Nunes began his career in East County and is now a title contender in the Mazda MX-5 Cup
But he has spent much of his 19 years patterning his dreams off the early career of the seven-time NASCAR champion turned IndyCar driver.“He’s been a mentor to me without him knowing it. My career thus far sort of parallels his. And my goal is where he is now, IndyCars.”Johnson’s career started just over four decades ago in junior motocross. He graduated to short-course off-road racing, eventually becoming a stock car icon before moving to IndyCars last year.
He also made a move into four-wheel vehicles before he was a teenager and was racing Modified Karts in the professional Lucas Oil short-course off-road series at the age of 15. “They met while doing a water ski show at Sea World,” said Chris. “Not only did I get my love of racing from them, they helped me develop on the professional end of the sport.”
Nunes didn’t know it at the time, but there were about 3,000 amateur drivers across the country annually seeking a berth in the Mazda program.“Once they had the 30 candidates selected, I had to do an interview and show them a business plan,” said Nunes. “I was then selected to be one of seven finalists. I won a $75,000 scholarship for the 2021 season.”
Nunes would be tied for the points lead after the season’s first three of seven, two-day events had he not drawn a penalty in his last start — dropping him from second to 17th in the race and down to sixth in the standings.