At just 8 years old, Easton “Kid Rocket” Daddio is already making a name for himself on the racetrack. But behind the quick reflexes and growing list of accomplishments is still a regular little boy who loves Pokémon, football, and video games just as much as he loves hearing the rumble of an engine. For his dad, Brian Daddio, watching Easton’s racing journey develop has been exciting, humbling, and very meaningful.
Before the trophies and feature wins entered the picture, there were Power Wheels.
“Ever since his first steps, he’s been sitting behind a steering wheel or pushing pedals,” Brian shared.
“He got his first Power Wheels around 2 years old, and it wasn’t long before I was replacing tires because he was drifting and sliding it all over the driveway.”
Brian remembers one particular moment during Easton’s first major race of the 2024 season that made him realize his son might truly have something special behind the wheel.
While Easton practiced, another father standing nearby pointed toward the track and told his own son, “Watch that blue number three right there. See where he’s driving and how fast he is?”
“For me as a dad, that was surreal,” Brian said. “That was kind of the moment where it really clicked.”
Though racing traces back through Brian’s own family history, he never pushed the sport onto his son. Brian grew up around dirt track racing, watching his cousins, uncles, and a close friend’s dad race dirt cars while spending countless weekends at local tracks. He eventually got behind the wheel of a go-kart himself at age 15 and instantly fell in love with racing.
Easton, however, found his own way to it.
One quality Brian admires most in Easton is his calmness under pressure.
“At a very early age, he developed the ability to stay calm in tense situations,” Brian explained. “That makes a huge difference in racing because you’re talking about tenths and hundredths of a second.”
That composure allows Easton to stay smooth and focused during close battles on the track. Ironically, Brian admits it was his son who helped teach him that lesson.
Still, when the race is over, Easton quickly switches back to being a kid.
“As soon as he comes off the track after a race, he goes right back to being a normal 8-year-old boy,” Brian said. “He’s running around playing again.”
For the Daddio family, racing has also become a way to teach lessons far past the finish line.
Good sportsmanship is one of their biggest priorities. Even after difficult losses, they encourage Easton to congratulate the winner with a handshake or high-five.
Some of the family’s favorite memories have come from hardfought races. Brian recalled one during last year’s Peach State Shootout at Dawgwood Speedway in Georgia.
The track was unfamiliar to him; they planned the trip at the last minute, and their pit location was far from ideal. None of that seemed to bother Easton.
He qualified third out of 13 racers and spent the race battling some of the toughest competition he had faced. Several times, he completed passes, only for caution flags to bring the field back together and erase his progress.
With only a few laps remaining, Easton finally grabbed the lead. This time, he held on.
“He was so excited,” Brian said. “To see him win after battling that hard against really good kids his age was incredible.”
With each new class comes a little more competition and a few more challenges, but Brian and his family work hard to keep things in perspective. At the end of the day, they want Easton to have fun and enjoy being a kid.
“Goal number one is just for him to grow up to be a good, responsible, kind human,” Brian said. “Everything else after that is icing on the cake.”
That perspective resonates with Easton both on and off the track. In fact, many of his classmates and even some of his teachers do not realize he races competitively at all.
While Easton may still be years away from the professional level, the family is already excited about what the future could hold. Brian believes his son has the talent and work ethic to potentially go far in the sport one day, perhaps even chasing NASCAR dreams down the road.
For now, though, the family is focused on regional racing and enjoying the journey together.
They are also grateful for the local sponsors who have helped make that journey possible. Some provide financial support, while others offer services ranging from engine work to haircuts before victory-lane photos.
“We’re super grateful for all of our local sponsors,” Brian said. “They’ve really stepped up for us.”
As for Easton, his goals remain refreshingly simple. As for what he enjoys most about racing, it’s “going fast” and winning.
And if he could race against any NASCAR driver one day?
“Dale Earnhardt Jr.,” Easton said, “because his dad was a legend.”
For a young racer growing up in Tennessee with dirt track roots, strong family support, and a love for speed that started almost as soon as he could walk, it’s the perfect answer. GN
