McKenna Haase is a sprint car racer from Des Moines, Iowa, who crashed into motorsports history in 2015 as the first woman to win a feature race at the legendary Knoxville Raceway—and she did it without growing up in a racing family.

EARLY YEARS

Born May 30, 1994, Haase grew up in a typical ball sports family in Des Moines, attending school in the small town of Carlisle, Iowa[1]. Her father, Kevin, worked as a pilot with Iowa Select Farms, while her mother, Kelly, managed the household[2]. Her older sister, Makaila, would later become an associate producer with CMT in Nashville[3]. Racing wasn’t on anyone’s radar until McKenna accidentally met a NASCAR driver and fell in love with the sport[4]. Inspired by her cousin Trenton, who started racing junior sprints at age six, she decided to start her own team—Team Haase—and dove headfirst into a world that had no idea what was about to hit it[5].

OTHER INTERESTS

When she’s not strapped into a 900-horsepower sprint car, Haase is a second-degree black belt in martial arts and Krav Maga, and she trains for American Ninja Warrior—which she actually competed on in 2019, making it past the first two obstacles in Tacoma[6][7]. She graduated as valedictorian of Carlisle High School’s class of 2015 with a 4.0 GPA and was co-president of her class[8]. At Drake University, she studied business and finance, served as president of the Drake Investment Club, and showed off her prowess in financial business economics and asset analysis—skills that would prove essential when running her own race team[9][10]. In 2019, she moved to Indianapolis to continue racing, and in 2021, after a life-changing car accident, she purchased a mobile coffee trailer and launched Stop 11 Coffee Co., landing a business spot at Indianapolis Motor Speedway during the Indy 500[11][12]. In March 2024, she married NFL player Zavier Scott at the Indiana Roof Ballroom in a celebration that mixed football, racing, and Broadway flair[13][14].

EARLY SUCCESS

At 19, Haase was already competing in the 305 sprint car class at Knoxville Raceway and turning heads as a rising star[15]. Her first car won the very first race they entered together, and went on to rack up 29 wins, three championships, and one national title before she moved up the ranks[16]. But the moment that etched her name into the history books came in May 2015, when she won a sprint car feature race at Knoxville Raceway—becoming the first female ever to do so at the iconic Iowa track[17]. She wasn’t just breaking barriers; she was lapping them.

NOTABLE ACHIEVEMENTS

• 2015: First female to win a feature race at Knoxville Raceway[18].
• 2015: Graduated as valedictorian of Carlisle High School with a 4.0 GPA[19].
• 2019: Competed on American Ninja Warrior in Tacoma[20].
• 2021: Launched Stop 11 Coffee Co., a mobile coffee business[21].
• 2022: Competed in 23 sprint car races[22].
• 2024: Secured 12-race deal with Interstate Batteries, coming full circle after selling their batteries as a teenager in Carlisle[23].
• 2024: Announced career shift from dirt sprint cars to pavement late model stock cars[24].
• 2024: Married NFL player Zavier Scott[25].

INSPIRATIONS

Haase credits her accidental meeting with a NASCAR driver for sparking her love of racing, and her cousin Trenton—who started racing at six years old—for showing her it was possible[26][27]. She also launched Compass Racing Development LLC, her own youth driver development program, to help other kids get the opportunities she fought to create for herself[28].

REPUTATION

Known for her grit, business savvy, and refusal to back down, Haase has earned respect not just for being a woman in a male-dominated sport, but for being damn good at what she does. She’s worked as team owner, driver, and mechanic—doing whatever it took to make her dream come true[29]. Her nickname, “Sassy Haase,” fits the 5’4″ powerhouse who describes race car driving as “like riding a bull—just trying to control something that is kind of uncontrollable”[30][31]. She’s survived violent crashes, including a terrifying flip during the Knoxville Nationals that left her hospitalized with a collapsed lung and pneumothorax, yet she walked away and kept going[32][33]. Her family remains her backbone: her father leads the pit crew, her mother manages merchandise, and her sister produces videos for her social media[34].

FUTURE GOALS/PLANS

After years dominating dirt tracks in sprint cars, Haase announced a major career shift: she’s moving to pavement racing in late model stock cars[35]. With backing from Kevin Harvick, she’s set to compete in the 602 Late Model NASCAR Weekly Racing Series division at Harvick’s Kern Raceway in Bakersfield, California[36]. The change marks a bold new chapter for a racer who’s never been afraid to rewrite the playbook.

REFERENCES

[1] How I Got Here with McKenna Haase – JeffGluck.com
[2][3][34] Driven – dsm magazine
[4][26] Brake Barriers: McKenna Haase – Her Next Play
[5][27] Creatively Driven Movers & Makers: McKenna Haase
[6] McKenna Haase on American Ninja Warrior – Delta Dental of Iowa
[7][20][30] McKenna Haase | Sasukepedia Wiki – Fandom
[8][19] McKenna Haase is Powered by Pork – Iowa Select Farms
[9] McKenna Haase Gets 12 Races With Interstate – SPEED SPORT
[10] McKenna Haase | Intellifluence
[11][12][21] Sprint car racer’s mobile coffee shop lands business at IMS during Indy 500
[13] McKenna & Zavier’s Wedding at The Indiana Roof Ballroom
[14][25] Zavier Scott & McKenna Haase Chasing Football & Racing Dreams Together
[15] Driver of the Week: McKenna Haase – YouTube
[16][28] Breaking Down Barriers, Setting Records, and Winning Big!, with McKenna Haase
[17][18] The Future Is Wide Open for McKenna Haase, Kid Racer – dat winning
[22] McKenna Haase – Sprint Car Ratings – Driver Results
[23] McKenna Haase’s Sprint Car Career Comes Full Circle with Interstate Batteries
[24][35] McKenna Haase Announces Big Change In Her Racing Plans
[29] Grit and gumption: Sprint car racer worked as team owner and mechanic – WRTV
[31] Sprint Car’s McKenna Haase Driven to Finish the Race! – CBN
[32] McKenna Haase Recovering After Violent Sprint-Car Crash
[33] McKenna Haase Provides Latest Update After Knoxville Nationals Crash
[36] NASCAR’s next woman driver has door opened by Kevin Harvick