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The racing world is remembering former NASCAR driver and USAC star Bobby East, who was stabbed to death on Wednesday outside Los Angeles. He was 37 years old.

Police in Westminster, California, have identified a suspect but had not made an arrest as of late Friday.

Bobby East was a USAC prodigy who went on to a brief NASCAR career

Bobby East, driver of the No. 21 Ford during the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series media day at Daytona International Speedway on Feb. 9, 2006. | Rusty Jarrett/Getty Images
Bobby East, driver of the No. 21 Ford during the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series media day at Daytona International Speedway on Feb. 9, 2006. | Rusty Jarrett/Getty Images

Bobby East roared onto the racing scene as a teen by becoming a USAC champion at the 2004 National Midgets. He followed by winning the USAC Silver Crown in 2012 and ’13 while driving for Tony Stewart/Curb-Agajanian Racing. The driver first gained notoriety in 2001 by winning a National Midget race in Indiana in 2001 at the age of 16, making him the youngest competitor to win in the series.

East made the move to NASCAR in 2005 in the Ford driver development program. He ran a full season in the Camping World Truck Series for Wood Brothers/JTG Racing in 2006, never finishing better than 11th. The following year, he split time between trucks and the Xfinity Series. His last action on the national NASCAR circuits came in 2008 when he drove seven truck series races for Roush Fenway Racing and posted a pair of top-10 finishes.

He changed his focus to the USAC circuit after that. The Checkered Flag reported he won 56 USAC features at the regional and national levels.

East, who was born in Torrence, California, but raced primarily out of Brownsburg, Indiana, was the son of respected car builder Bob East.

Police are trying to locate a suspect in the fatal stabbing

The Westminster Police Department, south of Los Angeles, responded to the report of a stabbing late Wednesday afternoon at a gas station. According to the department’s report, they found Bobby East with a stab wound to his chest. Paramedics attempted life-saving measures before moving him to a local hospital, where East was pronounced dead.

Police disclosed that Trent William Millsap, 27, is a suspect in the incident. The report said Millsap, who has a parole warrant, fled the scene before police arrived.

All stats courtesy of Racing Reference.

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John Moriello started covering sports in 1982, began digital publishing in 1995, and joined Sportscasting in 2020. A graduate of St. John Fisher University, he finds inspiration in the underdogs and the fascinating stories sports can tell (both the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat). John expertly covers all aspects of NASCAR.

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