Matt DiBenedetto Bio
Matthew Guido DiBenedetto, born on July 27, 1991, is an American professional stock car racing driver. He last competed full-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driving the No. 99 Chevrolet Camaro SS for Viking Motorsports in 2025. A veteran of multiple national NASCAR touring series, DiBenedetto is recognized for his perseverance and race craft across the Craftsman Truck Series, Xfinity Series, and Cup Series.
Early Life and Background
DiBenedetto was born in Nevada City, California, to parents Sandy and Tony DiBenedetto, and was raised in nearby Grass Valley, California. He has three siblings named Austin, Katie, and Kelley, and his brother Austin serves in the United States Air Force. His father, Tony, raced an Opel Manta in SCCA and IMSA competition in the late 1970s and early 1980s, which sparked Matt’s early fascination with motorsports.
DiBenedetto first showed an interest in auto racing after receiving a Little League trophy around the age of eight, when his father noticed that he preferred watching automobile racing on television over baseball. Tony DiBenedetto soon bought his son a used kart after learning that another child on the same Little League team was already kart racing. Young DiBenedetto drove that kart to his first victory, setting the stage for a steady climb through karting and into late model competition.
He later advanced to the UARA-Stars Late Model Series, where his family sold all their racing equipment in 2007 due to financial stress. Despite that setback, DiBenedetto earned the 2007 UARA-Stars Late Model Series Rookie of the Year award. He also captured the track championship at Hickory Motor Speedway in 2004, a result that highlighted his early promise on short tracks.
Path to NASCAR
Beginning in 2008, DiBenedetto drove for the Fat Head Racing Driver Development Program in the UARA-Stars as a teammate to Darrell Wallace Jr., Brennan Poole, and team owner Jamie Yelton. His performances there attracted the attention of Joe Gibbs Racing, which gave him a path into NASCAR’s national touring divisions. He made his NASCAR Nationwide Series debut in 2009 at Memphis Motorsports Park, driving the No. 20 Pizza Ranch-sponsored Toyota for Joe Gibbs Racing.
He raced part-time in the No. 20 car for Joe Gibbs in 2010, scoring two top-ten finishes across six starts. In 2012, he joined The Motorsports Group in a start-and-park role, and the following year he drove part-time for Vision Racing in the Nationwide Series. The seat time gained during those seasons helped him build a foundation for a long career in NASCAR’s top three national series.
Matt DiBenedetto Career
Early Career (2009-2014)
DiBenedetto’s first NASCAR Xfinity Series races came with Joe Gibbs Racing in 2009 and 2010, where he showed flashes of potential on ovals and road courses. After a difficult period funding his own program, he joined The Motorsports Group midway through 2012 and ran as a start-and-park driver, then moved to Vision Racing in 2013 for additional part-time duty. In 2014, he replaced an injured Jeffrey Earnhardt at Daytona and competed in several events with The Motorsports Group, finishing a career-high 21st in Xfinity Series points that year.
DiBenedetto also competed in the ARCA Menards Series and the ARCA Menards Series East during this developmental phase. He and Joe Gibbs Racing parted ways after the 2010 Xfinity season, and he spent the next several seasons piecing together limited opportunities before earning a full-time Cup ride in 2015.
NASCAR Cup Series Breakthrough (2015-2020)
DiBenedetto moved up to the Sprint Cup Series in 2015 with BK Racing, originally splitting the No. 83 Toyota with Johnny Sauter before taking the car full-time. He returned to BK Racing in 2016 and earned his first career Cup top-ten finish with a sixth-place run in the Food City 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway, also the first top-ten for BK Racing since 2012. A late-season concussion briefly sidelined him, but he was cleared to return and finished the year behind the wheel of the No. 49 at Homestead to promote a video game partnership.
After parting ways with BK Racing in December 2016, DiBenedetto signed with Go Fas Racing to drive the No. 32 Ford for the 2017 season. He delivered two top-ten finishes that year, including a ninth-place run in the Daytona 500, and added another top-ten at the 2017 Brickyard 400. In 2018, he helped Go Fas achieve a seventh-place finish at Daytona and remained a fan favorite, building strong ties with the online Reddit NASCAR community.
He joined Leavine Family Racing in 2019 to drive the No. 95 Toyota, nearly winning the Daytona 500 in his first race with the team. Although he was released at season’s end, he earned a career-best second-place finish at the Bristol Night Race and matched several career highs. For 2020, DiBenedetto signed with Wood Brothers Racing to drive the No. 21 Ford, where he qualified for his first Cup Series Playoffs, was eliminated in the opening round, and finished a career-high 13th in the final standings with 11 top-ten finishes.
DiBenedetto returned to the Wood Brothers for 2021, his final season with the team before Harrison Burton took over the No. 21. He scored a season-best fourth-place finish at Kansas Speedway, finished 18th in points, and missed the Playoffs. He completed his Cup career without a victory, but earned a reputation as a tough, consistent competitor for underdog teams.
Craftsman Truck Series Era (2022-2023)
On January 6, 2022, Rackley W.A.R. announced that DiBenedetto would drive the No. 25 full-time in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series. In his Truck Series debut at the 2022 NextEra Energy 250 at Daytona, he dodged many wrecks en route to a tenth-place finish, the second top-ten ever for Rackley W.A.R. He followed with a sixth-place finish at Las Vegas, the team’s best result at the time, and went on to score multiple additional top-ten finishes throughout the 2022 season.
On October 1, 2022, DiBenedetto achieved his first national series victory in the Chevrolet Silverado 250 at Talladega Superspeedway. He finished the 2022 Truck Series season 13th in the standings and returned to Rackley W.A.R. for 2023. That year, he strung together six consecutive top-ten finishes starting at North Wilkesboro Speedway and qualified for the 2023 Truck Series Playoffs. He was eliminated at Kansas Speedway and departed Rackley W.A.R. after the 2023 season.
Viking Motorsports Era (2024-2025)
On March 20, 2024, it was announced that DiBenedetto would drive for Viking Motorsports for five races through the No. 38 entry with RSS Racing, starting at Richmond Raceway. He posted a string of consistent finishes, including a top-ten run at Talladega, and was later confirmed as the team’s primary driver for the remainder of the 2024 Xfinity Series season. He added two more top-ten finishes at Iowa and Michigan, capped by a seventh-place run in the Cabo Wabo 250, and finished the year 26th in points.
On December 13, 2024, Viking Motorsports announced a switch from Ford to Chevrolet and officially ended its partnership with RSS Racing. DiBenedetto was confirmed to return to the team full-time in the newly renumbered No. 99 Chevrolet Camaro SS for 2025. He opened the season with back-to-back top-fifteens at Daytona and Atlanta, and later scored a career-best Xfinity Series result of fifth at the 2025 Ag-Pro 300 at Talladega. On October 13, 2025, Viking Motorsports announced that it had parted ways with DiBenedetto effective immediately, with Connor Mosack taking over the ride for the remainder of the season.
Notable Races and Milestones
DiBenedetto’s signature moments include a race-high 49 laps led at the 2019 Daytona 500, a career-best second-place finish at the 2019 Bristol Night Race, and a near-miss at the 2020 Talladega fall race where he lost the lead to Denny Hamlin by twenty-three one-thousandths of a second. His first national series victory came in dramatic fashion in the 2022 Chevrolet Silverado 250 at Talladega, and his career-best Xfinity Series result of fifth came at the 2025 Ag-Pro 300 at the same track.
Matt DiBenedetto Career Wins
Craftsman Truck Series Highlights
DiBenedetto earned his first national series victory in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series on October 1, 2022, winning the Chevrolet Silverado 250 at Talladega Superspeedway. He made the 2023 Truck Series Playoffs with Rackley W.A.R. and posted multiple top-ten finishes, including a streak of six in a row, before his departure from the team after that season.
Other Wins and Performances
Earlier in his career, DiBenedetto captured the track championship at Hickory Motor Speedway in 2004 and was named the 2007 UARA-Stars Late Model Series Rookie of the Year. He has also posted notable top-ten finishes across the Xfinity Series, including a career-best fifth at the 2025 Ag-Pro 300 at Talladega and seventh-place runs at Iowa and Michigan in 2024.
Matt DiBenedetto Family
Family Background and Racing Lineage
DiBenedetto was raised in Grass Valley, California, by his parents Sandy and Tony DiBenedetto. His father, Tony, raced an Opel Manta in SCCA and IMSA events in the late 1970s and early 1980s, laying the foundation for Matt’s racing career. DiBenedetto has three siblings: Austin, who serves in the United States Air Force, and sisters Katie and Kelley.
Personal Life
In 2015, DiBenedetto married his childhood friend Taylor Carswell, and the couple currently resides in Hickory, North Carolina. They own a dog named Brian. In 2021, he was baptized by fellow Cup Series driver Michael McDowell.
2025 Season Performance
DiBenedetto entered the 2025 NASCAR Xfinity Series season driving the No. 99 Chevrolet Camaro SS for Viking Motorsports full-time, marking the team’s first season with Chevrolet after switching manufacturers. He opened the year with back-to-back top-fifteens at the United Rentals 300 at Daytona and the Bennett Transportation and Logistics 250 at Atlanta, signaling a strong start to the campaign.
His best result of the season came at the Ag-Pro 300 at Talladega Superspeedway, where he finished fifth to set a new career benchmark in the Xfinity Series. He added multiple competitive runs at intermediate tracks, continuing to build momentum for a small, growing team. On October 13, 2025, Viking Motorsports announced that it had parted ways with DiBenedetto effective immediately, with Connor Mosack taking over the No. 99 for the remainder of the year.