A Legacy Watermelon Farmer Turned NASCAR Cup Race Winner

NASCAR drivers celebrate their Cup Series victories in a wide variety of ways.

Alan Kulwicki did the Polish Victory Lap in 1988, doing a backward lap around the track. Carl Edwards had his infamous backflip. Dale Jarrett and his crew were the first to kiss the bricks on the start/finish line at the Brickyard 400 in 1999. Alex Bowman couldn’t see through the smoke of his burnouts, finding himself and his car stuck on the soggy infield at Chicagoland Speedway.

Ross Chastain is the latest driver to snag his first Cup Series win after a thrilling overtime finish at the Circuit of the Americas, edging past Bowman and A.J. Allmendinger in the final turns.

And how did he celebrate? He paid homage to the business that got him where he is today—agriculture. Ross’s family owns a watermelon farm, JDI Farms, in South Florida, and he and his brother, Chad, are eighth-generation watermelon farmers. After his victories in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series and Xfinity Series, he famously celebrated in a way of honoring that farm. The Florida native has traveled with a watermelon to every race, waiting for the time to come. And last Sunday, Chastain finally got to smash the watermelon after snagging his and Trackhouse Racing’s first Cup Series victory.

“It’s been a grind … and I don’t feel like I’m the most talented race car driver. But when I’m on track, I am the best and I believe that so that’s been a work in progress over 11 years in the sport now. It didn’t click naturally for me, and I had to learn and adapt and keep evolving with the sport.”

The following questions and answers have been edited for brevity and clarity.

Sports Illustrated: What emotions and thoughts were going through your mind on that last lap? It was kind of chaotic.

Ross Chastain: Incredibly, way more exciting than I ever wanted it to be. When I got by Tyler Reddick, I felt pretty good that whole lap, and I knew A.J. got through to second pretty quick. We took the wide and I was like, O.K., we have a pretty good little lead here. Just don’t mess up and they won’t get here. Like, We’re gonna be O.K. And I drove into turn 12 on the final lap. And I had the whole back stretch to think about it and I just under-drove turn 12. And A.J. maximized his turn 12 and got there; he got to my bumper and through 13 and 14. I did O.K.; I ran wide. I kind of gave him room and then I protected in the 15 because I knew that was gonna be his next opportunity, and he did what he had to do. He laid the bumper to me, and I got loose and slid out wide and almost went into the rocks out towards the tire barrier and missed the rocks by a few feet. And I couldn’t believe it. I thought our race was over for the win. 

I reemerged, and I was within a car link though. And I was like, ‘Oh, we still have a shot.’ I had no idea that Alex Bowman was behind me going into the carousel in 16. And I get bumped. I’m just focused on A.J., just maximizing my carousel, and I get bumped. I look in the rearview camera and I’m like, Where did the 48 come from? And he turns underneath me and I’m behind A.J. now, and Alex drives by both of us on the inside. And I was like, Alex is gonna win the race. Something happened with A.J., and I got to his bumper in the middle of the carousel, bumped him and then that messed him up even more. So we left the carousel just locked together. 

He checked up early in the 19, and I didn’t. I wanted to push him into the corner harder than he wanted to go and move him out. I never intended to push him into the rocks or into Alex. I honestly didn’t realize Alex was that far out there. In the moment, looking back, I should have known, but you know, unfortunately A.J. hit Alex, spun around and got stuck in the rocks. Instead of finishing second like I had hoped, he finished in the 30s. So that’s unfortunate, not how I dreamed it up. But we won the race. We came off turn 20 and had a lot of excitement obviously after that.

SI: Have you been bringing a watermelon to each race? Or is that just kind of something you happened to have with you this weekend?

RC: We’ve had it. The ag industry is why I was able to get into the sport. Coming in, people don’t know you and other sponsors already in the sport are with race teams. They just don’t know you. Coming in, you have to be supported by people that know you, and that was the ag industry for me. So really, thanking them and using this platform to talk about agriculture, and a rising tide raises all ships. Reminding people and telling people that the part of the population that’s in charge of feeding this world is very small, and they’re not here to do anything but give you the best product whether it’s produce, whether it’s meat, whether it’s whatever for this world. They’re here to feed the world. Watermelons aren’t an everyday staple item you have to eat, but we’re proud to be a small part of giving people something healthy to eat. It’s humbling that I get to talk about ag at this level and hopefully deter some of that misinformation that’s out there.

SI: Was it one of yours or your brother’s watermelons that you got to smash? Or did you have to go with a grocery-store-bought one or a farmers’ market?

RC: It was just from a grocery store. Our hauler driver, Roy, he took the responsibility when I got into the 42 car. We have a lot of the same group on the 1 as was on the 42. He has one every week. He’s got a little foam carrying case that it sits in, and we walk by it in the lounge from the front of the hauler. And it’s there to see and there to remind people what it’s for. It’s there for the purpose of winning—that’s the goal. So I’m proud that it is a natural fit and it ties back. My granddad just gets so excited whenever I hold it up and talk about watermelons because you just don’t know who that reaches. If one more watermelon is sold because I smashed it and ate a piece, made somebody else in the world want to go buy one—we’re doing our job, and we’re selling more watermelons.

Stephen Spillman/AP

SI: Who is Ross Chastain?

RC: A watermelon farmer from Florida. That’s more what I resonate with than NASCAR driver. I still don’t this week, don’t see myself as a Cup winner. Having won in all three series now is absolutely incredible. And yeah, I really can’t believe it. When people ask me what I do that don’t know me—I’m a watermelon farmer, and that’s it.

SI: How would your 10-year-old self react to where you are now, both on the racing side but also with being a watermelon farmer and continuing on the family legacy?

RC: I wouldn’t know what to think. I was not racing at 10 years old. I started when I was 12, almost 13. He wouldn’t even know whether to believe it or not, or if it was just a joke. So there was no ambition to get into NASCAR until I was 18 years old, and that was after I’d raced from 12 to 18, and then the ambition came to racing in NASCAR.

SI: What is your prerace ritual?

RC: Eat. So I kind of go in cycles of what I eat. Last year, it was a lot of just salad with chicken and a light vinaigrette dressing. Kind of got off that kick, and this year it’s more chicken and rice. My teammate, Daniel Suárez, got me on that, and just plain chicken, plain rice and no seasoning, no nothing. It’s made me feel good in the car and feel full but not feel heavy. Honestly in doing all of our prerace stuff, talking to sponsors and partners, fans signing stuff, team meetings, the most important thing is sleeping the night before if you want to start the day. Really my race day starts with getting to sleep the night before and then what I eat the day of the race. You can’t get out of the car so you gotta be careful.

SI: What is a show that you are currently binge-watching or would highly recommend to someone?

RC: I would encourage people to watch NASCAR, first of all. That’s a given. Drive to Survive, the F1 show. I’m watching Bubba Wallace’s Race, the Netflix series right now. That’s pretty enlightening for me with knowing the guy and racing against him and seeing some behind-the-scenes stuff that I’ve never known about or heard him talk about has been cool. And then Downfall: The Case Against Boeing. I thought that was really interesting and unfortunate, but it just goes to show that mistakes and negligence can happen in the world.

SI: What is your happy place outside of the car?

RC: Home alone if I’m here in Morrisville. I’m not that much of a people person actually. I socialize and I see friends, but the perfect scenario—I get done at the race shop and go home and nobody’s around. Other than that, though, the farm, just being back home.

SI: Do you and your brother do the farm together or do you have your own individual one that you go to during the offseason or when you get a chance?

RC: My dad and brother run their farm—JDI Farms is our family farm. I’m not involved day-to-day, off chasing this racing. That’s them, and my brother comes and spots for me here and there. But yeah, it’s them, and my job is to help promote and sell the watermelons and they’re the farmers, truth be told.