Since 2002, Leilani Munter has been pursuing a full-time career of NASCAR racing. While she had been volunteering and doing work before, she began in earnest with her work at the Richard Petty Driving Experience at Lowe's Motor Speedway. In addition, she also spent her free time gathering together used equipment, testing late models at various short tracks and poking around garages getting tips from the pros.A year later, Leilani landed the chance of a lifetime signing a multi-year driver development contract with Team Bristol Motorsports, home of the 54 Busch Series race team. After an impressive test where Leilani turned lap times just 2/10 of a second off the pole position in her first test with Team Bristol, Leilani debuted in the NASCAR Dodge Weekly Series with a ninth place finish in the Coor's Light 150 at South Boston Speedway.
Leilani is also active outside of the driver's seat. She also has been a crew member on a variety of race teams including late models, Southwest Tour, and Busch Series. She studied racecar set up and geometry with former Winston Cup crew chief Larry McReynolds and highly respected race instructor Mike Loescher.
Earlier, after graduation with a Bachelor of Science in biology from the University of California in San Diego, Leilani was hired as a photo double for actress Catherine Zeta-Jones in the Academy Award-winning movie Traffic and America's Sweethearts. She worked as a stunt double on Scorpion King, and as a band-aide on Almost Famous. Leilani's experience in front of the camera and love for racing came together when she began working as a special correspondent for NASCAR.com, the official site of NASCAR.
Although a relative newcomer to the sport, Leilani's efforts have not been overlooked. She's been named "America's Sexiest Race Car Driver" by Men's Journal, "The Hottest Woman in NASCAR" by FHM and honored as a "Woman We Love," by Esquire. She has appeared on ESPN, the cover of Charlotte Magazine and Corvette Quarterly, as well as appearing on NBC Sports, FOX Sports, Livin' Large, and Spike TV.
You can share Leilani's love for cars and racing on DIY Network's Auto Primer.
To find out more about Leilani, click here.
