NASCAR driver, Victoria’s Secret model Toni Breidinger inspires next generation of female racers

Raising Cane’s presented the Women’s Sports Foundation with a $100,000 check in honor of both International Women’s Day and Toni Breidinger, who is a WSF Athlete Ambassador. (Courtesy Photo)

PHOENIX Hot on the (w)heels of Raising Cane’s newly launched campaign featuring NASCAR’s first Arab American female driver Toni Breidinger, the racecar driver and Victoria’s Secret model took it back to where it all started in honor of International Women’s Day. Thursday morning, Toni and her twin sister Annie – a woman in STEM who’s a car engineer for OEM – hosted 13 aspiring young female drivers at Phoenix Kart Racing Association (PKRA), where the duo raced annually as kids and Toni won her first Go Kart race. All with a shared passion for speed, Toni, Annie and the lucky racers spent the morning zipping around the track, eating Box Combos, and sharing personal stories and experiences.

To kick off the event, Toni and Annie conducted a Q&A session and discussed how they got to where they are in their respective careers – both crushing stereotypes and inspiring women around the world as they lead the pack in the male-dominated industries of NASCAR and engineering. The girls also asked about how Toni handled setbacks throughout her career, who she admired most in the sport, and what the future held for her.

Before any rubber met the road, Raising Cane’s presented the Women’s Sports Foundation (WSF) with a $100,000 check in honor of both International Women’s Day and Toni, who is a WSF Athlete Ambassador. Founded by sports icon and social justice pioneer Billie Jean King in 1974, WSF is one of the first organizations to recognize the powerful connection between sports access, equity and society. Celebrating its 50th anniversary this year, the Foundation exists to enable girls and women to reach their potential in sport and life. Toni, like many impactful women athletes, has worked with WSF for years to help pave the way for the next generation.

The event is part of a larger campaign from Raising Cane’s, which features Toni and is focused on speed and accuracy – two things that Toni excels at. As a lifelong fan of Raising Cane’s and good friend of Raising Cane’s owner Todd Graves, the partnership between Toni and the brand was poised for “pole position” right out of the gate.

Driving a Raising Cane’s-branded car, Toni will race in tomorrow’s ARCA race at Phoenix Raceway, where she’s one of two women drivers and one of three for the entire NASCAR weekend.