Deb Williams, Senior Writer
An award winning motorsports journalist, Deb Williams has covered auto racing for more than 30 years. She began her career covering weekly short-track races in Asheville, N.C., while a student at East Tennessee State University and continued after becoming the sports editor at the newspaper in Waynesville, N.C. Upon joining United Press International in Raleigh, N.C., as a general assignment reporter, she began covering NASCAR's top two series and continued to do so after being named UPI's Charlotte, N.C., bureau manager. After leaving UPI, she spent 18 years with the publication NASCAR Winston Cup Scene, serving as its editor for 10 years. Her numerous honors include the Henry T. McLemore Award, the Russ Catlin Award and the George Cunningham National Motorsports Press Association Writer of the Year award. She has received NMPA awards for columns, news, features and magazine stories. She has written three books. Her most recent, “The Evolution of NASCAR, A Historical Collection, was released in November 2010. Williams has taught the Evolution of Southern Motorsports at Appalachian State University, and has been interviewed for historical motorsports shows that have aired on ESPN and SPEED. She resides in Concord, N.C.
Articles by Deb Williams
Tanner Gray, the 2018 NHRA Pro Stock champion, will drive cars and trucks that make turns in 2020.
By Deb Williams | Senior WriterRacinToday.com
CONCORD, N.C. – Tanner Gray moves into NASCAR’s Camping World Truck Series next year after only one full season in K&N Pro Series East and he readily admits that he faces a “steep […]
Hailie Deegan will drive Fords next season. (File photo by Loren Orr/Getty Images for NASCAR)
By Deb Williams | Senior WriterRacinToday.com
CONCORD, N.C. – For two years, Hailie Deegan was considered one of Toyota’s rising NASCAR stars with her history-making performances in the K&N Pro Series West, but that changed Tuesday when her move to Ford was […]
Jimmie Johnson talked about his decision to retire after the 2020 season on Thursday.
By Deb Williams | Senior WriterRacinToday.com
CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Jimmie Johnson said Thursday he felt he needed to make a decision regarding retirement from full-time NASCAR competition by year’s end, but it wasn’t until October that he knew 2020 would be his final […]
Sprint car fans from all over are packing the Charlotte Motor Speedway short track to watch the dirt fly this weekend. (RacinToday/HHP photos by Jim Fluharty)
By Deb Williams | Senior WriterRacinToday.com
CONCORD. N.C. – Nearly two years ago the Ulrich family set their sights on The Dirt Track at Charlotte and the 2019 Can-Am World Finals, […]
William Byron showed major maturity during Sunday’s Cup race at Martinsville Speedway. (RacinToday/HHP photo by Harold Hinson)
By Deb Williams | Senior WriterRacinToday.com
MARTINSVILLE, Va. – Martin Truex Jr. seemed untouchable in Sunday’s First Data 500 at Martinsville Speedway until the race’s latter stages when young William Byron drove into the picture.
Truex held on for the narrow […]
Joey Logano and Denny Hamlin got into a brawl after Sunday’s Cup race at Martinsville. (RacinToday/HHP photo by Garry Eller)
By Deb Williams | Senior WriterRacinToday.com
MARTINSVILLE, Va. – Altercations at Martinsville Speedway are nothing new, almost expected, but the one Sunday night after the First Data 500 wasn’t the first between Joey Logano and former Joe […]
Kyle Busch at Martinsville Speedway. (RacinToday/HHP photo by Harold Hinson)
By Deb Williams | Senior WriterRacinToday.com
MARTINSVILLE, Va. – Talladega and Charlotte Motor Speedway’s The ROVAL are often touted as the NASCAR Cup playoffs’ wildcard races, but there are those who believe Martinsville Speedway is lurking in the shadows as one, too.
Kyle Busch, this year’s regular season […]
Martin Truex Jr. claimed a spot in the Cup Series’ final four by winning at Martinsville on Sunday. (RacinToday/HHP photo by Andrew Coppley)
By Deb Williams | Senior WriterRacinToday.com
MARTINSVILLE, Va. – Martin Truex Jr. produced a textbook performance on how to conquer Martinsville Speedway in Sunday’s First Data 500, leading 464 of the 500 laps to […]
Todd Gilliland celebrates his victory in Saturday’s Truck Series race at Martinsville. (Photo courtesy of NASCAR)
By Deb Williams | Senior WriterRacinToday.com
MARTINSVILLE, Va. – For Todd Gilliland, his last 1 ½ years at Kyle Busch Motorsports has been excruciating as time-after-time victory has slipped through his fingers.
On Saturday at Martinsville Speedway in the NASCAR Hall of […]
Engine failures have the attention of Hendrick Motorsports’ Chase Elliott. (RacinToday/HHP photo by Harold Hinson)
By Deb Williams | Senior WriterRacinToday.com
MARTINSVILLE, Va. – Chase Elliott said Saturday at Martinsville Speedway that he didn’t believe the engine problem his Chevrolet suffered five laps into the first practice at the short track was related to the Dover […]
