Trevor Bayne was born in Knoxville, Tennessee in February 1991. He began racing go-karts at the age of five, continuing for eight years and recording more than 300 feature wins and eighteen State and Track Championships.
In 2003, Bayne moved to the Allison Legacy Series, becoming the youngest top rookie. The following year, he became the series’ National Champion, the youngest person ever to win the title. During his two years in the series, he won fourteen races, earned nineteen pole positions, and recorded thirty top-five finishes in only 41 starts. In 2005, at fifteen years old, Bayne moved to the USAR Hooters Pro Cup Series Southern Division, where he received the highest rookie honors.
In 2008, Bayne signed a contract with Dale Earnhardt, Inc. under their driver development program, racing in the NASCAR Camping World East Series. He recorded one win, six top-fives, and seven top-ten finishes, finishing fourth in point standings. One year later, he recorded Sunoco Rookie of the Race honors after participating in the Toyota All-Star Showdown at Irwindale Speedway. Also in 2009, he began racing in the Nationwide Series for Michael Waltrip Racing. After about two years with the team, he moved to Roush Fenway Racing at the end of the season and began racing in the Sprint Cup Series for Wood Brothers Racing.
In 2010, Bayne moved to the Sprint Cup Series and raced for the Wood Brothers Racing team in the Texas 500, starting 28th and finishing seventeenth. He returned to the Wood Brothers in 2011 for a limited schedule, culminating in his Daytona 500 win. For the 2012, 2013, and 2014 seasons, Bayne returned to the No. 21 for a limited schedule.
Bayne’s victory in the 2011 Daytona 500 made him the youngest winner in the race’s history. Despite the win, he finished 40th the following week at Phoenix. Later in 2011, Bayne was hospitalized for a spider bite, and subsequently for five weeks with an illness initially thought to be Lyme disease, but later diagnosed as multiple sclerosis. During this period, his Nationwide and Cup Series rides were filled by other drivers.
In 2015, Bayne was involved in a massive crash at the GEICO 500, blaming “dirty air” for causing him to lose control. At Dover later that year, he was fined $20,000 for violating a race procedure implemented after the 2014 Kevin Ward Jr. accident.
Bayne is currently semi-retired from full-time racing. After departing Roush Fenway Racing at the end of 2018, he and his family returned to Tennessee, where they opened Mahalo Coffee Roasters in Knoxville. He sold the coffee shop at the end of 2022.
Bayne has competed in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, making his debut in 2020 with Niece Motorsports. In 2023, he drove for Rackley W.A.R. at Homestead–Miami Speedway. He returned to the Truck Series in 2025, driving for Tricon Garage at Darlington Raceway, where he scored a top-five finish. He also continues to race a 602 Crate Late Model on a part-time basis for his own team, shared with his younger brother Trey Bayne, in the American Crate All-Star Series presented by PPM.
Bayne won the Allison Legacy Series National Championship in 2004, becoming the youngest person to ever win the title. He is also the youngest winner of the Daytona 500. He won the ARCA Racing Series race at Pocono Raceway in 2015.
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