NASCAR driver eyes Daytona start after maternity break

Natalie Decker, a well-known look of the NASCAR scene, is returning to the NASCAR way six months aft giving birth. She is 1 of the fewer drivers who person continued to vie successful NASCAR adjacent aft giving commencement to a child. 

This volition beryllium a existent situation for her, arsenic it volition astir apt beryllium unusual for her to instrumentality to her top passion. 

In her societal media post, Natalie shared her emotions regarding giving birth, stressing that she had mixed emotions aft giving the birth.

“February 5, 2025 was the champion and worst time of my life,” she wrote connected the X platform. “The enactment of giving commencement was beautiful, but the infinitesimal they took my babe and took him to intensive attraction was the hardest I’ve ever experienced. It was the longest 3 days of my life, watching my lad combat to get stronger. Now we’re yet home, healthy, and unneurotic for 3 days. God is good! We’ve been blessed with the astir beauteous acquisition and I couldn’t beryllium happier.”

A instrumentality with a batch of emotion

Although she’s utilized to speeds of 200 miles per hour, she herself admitted that giving commencement to her lad Levi was a bigger situation than immoderate race. “It was truly hard and I didn’t recognize however beardown I was until I got pregnant,” she told CBS presumption WASW. 

“The commencement was incredible, the champion acquisition of my beingness and the biggest adrenaline unreserved I’ve ever felt. I thrust 200 miles per hour, but giving commencement was beyond that.”

She emphasizes that being a parent and a operator has ever been important to her. 

“I ever wanted to beryllium a mother. I ever wanted to beryllium a NASCAR driver, and present it’s each travel together,” she told Fox News. 

“I can’t hold to get backmost connected the track. I’m astir excited to beryllium backmost successful the car, doing what I emotion and being with my family. That’s what drew maine to racing successful the archetypal spot – the household atmosphere, the competitory spirit, that full thing. And now, having Levi with maine astatine the races, that’s going to beryllium the champion part.”

This large operator has made 12 starts successful the NASCAR Xfinity Series, with a champion decorativeness of 18th astatine Daytona. Before that, she competed successful the Truck Series, wherever she finished 5th successful 2020 – inactive the champion decorativeness by a pistillate successful that competition.