Is Ross Chastain related to Chad Chastain? Here's what you need to know

NASCAR: Cup Practice and Qualifying - Source: Imagn
Ross Chastain with the Busch Light Pole Award for the Go Bowling at The Glen at Watkins Glen International (Source: Imagn)

Driving the No. 1 Trackhouse Racing Team Chevrolet, Ross Chastain is known for his iconic wall-riding maneuver (dubbed 'Hail Melon') at Martinsville in 2022, pushing him to the Championship 4 that season. Chastain eventually finished second in the 2022 Cup Series, earning the title of disrupter for himself and his squad.

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Ross is the first in the Chastain family to compete as a professional race car driver. Besides being in NASCAR, the 31-year-old trailblazer is also an eight-generation watermelon farmer. Another family member who is part of the national touring series is his younger brother, Chad Chastain.

Chad made his NASCAR Xfinity Series debut for DGM Racing back in March 2023. Here's what he said at the time:

“I’m thrilled to make my NASCAR Xfinity Series debut with DGM Racing, a Florida-based race team, driving a “Protect Your Melon” Chevrolet just like I watched my brother (Ross) do for years. I have a great platform to raise awareness for safe driving, whether on the track or on the roads in the local community and being able to tie that back to our family business is an honor.”
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While Ross has accumulated over 200 race starts in the last four seasons, his brother Chad has yet to fully showcase his abilities in both the Xfinity and Craftsman Truck Series. Notably, Chad has not competed in the Craftsman Truck Series during the 2024 season.


"I probably did it on accident first," - Chad Chastain claims he did the iconic 'Hail Melon' before NASCAR Cup Series race winner Ross Chastain

4x NASCAR Cup Series race winner Ross Chastain is popular among fans for his 'Hail Melon' maneuver on the penultimate lap at Martinsville in 2022. However, in an interview prior to the Cup Series finale at Phoenix that same year, his brother Chad claimed to have executed a similar move before Ross.

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Ross executed a remarkable maneuver on the final lap of the 2022 Martinsville race, riding the wall at approximately 100 mph to secure a fifth-place finish. This daring move propelled him from 10th to fifth, securing his first-ever Championship 4 appearance.

However, Chad playfully claimed that he had first attempted the wall-riding maneuver, albeit in a 2005 NASCAR game on the Nintendo GameCube.

“I probably did it on accident first,… I probably did it just mad that he was beating me since he was always going way faster, and I probably just decided not to lift one time out of pure frustration,” he said.

Ross Chastain ultimately finished second in the 2022 Cup Series championship. In the 2024 season, he currently sits in 17th place in the driver standings with five top-five and 11 top-ten finishes in 29 races.

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Edited by Pratham K Sharma
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