Michael Annett family: All about parents Harrold and Deborah; relationships

Michael Annett the former NASCAR driver passed away at the age of 39, his former team announced on December 5.

Michael Annett, the former NASCAR driver, passed away at the age of 39. His former team made the announcement on December 5. At this time, a cause of death is not known.

Annett comes from a family that loved racing. Speaking to Des Moines Register in 2014, he'd stated that his parents timed his birth to coincide with the World of Outlaws race at Knoxville.

“My parents planned the C-section to be on a Monday so I could be at Knoxville that weekend. They knew I was going to be a C-section baby, so they scheduled it for a Monday so everybody could be down at the racetrack that weekend. I was definitely there way too young to remember it,” he had told the publication.

Racing is indeed in Annett's blood. Here's all you need to know about his family and relationships.

Michael Annett family: All about parents Harrold and Deborah

Michael Annett's father was Harrold Wayne Annett. He was the CEO of TMC Transportation, which used to sponsor Michael's racing efforts. He passed away on March 1, 2021, and Annett retired from racing after that season.

Harrod had succumbed to Guillain Barre Syndrome with complications from pneumonia, his obituary in the Des Moines Register read. Annett's mother was Deborah, to whom Harrod had been married for 38 years.

Annett recalled how his mother travelled with him to hockey tournaments, when he was between 7 and 17, as per the Charlotte Checkers. Annett was a defenseman for the Waterloo Black Hawks in the United States Hockey League before his racing career began.

He also spoke about how his mother wasn't all too thrilled about him getting behind the wheel. She refused to let him drive a sprint car, but didn't say anything about a truck. ‘No way in hell are you going to drive a sprint car!’, she’d reportedly said, as per Racinboys.

Annett spoke about how he felt his father's presence ahead of taking to the Knoxville Raceway. “He’s right there with me,” the late NASCAR driver had said. Speaking about his parents and getting into racing, Annett added, “Let me try to explain this. He wanted me to race, but he didn’t want to have to deal with my mom. So I always felt like he felt bad for me, knowing that it was something I always wanted to do. By the time I turned 19, we were finally able to talk my mom into it. I could definitely tell that he realized it was something I wanted to do, and the fact that it’s a place that means so much to our family and I finally get to turn laps there, he’d be really excited—and probably my biggest critic as well.”

As per Harrod's obituary, other members in the family included Toby Lawless (Janice), Tim Annett (Brenda), Todd Annett (Amy), Jennifer Ruble (Bob), Jason Webb (Colleen), Jaimi Webb, and Emily Annett apart from Michael Annett.

Michael Annett relationships

Not much is known about Annett's past relationships except that he dated someone by the name of Heidi Spillane in 2013.