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At 14 years old, Brooklyn Newman is doing what comes naturally in her family — going fast on dirt — and the early results suggest she’s more than just a famous last name behind the wheel.

EARLY YEARS

Born November 18, 2010, Brooklyn Sage Newman arrived into what might be the most motorsports-saturated household in American racing [12]. Her father is Ryan Newman, the NASCAR veteran who won the 50th Daytona 500 and the 2013 Brickyard 400. Her paternal grandfather helped build South Bend Motor Speedway in Indiana and later worked as a mechanic and spotter during Ryan’s most significant NASCAR victories [22]. Racing wasn’t something Brooklyn had to discover — it was the water she swam in from birth.

Her formal introduction to driving began at age four, when Ryan started teaching her by putting her on his lap in the truck and letting her steer in the family driveway [5]. Around age six, she was operating her father’s old quarter-midget independently around the parking area at her paternal grandparents’ home in New Smyrna Beach, Florida [5]. Her first trip to the North Carolina Quarter-Midget Association Track in Salisbury, North Carolina, didn’t go without incident. Ryan later explained the specific obstacle: “My dad showed her how to drive the race track, but he never showed her how to get on the race track.” [5] A procedural gap, not a talent one.

Her mother Krissie Newman — known in NASCAR circles for charitable work that has focused heavily on animal welfare, including Rescue Ranch — rounds out a household that balances competition with a strong sense of community and land [22]. Brooklyn’s younger sister Ashlyn, born July 16, 2012, has opted out of competitive racing but stays close to the operation, helping prep Brooklyn’s cars and occasionally pushing the vehicle to the staging area [5][22]. The family is based in North Carolina, and Ryan has described using time on the family farm to give both daughters an appreciation for the natural world [22].

Brooklyn began competing in earnest after her father nearly died on the final lap of the 2020 Daytona 500 — a crash that sent his car airborne, flipping and erupting in flames in front of a national audience [2][5][22]. He survived with non-life-threatening injuries. Less than two years later, Brooklyn entered competitive racing. She started in the Cadet class, progressed through Beginner Box Stock and Box Stock, and eventually reached the Junior Wing category [5].

OTHER INTERESTS

The available record on Brooklyn Newman outside of racing is thin — which is not unusual for a 14-year-old who hasn’t yet been subject to the full scrutiny of sports media. Her father has spoken about giving both daughters a grounding in the outdoors through their time on the family farm in North Carolina, pointing out wildlife and the rhythms of the natural world [22]. Beyond that, documented personal interests are not on the public record. What is clear is that her commitment to racing is genuine rather than performed: Ryan Newman has noted that “she’s always enjoyed being at the race track” and that he can see what she wants [5].

EARLY SUCCESS

The clearest early indicator that Brooklyn had more than lineage going for her came during her debut in the Junior Wing category at Millbridge Speedway in Salisbury, North Carolina. She started the eight-lap heat race from pole position and led flag to flag [5]. That performance put her on pole for the subsequent 20-lap A Feature — a clean sweep of the qualifying process in her first outing at that level [5]. It was a tidy piece of business for a young driver getting her first look at a new class.

She continued to build from there. By the 2024 season, Brooklyn had moved up to Crate Modified vehicles and competed in 22 feature races, recording one win, 14 top-five finishes, and 19 top-ten finishes [2]. Finishing in the top ten in better than 86 percent of her races is the kind of consistency that gets attention. In May 2025, she competed in a 50-lap feature at Orange County Speedway and finished fourth — a result that demonstrated she could hold her ground in longer-format events against a broader competitive field [2].

As of 2026, she races the #52 car across three classes at North Carolina dirt tracks: Outlaw Dirt Intermediate, Winged Micro, and 602 Modified [1]. Her regular venues include Millbridge Speedway and Woodleaf Raceway Park (both one-eighth mile) and Mountain Creek Speedway in Catawba (one-sixth mile), with additional competition at Hickory Motor Speedway, Orange County Speedway, and Florence Motor Speedway [1][2][5]. Competing across multiple vehicle configurations simultaneously isn’t nothing — it requires adaptability that a lot of young drivers don’t have to develop this early.

The family has formalized her identity within the sport under the “Rocketwoman” brand — a nod to Ryan Newman’s own “Rocket Man” legacy that has since been reframed as something belonging to Brooklyn herself [2]. The brand is backed by at least one key commercial sponsor, indicating that outside parties are taking her career development seriously [2]. Ryan remains her primary coach and technical mentor, and the car she raced in Junior Wing is the same physical chassis she started with, upgraded with a different engine as she moved up [5].

NOTABLE ACHIEVEMENTS

• 2022–2023: Advanced through Cadet, Beginner Box Stock, Box Stock, and Junior Wing categories at North Carolina dirt tracks including Millbridge Speedway, Woodleaf Raceway Park, and Mountain Creek Speedway [5].
• 2023: Won her Junior Wing debut heat race at Millbridge Speedway from pole position, leading all eight laps, and earned pole position for the 20-lap A Feature [5].
• 2024: Recorded one win, 14 top-five finishes, and 19 top-ten finishes across 22 feature races in the Crate Modified class [2].
• 2025: Finished fourth in a 50-lap feature race at Orange County Speedway [2].
• 2025–2026: Competing in three simultaneous classes — Outlaw Dirt Intermediate, Winged Micro, and 602 Modified — driving the #52 car [1].
• 2026: Competed in the Zach Brewer Memorial 602 Modified event at Florence Motor Speedway [10].

INSPIRATIONS

The documented record doesn’t include any statements from Brooklyn about the drivers or races that shaped her competitive outlook — no cited heroes, no interviews where she names the moment she knew she wanted to race. What the record does show is that her primary influence has been immediate and in-person: a father who drove professionally at NASCAR’s highest level, a grandfather who built tracks and worked in pits, and a family that treated racing as a normal fact of life rather than an aspiration [5][22]. When your earliest driving lesson happens on your dad’s lap in the family driveway, the inspiration and the mentorship are the same thing.

REPUTATION

Within the North Carolina dirt track community, Brooklyn has established herself as a consistent competitor with demonstrable speed — not just a famous name filling a seat. Her 2024 numbers (19 top-tens in 22 starts) reflect a driver who shows up and performs, not just participates [2]. Coverage of her career in outlets including AutoWeek and EssentiallySports has been straightforwardly positive, framed around her father’s mentorship and her statistical output rather than novelty [2][5]. The “Rocketwoman” brand development suggests the family is building a public identity for her that is meant to carry weight on its own terms, separate from the Ryan Newman association — though that association is impossible to ignore and frankly not worth pretending away [2].

There is no documented controversy in her record. She races clean, finishes well, and operates across multiple vehicle classes at an age when most young competitors are still figuring out a single one. Her sister’s choice not to race — despite having the same access to resources and mentorship — is its own quiet statement about the fact that Brooklyn’s presence in motorsports reflects genuine personal drive [5][22].

FUTURE GOALS/PLANS

Documented plans for 2025 and 2026 show a continued schedule across North Carolina venues including Millbridge Speedway on July 23 and August 13, Hickory Motor Speedway on July 26 in the 602 Modified class, and further 602 Modified competition at Florence Motor Speedway [1][10]. At 14, she is several years from NASCAR national series eligibility, and no public statements from Brooklyn herself about long-term career ambitions are on record. The investment in the “Rocketwoman” brand, the multi-class competition structure, and the continued hands-on mentorship from her father all point toward a serious, long-range approach to career development — but the stated destination, in Brooklyn’s own words, hasn’t been documented yet [1][2].

References:

Brooklyn Newman Racing — Official Site
EssentiallySports — Ryan Newman Announces Daughter’s Racing Ventures as Rocketwoman Legacy Begins
YouTube — Brooklyn Newman Racing Video
Getty Images — Brooklyn Sage Newman Photos
AutoWeek — Ryan Newman Says Daughter Brooklyn Has It in Her Genes
RugbyPass — Brooklyn Newman
YouTube — Brooklyn Newman Racing Video
ResultsMX — Racing Results
YouTube — Brooklyn Newman Racing Video
YouTube — Brooklyn Newman 602 Modified Florence Motor Speedway
Steve Harvey FM Nation — Ryan Newman’s Children: Ages and Everything to Know
Skirts and Scuffs — Ryan and Krissie Newman Welcome First Child
YouTube — Brooklyn Newman Racing Video
ePower Steering — Brooklyn Newman Profile
AutoWeek — 2025 Day-by-Day Major Racing Schedules
YouTube — Brooklyn Newman Racing Video
Byrne Dairy Stores — Ryan Newman’s Kids: Ages and More
Los Angeles Times — Ryan Newman Feature
The Times — Sitemap Reference
Ryan Newman Official Site — Sponsors
YouTube — Ryan Newman SMART Modified Tour Orange County Speedway
Heavy.com — Ryan Newman: Family, Kids, Wife
My Racing Career — Track Reference
Road Results — Team Reference
American Motorcyclist — 2026 FTGC Racing Weekly Schedule
YouTube Shorts — Brooklyn Newman Racing