Concord, NC (February 1st, 2026) – 8-time champion, asphalt, dirt, road-course racer Jaiden Reyna will pilot the number 42 Chevy Camaro for Cook Racing Technologies at select events in the ARCA Menards Series. Reyna's thirteen-year resume spans the country. From Las Vegas to Florida, Texas to Pennsylvania, he's competed against some of the best racers in the industry, amassing wins along with eight championship titles. 

2025 was a year unlike any Reyna has experienced since he was six years old. The nineteen year old is typically strapped into the cockpit of a race car, his hands gripping the soft suede of a steering wheel, a roaring engine slinging him into a corner. For the past twelve months, though, the driver has been on the other side of the windshield.  As 2024 closed out, Jaiden turned to long-time mentor, Bruce Cook, for a job at his race shop. "I was willing to do anything to be around cars. I just wanted to learn and be around good people." 
 

It was grunt work but Jaiden didn't mind. He made use of his time, effort, and focus. He studied. He saved and, like always, he hustled quietly. "I've learned a lot [by] working on the cars, working at the track. Crewing is cool, but I'm ready for my turn." 

The year may have been a brief hiatus but it was certainly no vacation. Reyna and his trainer remained faithful to an intense and demanding training regimen. "I always train like the next opportunity is coming tomorrow. We do a lot of work to keep me at my prime. I've been working with the same trainer since I was nine - when my parents realized this wasn't just a phase - that I wanted to do this professionally."

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With the 2026 season fast approaching, I asked if Jaiden feels any pressure to make a statement or a splash. "No, no pressure. I do a lot of mental work too, so no pressure. I just feel ready. One thing we've always done is kept me outside my comfort zone. I've always tried to race with people who were better or more experienced than me, and when I got really good or too comfortable we'd move to dirt or road courses, anything to keep me stretching and building new skills."  

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Despite the magnitude of the coming milestone, Jaiden appears genuinely poised and prepared. "It's a big moment, but I feel ready for it. I'm sure there'll be some nervous energy at some point, but to me that's a good thing. It means I'm doing something important, something I care about and want to perform my best at." 

Reyna recognizes what a rare opportunity it is to compete at the ARCA level and credits Cook and his parents for making the opportunity possible. "Bruce has helped me a lot over the years. I went to him for a lot of notes and coaching when I started running late model stocks at fourteen. He's just somebody I know I can trust. When I knew I was going to have to sit a season out to work on putting funding together for ARCA races, I went straight to him. I wanted to work for Bruce. Then working with the team and getting to know everyone, seeing how they really cared about the drivers and the quality of equipment they put on the track, I knew I wanted to race for them too." 

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Cook and the CRT crew is eager to get things going with Reyna behind the wheel, noting Reyna's eagerness to learn and his hunger to compete. "He's a student of the sport, that's for sure. Even when he's working, he's taking notes, studying the competition, searching for speed. We're happy to have him with us at this level.  I've seen him in late models and he impressed me with his performance and his professionalism at a young age," says Cook.

 

Shot calling atop the 42's pit box will be two-time ARCA-West-Champion crew chief Travis Sharpe who describes Jaiden as possessing the promise of a young Jesse Love. The duo's debut race will be at the ARCA West season-opener at Kevin Harvick's Kern Raceway in Bakersfield, California on February 28th. 

 

As is the case for so many drivers, Jaiden predicts funding to be the only thing to hold him back. "There's so much big money in the sport now. Everything's gotten so much more expensive. It definitely makes it harder." Reyna admits, acknowledging the hardship most competitors face today. 

The necessity for financial backing, be it organizational or familial, is just one cold truth in the world of motorsports, but Jaiden remains optimistic about his Persistence one day meeting Opportunity. "In this sport, you need a little bit of luck sometimes, but you also have to work hard and stay prepared for the moment things fall in place." Reyna may very well be standing at the precipice of such a moment.