Local racer signs contract with Stewart-haas NASCAR Team
Some people chase their dreams, and, through hard work, dedication and love for their game, they reach their goal. This is one of those stories!
Matt Kempf was born and raised in the San Antonio area, and he graduated from Natalia High School in 2010. Like a lot of us, he really liked racing in all forms, and he gravitated towards it by helping with pit crew duties, and by racing in local Mini-stock and Texas Pro Sedan events at San Antonio Speedway, Thunder Hill Speedway, and Corpus Christi Speedway from 2010 through 2016.
Kempf wanted much more motorsports in his life, and he was looking on the Facebook Help Wanted ads, and saw that Norm Benning had a NASCAR Truck team, and he was looking for a volunteer pit crew member. On his own time and money, in August of 2017, Kempf drove straight-through from San Antonio directly to the Bristol Motor Speedway in Tennessee to be that unpaid volunteer pit crew member. They did qualify for the Bristol Night race, but didn’t make it to the checkered flag because of mechanical gremlins, but that volunteer drive and spirit got some attention.
“Racing has always been my love”, Kempf said. “Racing is a lifestyle, and one that I want, and never want to forget. It takes drive, dedication and passion, and that’s what fuels our sport of racing. I moved to North Carolina 10-days after my Dad died to pursue my life-long dream of working in that race industry.”
From that long-distance volunteer drive to Bristol, Mike Kempf invested in two unusual schools, “Pit Instruction and Training” and “Xcaliber Pit School” in Mooresville, NC. Kempf then hooked up with the Mike Harmon Race Team to further his experiences. “When I was working for Rick Ware Racing, I was the fuel man for the No. 51 Cup car and I’d practice weekly at Stewarthaas Racing at Kannapolis, North Carolina”, Kempf said.
Now, at 30-years of age, Mike Kempf has just signed his first-year contract to be on the Stewart-haas Racing NASCAR teams, working on Cup, Xfinity, and other SHR vehicles. When asked by The Fast Lane if this was actually a full-time job, Kempf proudly said, “it sure is, Bruce, and it’s on all three top NASCAR series!” Kempf has the tough job of lifting and pouring those 12-gallon dump cans of Sunoco gasoline into the cars, and when filled full of fuel, those cans weigh in at about 100-pounds each.
SHR was formed by Tony Stewart and Gene Haas in 2009 and they switched from Chevrolets to Fords in 2017. SHR has won in each of the three NASCAR national touring divisions, joining Hendrick Motorsports, Richard Childress Racing, Joe Gibbs Racing and Roushfenway Racing as the olly teams to accomplish that feat.
This Thanksgiving is very special for Texan Matt Kempf, as he steps onto the BIG\NASCAR stage every time the green flag is waved over a Cup or Xfinity national event.