Wagner grew up around racing, watching his father compete at local short tracks before jumping behind the wheel himself at the age of five.
[3] However, Wagner's karting career would be cut short in his early teens, as he was forced to have back surgery as a result of developing scoliosis.
[4] Following the surgery, a thoracic-lumbar spinal fusion,[5] he found it too painful and difficult to compete competitively in karting, causing him to step away from the sport.
[2] In 2018, Wagner began competing in SCCA events with Sick Sideways Racing after acquiring a used Mazda MX-5 Cup car.
[2] In October, Wagner traveled to Sonoma Raceway to compete in the SCCA Runoffs, taking second in the T4 class behind John Heinricy.
[19] In addition, Wagner competed full-time in the TC America Series in 2022, driving a Subaru BRZ in the TCA class for TechSport Racing.
[27] He scored his final victory of the GR Cup season during the season-finale weekend at Indianapolis,[28] and finished runner-up to champion Tyler Gonzalez in the season-long championship.
[30] Wagner added his third victory of the season during race one at Road Atlanta,[31] and he clinched the series championship with a podium finish the following day.