Casey Atwood grew up in Antioch, Tennessee, outside of Nashville. He began racing go-karts at the age of ten and progressed to Late Model Stock racing by fifteen. In 1996, Atwood was named rookie of the year at Nashville Speedway USA. He attended John Overton High School in Nashville, but dropped out in 1999 to focus on his racing career.
Atwood debuted in the NASCAR Busch Series in 1998 at North Carolina Speedway, finishing 21st. His next attempt at Nashville Speedway saw him qualify on the pole, making him the youngest pole winner in NASCAR history at the time. He led 104 laps in that race, ultimately finishing second to Mike McLaughlin. After moving to Hensley Racing in September 1998, Atwood secured another pole at Homestead, finishing the year with two poles and five top-twenty finishes in thirteen races.
In 1999, Atwood joined Brewco Motorsports, driving the No. 27 Castrol GTX Chevrolet for his first full Busch Series season. He won at the Milwaukee Mile on July 4, 1999. He also won at Dover in September, earning two pole starts and finishing thirteenth in points with two wins, five top-fives, and nine top-tens. 2000 continued Atwood’s success, with two poles and eight top-tens, resulting in an eighth-place points finish.
In 2000, Atwood made his Winston Cup debut in the No. 19 Motorola Ford for Ray Evernham at Richmond International Raceway, finishing nineteenth. He earned his first top-ten, a tenth-place finish, at Homestead later that year. In 2001, Atwood moved to Evernham Motorsports full-time in the No. 19 Dodge Dealers/UAW car, competing for Rookie of the Year honors. He won the pole at Phoenix, leading the race before a flat tire dropped him to fourteenth. At Homestead, he led with five laps remaining but was passed by Bill Elliott and Michael Waltrip, finishing third – his career-best Cup finish. Atwood finished third in the Winston Cup Rookie of the Year standings, behind Kevin Harvick and Kurt Busch, and 26th in points.
In 2002, Atwood moved to the No. 7 of Ultra Motorsports as part of an alliance with Evernham, with the team switching to Dodge. He struggled throughout the year, failing to achieve a Top 10 finish and finishing 35th in points. He was fired with two races remaining in the season, replaced by Jason Leffler and later Jimmy Spencer. Atwood drove Evernham’s No. 91 car in the final race of the year, qualifying 12th but finishing poorly. He also won an ARCA race at Pocono from the pole in an Evernham car bearing his former No. 19.
In 2003, Atwood drove Evernham’s No. 91 research and development car at Pocono Raceway, but retired with engine trouble. His final attempt to qualify for a Cup Series race came at the 2006 Ford 400 at Homestead, driving a Brewco-prepared Ford for Stanton Barrett, but he failed to qualify.
After his release from Evernham Motorsports, Atwood drove the No. 14 Navy Chevrolet for FitzBradshaw Racing beginning at Kentucky in June 2003. He nearly won at Richmond in September 2004, leading 83 laps before being tapped by Martin Truex Jr. with less than ten laps to go, allowing Robby Gordon to win. Atwood was released from FitzBradshaw with five races remaining in the season, after being told by owner Armando Fitz that he lacked “confidence and no aggression on the race track.”
After a three-year absence from racing, Atwood returned to competition in 2012, competing in late model racing at Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway in a car owned by Sterling Marlin.
Atwood first appeared in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series in 1996 at Nashville Speedway USA, finishing 32nd. He later drove for Bobby Hamilton Racing in three races of the 2005 Craftsman Truck Series season.
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