Christian Rose has taken an unconventional path to the top levels of American motorsports. The 27-year-old racer was born and raised in the small town of Martinsburg, West Virginia, growing up on his family’s farm in the state’s eastern panhandle region.

While the rural countryside may seem an unlikely launching pad for a professional racing career, Rose was a kid consumed with a passion for going fast. He started attending races at Daytona International Speedway at just 10 years old, even sneaking into the garage areas to meet his racing idols.

That dream of one day turning laps at Daytona’s hallowed 2.5-mile high-banked oval motivated Rose through a successful collegiate baseball career at the University of Maryland Eastern Shore, where he starred on the diamond while earning a degree in hospitality management.

But the lure of racing proved too strong to ignore. Shortly after graduating, Rose made the pivotal decision to move to Mooresville, North Carolina in late 2018 to pursue driving professionally. He landed a big break with the opportunity to prepare for his debut under the guidance of veteran NASCAR team owners like B.J. McLeod and Mike Skinner.

Rose has wasted no time working his way up the ranks, here’s our conversation.

1. You grew up on a family farm in Martinsburg, WV – how did being raised in that small town, rural environment shape your values and work ethic that has helped you succeed in racing? Just being raised to work hard and learn the value of getting what you give came a lot from where I grew up. My mom, and Dad really instilled in me that you can do anything you want in life if you’re willing to put the work in. I lost my dad to Alzheimer’s this past December, so that’s given a little more fuel to the fire to win a championship this year.

2. Can you tell us a bit about your background and how you got into racing, growing up in West Virginia? I got into racing by some how picking up a 24 remote my mom had in the house and turning on a race one day and connecting the remote to Jeff Gordon. I became a huge fan of Jeff’s and spent a lot of time going to races to get his autograph. No one in my family has a racing back ground , so when I got done playing baseball I was looking into being a full time pit crew over the wall guy. BJ McLeod asked me why not try to drive? I thought I was too old, and he gave me an opportunity to jump in a late model in 2018, and I’ve never looked back since.

3. Your baseball career at the University of Maryland Eastern Shore was very accomplished. What skills or mindset did you take from being an elite college athlete that translates to being a successful racecar driver? I’d say baseball teaches you a lot about life. If you fail 7 out of 10 times you hit .300 and make the Hall of Fame. So it really teaches you that things at times are not going to go your way, and it’s what you do about it that defines the outcome. I was fortunate to work with a lot of great coaches, who I still stay in contact with today. The biggest thing they taught me was, to control what you can control, and that mind set has really translated to the race track.

4. Mooresville, NC has become your home base for racing, but I’m sure you still get back to Martinsburg semi-regularly. How do you like to spend your time when you’re back in your West Virginia hometown? I still get back to Martinsburg a decent amount through out the year, I really just enjoy spending time with my family, and friends. I try to go to Habenero Mexican Grill (Martinsburg, WV), and a few local spots when in town, and just enjoy being away from track and in the greatest state in America.

5. With West Virginia Tourism as your primary sponsor, what are some of your favorite spots in the state that you enjoy or would recommend fans/visitors check out? It’s been an absolute honor to represent the state of West Virginia, I tell people all the time that getting to represent our state means more to me than chasing checker flags. Our state has so much to offer it’s hard to pin point one exact place to see. I’m a personal fan of Harper’s Ferry, and the state park that has so much history. The New River Gorge is really a great experience for the entire family, also getting to Morgantown whether your a Mountaineers fan or not to see a game is one of the best college gameday experiences anyone can witness.

6. What has been the biggest adjustment going from the smaller teams you raced for previously to a larger, more established ARCA operation like AM Racing? I’d say the level of accountability and strive to work on my craft. AM Racing has really given me all the tools I need to be the best driver possible. I get to jump in the modified with Austin Wayne Self on my off weekends, get to take in a ton of information from drivers like Brett Moffitt, and HD (Hailie Deegan), and have a team surrounding me that truly has the same values, beliefs, and goals! It’s been a bless from God to get to work with all the great people at AM Racing that believe in me as a driver.

7. Between your racing career and being inducted into UMD Eastern Shore’s athletic hall of fame, you’ve accomplished a lot of firsts. Does being a trailblazer from West Virginia in motorsports motivate you? It absolutely does, I’m not sure if a WV native has won on any of NASCAR’s top 3 series or won a championship in the ARCA Series but it would mean the world to me to bring those accomplishments home to WV. Our state has a ton of great teams to pull for, but I want to be an outlet for our state on a professional level for our neighbors to pull for every weekend.

8. As the current points leader, what has been the key to your success so far this ARCA season? A particular mindset, preparation, or driving style? The biggest thing for me is finishing races. If you look back to last year and this year, we run all the laps, and learn. You can not learn from the side line, and can’t make a car better that gets torn up. I had to learn to finish races, then run in the top 10, and now run in the top 5. I know if we keep doing what we are doing the wins will come.

9. What are your future racing ambitions beyond ARCA – is the NASCAR Cup Series the ultimate goal? The goals for me is to be a Cup Series Champion. I believe if you’re not doing this to win at the highest level you’re probably doing it for the wrong reasons. I’m older, and a bit behind most drivers but I believe my calling is higher than most. I’ve only run one full time season in my short career, and in year 2 we are leading the points and clicking off top 5s. I believe the wins will come and the rest will be in Gods hands!

10. You mentioned previously that you used to sneak into the garage at Daytona as a kid to meet your racing idols. Which drivers did you most look up to back then, and what lessons did those interactions teach you? The drivers I looked up to the most were Jeff Gordon and Kyle Larson after. Jeff and Kyle always signed for me, and those interactions made my entire summer as a kid growing up. So I learned that there are kids out there like I was that look up to drivers, and to always make the time to sign and take a picture. The fans spend their hard earned money to come watch us put a show on. The least we can do is take a few seconds to make their entire weekend!

11. West Virginia has such a passionate fanbase for racing. What has the support and interest been like from WV race fans as you’ve climbed the ranks the last few seasons? I have had an overwhelming fan base from WV. Our fans are so passionate and proud to be from WV, so to have the support of so many means a ton to me. It also makes me work harder and push to bring home wins and championships for them. Without our state and fans I couldn’t do this, so to have so many pulling for us every weekend means the world to myself and my family!

12. If you could have one sponsor who or what would it be and why? I mean I already have the best sponsor a driver could ask for. Representing my state is already the biggest accomplishment of my young career, but outside of the state I’d say Marriott or Olive Garden. I worked for both in college and coming out of college. It would be really cool to represent my old employers on the race track.

13. For young aspiring racers in WV, what advice would you give them about pursuing this career path? The best advice I can give is to give it to the lord, pray, and trust his plans, and to never give up. I can tell you there are a lot of drivers I’ve already outlasted in the sport and it’s because of determination. Finding sponsors is a huge part of it. It’s a very hard thing to be told no 1000 times but 1 yes can change your life. Always do the best you can, take advantage of your opportunity, pray and trust god, and never give up.