the Year honors as the only rookie – of more than 80 – to qualify for the main event. More recently, Avedisian became the first woman to earn a national dirt midget championship, winning the 2023 Xtreme Outlaw Midget title on the strength of five victories and 16 top-five finishes in 29 events.
“Toyota and TRD remain dedicated to finding and developing the future talent of our sport,” said Tyler Gibbs, GM, TRD. “Jade has earned her place in our development program with her tremendous talent, work ethic and bright future. We are thrilled to make this commitment to Jade and her family and look forward to continuing to watch her succeed at the highest levels in years to come.”
Avedisian is a part of a celebrated Toyota Driver Development (TD2) program that includes graduates Christopher Bell and John Hunter Nemechek, who will compete in the NASCAR Cup Series next season. Further information on the 2024 TD2 lineup will come at a later date.
