NASCAR drivers can achieve rock-star status in the sport with their abilities on the track and personality off the track.
Occasionally, someone not a driver reaches such heights. Sherry Pollex was one of them.
The daughter of former Xfinity and Cup team owner Greg Pollex (ppc Racing), Sherry Pollex worked in the industry in various roles for several years before starting her own boutique.
The longtime girlfriend of Martin Truex Jr. until their breakup about a year ago, Pollex spent years spearheading and as the face of the main charitable events of the Martin Truex Jr. Foundation, highlighted by the Catwalk For A Cause event that featured kids recovering from cancer walking the aisle showing off clothes and their moves.
It evolved into drivers walking with the kids and became one of the biggest charity events on the NASCAR circuit. It took even a deeper meaning when Pollex was diagnosed with ovarian cancer in 2014.
As she fought and fought and fought, the NASCAR industry rallied around her and her efforts, including her Sherry Strong campaign for ovarian cancer research. There were paint schemes devoted to her causes and she gave a memorable command to start the engines two years ago at Bristol.
Pollex's story was featured by Tom Rinaldi during the 2022 Daytona 500 pre-race show.
Pollex, 44, died Sunday morning.
The tributes flowed on social media from NASCAR drivers and the industry. Among them:
Bob Pockrass covers NASCAR for FOX Sports. He has spent decades covering motorsports, including the past 30 Daytona 500s, with stints at ESPN, Sporting News, NASCAR Scene magazine and The (Daytona Beach) News-Journal. Follow him on Twitter @bobpockrass, and sign up for the FOX Sports NASCAR Newsletter with Bob Pockrass.
