Mike Joy has announced in well over a dozen different sports in his career. However, only one stands closest to his heart: stock car racing. Over two decades, NASCAR has transformed immensely. Fans went from watching low-definition, grainy footage on TV to streaming high-definition, multi-angle madness from a sea of data. Yet one thing remained constant, the voice of Joy in the broadcasting booth since 2001. What is more, the veteran goes off the booth as well.
Fox Sports’ broadcasting booth has featured many retired racers. Ranging from 4-time Cup Series champion Jeff Gordon to 2014 title winner Kevin Harvick, the track experts have enlightened us via the microphone. Yet somebody for whom broadcasting is the primary profession is taking up a reverse role as well – and not for the first time.
NASCAR’s favorite voice will now use hands
Well, Mike Joy’s love for motorsports started a long time ago. In his early professional life, the future broadcaster worked at a Firestone dealer, installing tires for $3 an hour. After that, he got his big break at Riverside Park, Massachusetts, alongside veteran announcer Ken Squier. That is what paved his way to a dazzling career in NASCAR, as people tune in to listen to his booming voice. The 2025 NASCAR Cup Series season proceeded with him in the lead through its first 14 races. Now, however, Joy has been relieved of his Fox duties since Amazon Prime, TNT, and NBC Sports will take over for the rest of the season. Yet that hardly means Joy is taking a vacation. Instead of his captivating voice, now people will get a chance to see the finesse in Joy’s hands.
The Historic Trans Am Series will be flagged off at Sonoma Raceway during the Toyota/Save Mart 350 NASCAR weekend, July 11–13. For this grand event, Mike Joy will trade in his microphone for a firesuit and will race alongside his son Scott. According to an article on Sonoma’s official website, “Joy will suit up to compete in a fully restored 1970 Chevrolet Camaro Z28, a historic car originally raced by Jerry Thompson for Tony DeLorenzo’s Owens Corning Racing Team with factory backing. Sonoma’s own Chris Drysdale will prep the car.” This is hardly the first time Mike Joy has taken the wheel. After wrapping up Fox’s coverage and handing over to Fox Network, the NASCAR broadcaster enrolled in the 2023 Trans Am event at Sonoma as well.
NASCAR’s festivities during the Sonoma weekend will kick off on Friday. On Saturday, the Historic Trans Am event will be held alongside the NASCAR Xfinity Series race. Sonoma Raceway‘s website detailed the rich heritage of the event which Mike Joy will participate in: “The Historic Trans Am Series features a remarkable collection of restored race cars from the golden era of American road racing—1966 to 1972—when names like Parnelli Jones, Dan Gurney, Mark Donohue, George Follmer, and Sam Posey ruled the track in Mustangs, Camaros, and Challengers. These iconic muscle cars will race on Friday and Saturday and remain on display for fans to enjoy on Sunday.”
Indeed, this may be a huge motivational factor for Mike Joy. The iconic broadcaster likes to get his hands dirtier than easily discernible.
Being truly dedicated to the sport
Whoever has gotten involved with NASCAR has loved it all the way. The same goes for Mike Joy. We all know him as the icon whose immortal voice guides fans across the corners of a racetrack. His love for the microphone is undeniable, yet his love for the wheel is little-known. As we learned, Joy will be racing at Sonoma. He owns a large collection of snazzy cars, like the 1960 Chevy El Camino or the 1970 Datsun 240Z. In early 2024, he was working on the ground-up restoration of an MG Midget. Yet Joy likes to limit modifications to cars as much as possible. According to him, “What’s the point of getting into a 1970 car that drives just like a 2024 car?”
Additionally, Mike Joy likes to get his hands dirty with his automobile beauties. Be it swapping out motors, replacing or upgrading transmissions, the broadcasting phenomenon likes to do it all. He considers working on cars a hobby and a form of therapy when he is away from the booth. Joy said in 2024: “Sometimes, we will part cars out, and I think my record is one MGB that we parted out that provided donor parts to over 20 different owners who were working on restoring those cars. That’s a fun part of it…There’s two keys: an understanding wife, that’s No. 1, and having a large enough garage where you can stop in the middle of a project, not have to pack everything away, and then you can return to it where you left off. That’s the other key to getting stuff done.”
Clearly, Mike Joy knows his way around the wheel. The Sonoma Raceway festivities are nearly two months away, and we have ample time to hype up Mike Joy’s racing duties.
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