TriStar Motorsports
 | |
| Owner(s) | Bryan Smith |
|---|---|
| Base | Mooresville, North Carolina |
| Series | Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series |
| Manufacturer | Chevrolet, Ford |
| Opened | 1989 |
| Closed | 2019 |
| Career | |
| Debut | Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series: 1989 Winston 500 (Talladega) Xfinity Series: 2010 DRIVE4COPD 300 (Daytona) |
| Latest race | Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series: 2018 Ford EcoBoost 400 (Homestead) Xfinity Series: 2017 Ford EcoBoost 300 (Homestead) |
| Races competed | Total: 884 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series: 197 Xfinity Series: 687 |
| Drivers' Championships | Total: 0 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series: 0 Xfinity Series: 0 |
| Race victories | Total: 0 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series: 0 Xfinity Series: 0 |
| Pole positions | Total: 3 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series: 3 Xfinity Series: 0 |
TriStar Motorsports was an American professional stock car racing team that used to compete in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series. The team competed in the NASCAR Winston Cup Series primarily during the early to mid 1990s, suspending racing operations in 1997 and continuing on as Tri-Star Motors, and later Pro Motor Engines, supplying engines to many NASCAR teams prior to returning to competition in 2010.
History
Winston Cup 1989–1998
TriStar made its debut in 1989 at Talladega Superspeedway. Driver Ron Esau finished 38th after wrecking the No. 18 Pontiac. Brad Teague made the team's second start at Charlotte Motor Speedway with Mello Yello but finished 31st after suffering engine failure. Barn Animals sponsored Hut Stricklin's No. 68 entry at the 1990 Daytona 500, and fielded the No. 18 for him at Atlanta Motor Speedway, where he finished. TriStar switched to the No. 68 at Talladega Superspeedway, and Stanley Smith wrecked the Interstate Batteries car and finished 37th. The team finished their first race at Michigan with Mike Chase finishing 24th. They ran the No. 68 with Country Time Lemonade sponsorship and Bobby Hamilton driving in two races, with a best finish of 28th.
In 1991, TriStar ran full-time with Hamilton and Country Time again sponsoring their Oldsmobile. Hamilton had four top-ten finishes and finished 22nd in points, winning Rookie of the Year honors. They began 1992 with no top-ten finishes, and later switched to Ford Thunderbirds, allowing Hamilton to get two top-ten finishes and finish 25th in points. After failing to finish higher than 15th eight races into the 1993 season, Hamilton was released. Greg Sacks drove for the rest of the season, with Dorsey Schroeder filling in at the road course races, and Loy Allen driving at Phoenix International Raceway.
Allen was named the full-time driver for the 1994 season, in addition to TriStar switching to the No. 19 and getting Hooters sponsorship. Allen won the pole for the Daytona 500, becoming the first rookie driver to do so. He also qualified on the pole at Atlanta and Michigan, but failed to qualify for twelve races that season and finished 39th in points. Allen and Hooters left Tri-Star at the end of the year, and Phil Parsons took over the driving duties for the first five races of the 1995 season with Ultra Custom Wheels sponsorship. After the first five races, the team cut back and did not run any races until the Winston Select 500, when Allen returned to the team with Healthsource sponsoring the car. In their first race back together, Allen and TriStar qualified second and finished tenth, Allen's career-best finish. TriStar ran a limited schedule for the rest of 1995, with Ron Fellows driving the No. 68 at Watkins Glen, and Allen driving the No. 19 during the rest of the season.
Healthsource signed for a full season of sponsorship in 1996, but Allen suffered a severe neck injury at the second race of the season at North Carolina Speedway, causing him to miss the next ten races. Dick Trickle filled in the interim, placing eighth at the Food City 500. Upon Allen's return, Tri-Star again moved to a part-time schedule, getting a best finish of 21st. Healthsource left the team at the end of the season, and Child Support Recovery took its place. After two races into the 1997 season, Allen was released and Gary Bradberry replaced him. After failing to qualify for the Miller 400, Child Support Recovery was dropped by the team due to lack of funding and racing operations were suspended again.
In 1999, they leased their shop to SBIII Motorsports and built engines for them. Following the team's closure near the end of the season, TriStar reacquired its equipment and fielded the No. 48 FansTeam Ford for Stanton Barrett at the 2000 Daytona 500, but did not qualify.
Pro Motor
Although TriStar no longer fielded a team, they continued to build engines for various teams. Known as Pro Motor Engines, they have built engines for numerous teams, including Front Row Motorsports and their Sprint Cup Series teams until the end of 2009, ML Motorsports, MSRP Motorsports, and Mark Smith's own TriStar Motorsports beginning in 2010 in the Nationwide Series, Kevin Harvick Incorporated along with many other teams in the Camping World Truck Series and the ARCA RE/Max Series. The company has won Camping World Truck Series championships in 2002, 2003, and 2009, along with PME winning the MAHLE Engine Builder Showdown 4 years in a row.
Return to NASCAR competition
After a nine-year hiatus from fielding race teams, TriStar acquired the Nationwide team owned by Front Row Motorsports, and fielded three cars in 2010, the former FRM team No. 34 Chevrolet Impala for Tony Raines, a new team, the No. 35 Chevrolet Impala for Jason Keller and ran the No. 36 Chevrolet Impala on a part-time schedule. The team used their own PME Motors.
On July 22, 2017, Mark Smith died after a battle with cancer. His son Bryan took over ownership of TriStar Motorsports.[1]
Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series
TriStar attempted to qualify for the race at Watkins Glen in 2010 with driver Tony Ave in the No. 35 Chevrolet Impala purchased from Front Row Motorsports, however, after showing signs of mechanical issues during qualifying, which included smoke and fluid trailing from behind the car, the team did not qualify. It was the only Cup race Tri-Star attempted that year.
Car No. 19/91 history
Mark Smith returned to the Cup Series in 2012 by partnering with former HP Racing co-owner Randy Humphrey. As Humphrey Smith Racing, the team fielded Jason Leffler, Chris Cook, Jeff Green, and Mike Bliss in the No. 19 Toyota Camry. The team started fielding the No. 91 for Reed Sorenson and Jason Leffler starting at Indianapolis Motor Speedway as well. The team ran a mix of Ford, Toyota, and Chevrolet recycled from other teams for the No. 91 team, both cars are Start and parks. The No. 19 team and Bliss had returned for the 2013 season, running a Toyota. They attempted the full Daytona 500 with G-Oil as the sponsor, but failed to make the race. The car was driven by Jason Leffler in the Party in the Poconos 400, three days before he was killed in a sprint car accident at Bridgeport Speedway in New Jersey.[2] Following his death, the team, like others in the racing community, ran "LEFTURN" logos above the driver doors in honor of Leffler.
The team also employed Alex Kennedy for the road courses. Kennedy crashed at Sonoma, parked at Pocono, but finished 29th at Watkins Glen. Scott Riggs attempted Michigan with them but didn’t qualify. Smith shut the team down before the Chase.
In 2014, Humphrey left TriStar and started his own Cup operation, the No. 77 Ford Fusion driven by Dave Blaney.[3] Smith did not field an entry in the Sprint Cup Series in 2014, and the No. 19 was claimed by Joe Gibbs Racing for its new entry in 2015 for Carl Edwards.
Car No. 72 history
In 2017, TriStar announced that they would field one full-time team, the No. 72 Chevrolet SS for Whitt.[4] The team took lease of the No. 35 charter from Front Row Motorsports to secure a spot every race.[5] Whitt ended up finishing the 2017 season with a best of 12th, and brought the car home 33rd in driver & owner standings.
For 2018, TriStar again took lease of a charter from Front Row Motorsports. Whitt requested a limited schedule of only ten races in order to focus on family. Corey LaJoie drove the No. 72 in the 26 races in which Whitt did not run in 2018, finishing 34th in driver standings with a best finish of 16th. Whitt later retired from stock car competition and LaJoie departed for the No. 32 team, leaving TriStar without a driver for 2019. The team was unable to acquire a charter for 2019 and has not attempted a race since Homestead-Miami.
In a September 2019 interview, former TriStar crew chief Frank Kerr confirmed the team has since shut down.[6] The charter leased to the team was returned to Front Row, and sold to Rick Ware Racing for the No. 52 team, while certain equipment and a hauler were liquidated to Tommy Joe Martins' team.[5]
Car No. 72 results
| Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series results | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Team | No. | Make | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 31 | 32 | 33 | 34 | 35 | 36 | MENCC | Pts | Ref | ||
| 2017 | Cole Whitt | 72 | Ford | DAY 18 |
33rd | 322 | [7] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Chevy | ATL 20 |
LVS 28 |
PHO 34 |
CAL 32 |
MAR 21 |
TEX 30 |
BRI 21 |
RCH 27 |
TAL 16 |
KAN 26 |
CLT 34 |
DOV 22 |
POC 30 |
MCH 31 |
SON 21 |
DAY 39 |
KEN 34 |
NHA 38 |
IND 12 |
POC 24 |
GLN 34 |
MCH 29 |
BRI 33 |
DAR 23 |
RCH 33 |
CHI 35 |
NHA 30 |
DOV 32 |
CLT 34 |
TAL 34 |
KAN 24 |
MAR 25 |
TEX 29 |
PHO 36 |
HOM 28 | |||||||||
| 2018 | ATL 28 |
LVS 28 |
CAL 28 |
MAR 27 |
TEX 19 |
RCH 30 |
TAL 21 |
POC 30 |
SON 35 |
GLN 34 |
CLT 20 |
MAR 24 |
PHO 25 |
33rd | 276 | [8] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Corey LaJoie | DAY 40 |
PHO 37 |
BRI 25 |
DOV 38 |
KAN 24 |
CLT 26 |
MCH 27 |
CHI 34 |
DAY 31 |
KEN 31 |
NHA 27 |
POC 39 |
MCH 40 |
BRI 34 |
DAR 27 |
IND 27 |
LVS 16 |
RCH 32 |
DOV 30 |
TAL 32 |
KAN 34 |
TEX 40 |
HOM 34 | |||||||||||||||||||||
Xfinity Series
Car No. 8 history
In January 2015 the team announced that Blake Koch would run the full season, in a new No. 8 car with crew chief Bruce Cook.[9][10] LeafFilter Gutter Protection was the primary sponsor.[11] Koch opened the season with a 20th-place finish at Daytona.[12] After announcing in June that he would return to TriStar for 2016,[13] he and LeafFilter would move to Kaulig Racing for 2016, taking the No. 8 team's owner points, for the 2016 season, leaving the No. 8 team to be shut down.[13][14][15]
Car No. 8 Results
| NASCAR Xfinity Series results | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Driver | No. | Make | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 31 | 32 | 33 | Owners | Pts | ||||||
| 2015 | Blake Koch | 8 | Toyota | DAY 20 |
ATL 22 |
LVS 35 |
PHO 25 |
CAL 19 |
TEX 32 |
BRI 22 |
RCH 24 |
TAL 23 |
IOW 22 |
CLT 23 |
DOV 30 |
MCH 36 |
CHI 22 |
DAY 18 |
KEN 22 |
NHA 20 |
IND 37 |
IOW 24 |
GLN 18 |
MOH 24 |
BRI 21 |
ROA 21 |
DAR 27 |
RCH 19 |
CHI 21 |
KEN 40 |
DOV 23 |
CLT 33 |
KAN 25 |
TEX 21 |
PHO 20 |
HOM 18 |
24th | 646 | ||||||
Car No. 10 history
The No. 10 began as the No. 36, which was a third car in 2010 with Tony Ave and Jeff Green behind the wheel, running as a start and park operation. The team used the prize money used to fund the No. 34 and No. 35 teams. For 2012 the team returned and changed number to 10, and Green drove the car as a start and park. However, when Green moved to the No. 14 Toyota Camry after Eric McClure's injury, Tony Raines and Kevin Lepage became the temporary drivers until McClure returned at Road America.
Green ran the majority of the races in 2013 as a start and park again. Cole Whitt moved over from the No. 44 Toyota Camry and ran the full race at Bristol in August, finishing tenth with Gold Bond as the sponsor.[16] Mike Bliss ran the car at Homestead with his usual No. 19 occupied by Dakoda Armstrong.
In 2014, David Starr ran the car competitively at Daytona season opener in February.[17] For the rest of the year, Blake Koch and Jeff Green ran the majority of the races, again mostly as a start and park. At Daytona in July, Koch had sponsorship from Celsius Negative Calorie Cola, with TriStar bringing five cars to run the full race. During the first round of qualifying, all five TriStar cars were running in a pack when a sudden downpour of rain caused the entire pack to spin out, causing most of the cars including four from TriStar to wreck. Koch, along with the No. 91 Toyota Camry of Benny Gordon missed the race, and the sponsor of the No. 10 moved over to Mike Bliss' No. 19. Bliss ran the No. 10 at Bristol in August as a full race effort while Hermie Sadler ran his usual No. 19 Toyota Camry.
Jeff Green returned in 2015 at Daytona in February. After Scott Lagasse Jr. and the No. 19 team failed to qualify, Lagasse Jr. and sponsor Alert Today Florida moved over to the No. 10 car for the race, finishing 37th after a crash.[12] The No. 10 team has been renumbered as the No. 19, carrying the owner points from the No. 10. The change came after the return of Eric McClure.
The No. 10 was revived for 2016 beginning at Atlanta, with Green and Matt DiBenedetto once again running in a start-and-park capacity.
Car No. 10 results
Car No. 14 history
2010
What is now the No. 14 Chevrolet Impala debuted in 2010 as the No. 35 Chevrolet Impala. At the time it was a completely new entry, consisting of veteran Jason Keller as the driver and former Rusty Wallace Racing crew chief Bryan Berry atop the pit box. During their first attempt at Daytona, the No. 35 missed the race due to not having a top-35 points position and being unable to qualify on time. The team would go on to miss the races at Daytona, Las Vegas, and Texas, while successfully making the race Stater Brothers 300 in California, starting 21st and finishing 20th during the team's first race. The team would eventually make the top-35, a notable accomplishment for a team that missed 3 races during the season. The No. 35 and Keller got their first top 10 finish in the form of a top 5, finishing 4th at Talladega. At the inaugural event at Road America, the team selected Tony Ave to drive the No. 35, Ave being a road course ace with much success at the track. He qualified the car in 10th place, and was running 5th when he was spun on the last lap of the race, finishing 20th. Ave returned to the seat at the 2010 NAPA 200 in Montreal, leading 1 lap but finishing 36th. He drove at the Watkins Glen too, finishing 15th.
Antonio Pérez drove the car at Gateway International Raceway, finishing 34th. Tony Raines drove the No. 35 at Phoenix International Raceway with sponsorship from BeAStockCarDriver.com. The No. 35 finished 29th in the 2010 owners points.
The team managed to put together some one race sponsorship deals for various races during the season. The No. 35 and Keller managed to get sponsorship from uPillar.com at Darlington, KEL Chemicals at Dover for Kellers 500th career start, and LubePros.com at Chicagoland Speedway. BeAStockCarDriver.com sponsored Keller at Charlotte in October.
2011
The team returned to competition in 2011 as the No. 14, with Eric McClure and his longtime sponsor Hefty coming along with him from Team Rensi Motorsports. Mike Bliss drove the No. 14 unsponsored at Dover when the car fell out of the top-30 in owners points. McClure made all 34 races that year, scoring a best finish of 18th at Chicago en route to a 19th-place points finish. McClure and Hefty returned in 2012, along with the team's manufacturer switch to Toyota Camry.
2012
McClure started the season in the No. 14 Toyota Camry. He ran at the end of the first seven races before a crash at Talladega took him out of action. Jeff Green moved from the start-and-park No. 10 to the No. 14 while McClure recovered. McClure returned at Road America, moving Green back to the No. 10.
2013
A fully recovered McClure remained in the No. 14. Though he had an illness before the Mid-Ohio race was replaced by Jeff Green.
2014
Eric McClure returned for what was believed to be his final season. He ran at 28 races. Longtime partners Hefty and Reynolds Wrap once again sponsored the car. Teammate Jeff Green piloted the No. 14 in 5 races: Dover in May, Michigan in June, Mid-Ohio in August, Richmond in September, and Dover again in September.[18] At Mid-Ohio, Green was running second with 20 laps to go when the throttle of the No. 14 Toyota Camry hung out, sending him head-on into a tire barrier, relegating him to a 29th-place finish.[19]
2015
After the season, McClure and Hefty/Reynolds Wrap announced their departure for JGL Racing.[20] Cale Conley drove the No. 14 Toyota Camry for the full 2015 season, running for Rookie of the Year with crew chief Eddie Pardue.[9][21][22] However, Conley was released with three races to go due to lack of sponsorship. Mike Bliss returned to TriStar at Texas, parking the No. 14 after 40 laps.
2016
Benny Gordon and VSI Racing ran the No. 14 at Daytona.[23] J. J. Yeley drove the car for six races beginning at Atlanta.[17][24] Jeff Green has since taken over the car when Yeley replaced David Starr in the No. 44. Hermie Sadler would drive at Bristol and Richmond with sponsorship from Virginia Lottery. The No. 14 serves as a start and park along with the No. 10 unless Gordon, Sadler and DiBeneditto are in the car. DiBeneditto drove 2 races in the No. 14 car at Kansas and Texas with an 11th place finish and a 36th place finish sponsored by Superior Essex.
2017
On January 26, 2017, it was announced that Yeley returned to TriStar but driving the No. 14 with Superior Essex sponsoring 13 races. Yeley would have a quiet, but a consistent year, only finishing outside the top 20 11 times - 5 were DNFs - with also a strong outing at the 2nd Iowa race, finishing 6th, plus the 11th place finishes he got at the spring Bristol and Talladega races. He finished 14th in points.
The team sold its cars and equipment to the new JP Motorsports team in 2018.
Car No. 14 results
Car No. 19 history
2010
What is now the No. 19 team was previously the No. 34 team from the 2010 season. TriStar acquired the team from Front Row Motorsports following the 2009 season. It remained mostly intact, with Scott Eggleston returning as crew chief and Tony Raines returning as the driver of the Long John Silvers entry, and with the previous years owners points transferring over which locked the team into the first 5 races of the season. During the first race for the new team at Daytona, Raines and the No. 34 Chevrolet Impala lead 3 laps and finished 14th despite being involved in 2 incidents. Alongside his teammate, Raines and the crew scored the seasons first top-10 in the Aaron's 312 at Talladega Superspeedway in Alabama, finishing 7th after running in the top-5 for various parts of the race. Raines got his second top 10 of the season at Gateway, finishing tenth. Charles Lewandoski started and parked the No. 34 at Phoenix International Raceway in November, with Raines in the No. 35 for that race. Dave Fuge became crew chief of the team in the second half of the season. The No. 34 finished 23rd in final owners points, with Raines finishing 17th in driver standings in 2010.
The team managed to put together some one race sponsorship deals for various races for during the season. The No. 34 and Raines was funded by Planet Hollywood Resort and Casino at California, doorstopnation.com at Daytona & Talladega, Continental Fire & Safety at Dover, and Boss Industries/The Walter Payton Foundation at Chicagoland. Front Row Motorsports' owner Bob Jenkins pulled the Long John Silver's sponsorship from the team following the race at Bristol Motor Speedway in August, with BeAStockCarDriver.com sponsoring Raines for the final 4 races of the season. Raines was replaced by Nationwide Series veteran Mike Bliss.
2011–2012
The team returned in 2011 as the No. 19, and Mike Bliss signed on to drive the car for the 2011 season. Crew Chief Dave Fuge remained with the team but was replaced early in the season by Wes Ward. Fuge now is part owner of Derrike Cope's CFK Motorsports. Ward also left the team early on and was replaced by TRG interim crew chief Paul Clapprood. The team scored 19 top-20 finishes with a best finish of 9th at the second Dover race. With limited sponsorship Bliss and the No. 19 team finished the season 12th in points. For 2012, Bliss was replaced by Tayler Malsam as he brought sponsorship from Green Earth Technologies and G-Oil as well as the team's manufacturer change to Toyota Camry. Venezuelan Alex Popow drove the car at Watkins Glen. Malsam was 13th in points when he and TriStar parted ways after Kentucky, leaving Bliss to return to the No. 19. Also, Hal Martin competed in three races in 2012.
2013
Mike Bliss took over the No. 19 Toyota Camry once again for the full season. G-Oil and Tweaker Energy Shot sponsored the car. Dakoda Armstrong ran the car at Homestead with sponsor WinField, while Bliss ran the No. 10. Bliss would just miss the top 10 in points.
2014
Mike Bliss was once again in the car full-time, with Tweaker Energy Shot sponsoring several races. Hermie Sadler ran the No. 19 Toyota Camry at Bristol in August and Richmond in September, with the Virginia State Lottery sponsoring, while Bliss moved to the No. 10.[25]
2015
Mike Bliss returned to the No. 19 Toyota Camry in 2015.[9] [21] Scott Lagasse Jr. attempted the season opener at Daytona with sponsor Alert Today Florida,[26] but failed to qualify and moved over to the No. 10 car for the race. Bliss then drove the car through Talladega, before being released by Charles Lewandoski for Iowa, where the No. 19 car had assumed the Start and Park role of the former No. 10 after the addition of McClure. For Charlotte, Jeff Green was tabbed as the driver for the No. 19 car, and remained there for the remainder of the season.
2016
The No. 19 was used by Joe Gibbs Racing in 2016.[27]
Car No. 19 results
Car No. 24 history
After initially leaving TriStar for JGL Racing, after nine 2015 races Eric McClure and longtime sponsor Hefty/Reynolds Wrap announced their return to TriStar beginning at Iowa Speedway in May. The team carried over the No. 24 Toyota Camry from JGL,[28] while assuming the owner points from the No. 19 Toyota Camry. McClure was released again after changes with his Hefty/Reynolds Wrap sponsorship, with the number returning to JGL and the team going inactive.
Car No. 44 history
The No. 44 car was first run in 2011 by Jeff Green as a Start and park entry at Daytona. Charles Lewandoski drove the car at Phoenix. Green then drove the car for most of the season as a start and park, but was replaced for 3 races by Angela Cope. For 2012, Mike Bliss drove the car with various sponsorship until Dover when he moved back to the No. 19 Toyota Camry and Green took over for the next two races. Hal Martin and John Blankenship finished out the season. Though John Blankenship raced for Tommy Baldwin Racing for Chevrolet Impala for Iowa, Texas, Phoenix and Homestead.
2013
In 2013, Hal Martin ran for Rookie of the year with American Custom Yachts as the sponsor, but only ran the first ten races and then two late in the season. Chad Hackenbracht ran seven races with Ingersoll Rand and Tastee Apples sponsoring.[16] Cole Whitt ran the most races for the team,[16] with several strong runs including four top tens and only one finish outside the top twenty. Whitt was sponsored by Takagi Water Heaters and Gold Bond.[16] Whitt left for Swan Racing in the Sprint Cup Series at the end of the season.
2014
For 2014, it was announced that Blake Koch would drive for TriStar full-time, splitting time between the No. 44 Toyota Camry and the No. 10 Toyota Camry. David Starr ran the majority of races with the team, with a best finish of 9th at Talladega.[17][21] Various other drivers have run the No. 44, bringing sponsorship with them. These include Hal Martin, Paulie Harraka, Carlos Contreras, ARCA driver Will Kimmel, and Matt Frahm.
Hal Martin returned to TriStar's No. 44 Toyota Camry for both races at Iowa Speedway in 2014. Stuart, FL based American Custom Yachts returned as a sponsor for the team (not appearing on the hood), as they did in Martin's first 10 races of 2013.[29] Martin finished 26th and 28th in his two races respectively.[30]
Forty-four-year-old NASCAR veteran Carlos Contreras has raced all three road courses for TriStar in the No. 44 Toyota Camry with sponsors 38 Special and Voli and regular TriStar sponsor Ingersoll Rand. He posted a strong 15th place at Road America, a solid 23rd place at Watkins Glen International and finished 21st in his debut at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in August.[30][31]
Twenty-six-year-old ARCA driver Will Kimmel, nephew of ARCA legend Frank Kimmel, will drive five races in the TriStar No. 44 Toyota Camry in 2014. Ingersoll Rand will serve as the primary sponsor for all five races.[32] Kimmel finished 33rd in his debut at Phoenix and 22nd two races later at Bristol.[33] Kimmel returned to the car in the fall races at Richmond, Chicago, and Charlotte.[30][34]
New Hampshire native Matt Frahm was announced as the driver at his hometown New Hampshire Motor Speedway in July for his tenth start in the Nationwide Series. Hudson, NH based Gilchrist Metal Fabricating Company funded the car.[35] Frahm finished a sold 25th, but 5 laps down.[30]
NASCAR Drive for Diversity graduate and New Jersey native Paulie Harraka drive the No. 44 Toyota Camry at home track Dover International Speedway in May. The Delaware Office of Highway Safety came on board with their "Click it or Ticket" campaign to raise awareness for traffic safety.[36] Harraka qualified 22nd, and finished a solid 19th after battling back from a pit road incident with Brendan Gaughan.[37] Notably, Harraka was involved in an incident the prior year at the Sonoma Cup race where his No. 52 Ford Fusion collided with the TriStar No. 19 Toyota Camry on pit road before the race even started.
| 2014 driver rotation | ||
|---|---|---|
| No. 44 Driver | Races | Sponsor |
| David Starr | 11 | Whataburger, BYF.org, Chasco Constructors |
| Blake Koch | 10 | CompassionRacing.com, Son of God (film), K-LOVE |
| Carlos Contreras | 3 | 38 Special, Voli, Ingersoll Rand |
| Will Kimmel | 5 | Ingersoll Rand |
| Hal Martin | 2 | American Custom Yachts |
| Matt Frahm | 1 | Gilchrist Metal Fabrication |
| Paulie Harraka | 1 | Delaware "Click It Or Ticket" |
| Source:[30] | ||
2015
David Starr signed a three-year contract with TriStar and longtime sponsor Zachry Group to run the No. 44 Toyota Camry full-time beginning in 2015.[21] Starr finished a strong 6th place at the season opener at Daytona International Speedway, after avoiding 2 big crashes in the late stages of the race.[12] Starr had a decent season, finishing 16th in points.[17]
2016
Starr returned in 2016, with Zachry continuing sponsor him. He finished 18th at the season opener at Daytona, and at Atlanta he finished 39th after blowing an engine in a few laps of the race. At Richmond in April, J. J. Yeley replaced Starr due to illness, finishing 12th. Following Richmond, Yeley officially replaced Starr in the No. 44.[17] Yeley collected three top tens for TriStar, with an 8th place finish at fall Dover race.
2017
The car returned in a part-time basis in 2017. Benny Gordon drove at the PowerShares QQQ 300 at Daytona International Speedway with sponsorship from Florida Lottery. He was involved in a single-car crash, and finished 27th.
Car No. 44 results
Car No. 91 history
TriStar occasionally ran a fifth car, usually for the restrictor plate races or as a start and park when the team's usual four cars have full sponsorship, or to help fund the No. 10 team.
2014
Jeff Green ran the car at Daytona in February and Auto Club in March, finishing last in both. He finished 39th at Darlington in April and 38th at Talladega in May. SupportMilitary.org and Hefty/Reynolds Wrap appeared on the car at various points, though not changing the team's start-and-park status. At Daytona in July, Benny Gordon attempted to qualify in the No. 91 Toyota Camry with BWP bats sponsoring, but did not post a fast enough speed before being taken out in a crash at the end of the first round. Green ran a total of seven races in the car, with Blake Koch running the car at Richmond.
Car No. 91 results
| NASCAR Nationwide Series results | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Driver | No. | Make | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 31 | 32 | 33 | Owners | Pts | ||||||
| 2012 | Jeff Green | 91 | Toyota | DAY | PHO | LVS | BRI | CAL | TEX | RCH | TAL | DAR | IOW | CLT | DOV | MCH | ROA | KEN | DAY | NHA | CHI | IND | IOW 43 |
GLN | CGV | BRI | ATL | RCH | CHI | KEN | DOV | CLT | KAN | TEX 37 |
HOM 40 |
65th | 13 | |||||||
| Tony Raines | PHO 43 |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2013 | Chase Miller | DAY | PHO | LVS | BRI | CAL | TEX | RCH | TAL | DAR | CLT | DOV | IOW | MCH | ROA | KEN | DAY | NHA | CHI | IND | IOW | GLN | MOH | BRI 39 |
ATL | RCH | CHI | KEN | DOV | KAN | CLT | TEX | PHO | 64th | 9 | |||||||||
| Michael McDowell | HOM 40 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2014 | Jeff Green | DAY 40 |
PHO | LVS | BRI | CAL 40 |
TEX | DAR 39 |
RCH | TAL 38 |
IOW | CLT | DOV | MCH | ROA | KEN | BRI 40 |
ATL | CLT 35 |
TEX | PHO | HOM 40 |
54th | 38 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Benny Gordon | DAY DNQ |
NHA | CHI | IND | IOW | GLN | MOH | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Blake Koch | RCH 38 |
CHI | KEN | DOV | KAN | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Pro Motor Engines
In addition to his racing operations, owner Bryan Smith operates Pro Motor Engines (PME Engines), an independent engine builder in NASCAR as well as ARCA and SCCA. Building and leasing primarily Chevrolet engines as well as the Toyota engines used by TriStar and others, PME-powered teams have won three Camping World Truck Series championships (2002, 2003, and 2009). Engine builders Dennis Borem and Darrell Hoffman also earned three consecutive MAHLE Clevite Engine Builder of the Year awards from 2007 to 2009, beating engine builders from Team Penske, DEI, Hendrick Motorsports, Toyota Racing Development, Roush-Yates, and other top-tier teams.[38][39][40]
References
- ^ "Remembering Mark Smith". TriStar Motorsports. July 24, 2017. Retrieved July 24, 2017.
- ^ "Jason Leffler - 2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Results". Racing-Reference. USA Today Sports Media Group. Retrieved 2013-06-13.
- ^ Spencer, Lee (January 8, 2014). "Dave Blaney reviving No. 77 Ford for Sprint Cup team owner Humphrey". Fox Sports. Retrieved 2014-01-08.
- ^ "TRISTAR MOTORSPORTS RETURNS TO PREMIER SERIES WITH WHITT". NASCAR. February 2, 2017. Retrieved February 2, 2017.
- ^ a b "NASCAR Charters". Jayski's Silly Season Site. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved October 24, 2020.
- ^ "Phone Interview with NASCAR Crew Chief Frank Kerr". YouTube. September 28, 2019. Archived from the original on 2021-12-14. Retrieved February 7, 2020.
- ^ "Cole Whitt – 2017 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved November 12, 2018.
- ^ "Cole Whitt – 2018 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved November 12, 2018.
- ^ a b c "BLISS TO RETURN TO TRISTAR MOTORSPORTS". nascar.com. NASCAR. January 9, 2015. Retrieved January 10, 2015.
- ^ Turner, Jared (January 7, 2015). "Blake Koch returning as Xfinity Series driver for TriStar Motorsports". Fox Sports. Fox Sports. Retrieved 8 February 2015.
- ^ Bonkowski, Jerry (February 5, 2015). "LeafFilter to sponsor Blake Koch for 2015 Xfinity season". MotorSportsTalk. NBC Sports. Retrieved 8 February 2015.
- ^ a b c "NASCAR XFINITY Series Race Number 1: Unofficial Race Results for the 34th Annual Alert Today Florida 300" (PDF). Jayski.com. Daytona International Speedway, Daytona Beach, Florida: NASCAR Integrated Marketing Communications. February 21, 2015. Retrieved 22 February 2015.
- ^ a b Knight, Chris (January 20, 2016). "Blake Koch Prepares For XFINITY Championship Bid With New Team". Catchfence.com. Retrieved 10 March 2016.
- ^ Team release (January 20, 2016). "KAULIG RACING INC. TO JOIN NASCAR XFINITY SERIES IN 2016". nascar.com. Mooresville, North Carolina.
- ^ "KAULIG RACING™ INC. TO JOIN NASCAR XFINITY SERIES IN 2016". Kaulig Racing. January 20, 2016. Retrieved January 20, 2016.
- ^ a b c d Official Release (August 22, 2013). "TriStar Motorsports Notes And Quotes – Bristol". SpeedwayMedia.com. Retrieved 24 August 2016.
- ^ a b c d e Spencer, Lee (April 27, 2016). "TriStar Motorsports replaces David Starr with J.J. Yeley: TriStar Motorsports has parted ways with David Starr". motorsport.com. Retrieved 28 April 2016.
- ^ "Jeff Green to Pilot No. 14 Camry for Five Races in 2014 Season". tristarmotorsportsnc.com. Abingdon, VA: TriStar Motorsports, U-Design, WordPress. May 26, 2014. Archived from the original on 14 August 2014. Retrieved 14 August 2014.
- ^ Press Release (August 16, 2014). "Jeff Green Posts 29th-place Finish at Mid-Ohio". catchfence.com. Mansfield, OH: Catchfence.
- ^ Knight, Chris (January 5, 2015). "Eric McClure Joins JGL Racing For 2015". Catchfence.com. Catchfence. Retrieved January 6, 2015.
- ^ a b c d Estrada, Chris (February 3, 2015). "NASCAR: David Starr signs 3-year deal for Xfinity ride with TriStar". MotorSportsTalk. NBC Sports. Retrieved 22 February 2015.
- ^ "TriStar Motorsports adds Cale Conley to the Driver Lineup for the 2015 NASCAR XFINITY Series Season". TriStar Motorsports. December 11, 2014. Retrieved December 11, 2014.
- ^ Rutherford, Kevin (February 17, 2016). "BENNY GORDON LANDS DAYTONA XFINITY RIDE". frontstretch.com. Retrieved 28 February 2016.
- ^ "Yeley Joins TriStar Motorsports". Sarasota Herald-Tribune. February 24, 2016. Retrieved 28 February 2016.
- ^ "Hermie Sadler Joins TriStar Motorsports for his NASCAR Nationwide Series Return « Official Website of TriStar Motorsports". Archived from the original on 2014-08-11. Retrieved 2014-08-07.
- ^ Press Release (February 17, 2015). "Scott Lagasse Jr. 2015 NXS Alert Today Florida 300 Race Preview". catchfene.com. catchfence.com. Retrieved 22 February 2015.
- ^ Spencer, Lee (January 8, 2016). "Joe Gibbs Racing reveals 2016 Xfinity crew chief lineup". motorsport.com. Retrieved 9 January 2016.
- ^ Staff Report (May 8, 2015). "DOUBLY BLESSED FRIDAY FOR ERIC MCCLURE". nascar.com. NASCAR. Retrieved 9 May 2015.
- ^ "Hal Martin Is Back Behind The Wheel This Weekend At Iowa Speedway". paddocktalk.com. PaddockTalk. July 28, 2014. Retrieved 14 August 2014.
- ^ a b c d e "Car number 44 in 2014: NASCAR Nationwide Series Results". racing-reference.info. racing-reference.info. 2014. Retrieved 9 November 2014.
- ^ "Carlos Contreras, Pre-Race Report Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course". tristarmotorsportsnc.com. TriStar Motorsports, U-Design, WordPress. August 13, 2014. Archived from the original on 14 August 2014. Retrieved 14 August 2014.
- ^ Staff Report (January 21, 2014). "WILL KIMMEL TO DRIVE FOR TRISTAR MOTORSPORTS". NASCAR.com. NASCAR. Retrieved 14 August 2014.
- ^ "Will Kimmel: 2014 NASCAR Nationwide Series Results". racing-reference.info/. Racing Reference. 2014. Retrieved 14 August 2014.
- ^ Oberto, Dino (August 1, 2014). "Where there's a 'Will,' there's a way Next generation of Kimmel racers talks family legacy". standardspeaker.com. Long Pond, PA (Pocono Raceway): Standard Speaker. Retrieved 14 August 2014.
- ^ "TriStar Motorsports adds New Hampshire Native Matt Frahm to New Hampshire Motor Speedway Driver Lineup". tristarmotorsportsnc.com. Mooresville, North Carolina: TriStar Motorsports, U-Design, WordPress. July 7, 2014. Archived from the original on 14 August 2014. Retrieved 14 August 2014.
- ^ "Paulie Harraka will Pilot the No. 44 Buckle Up Toyota Camry at Dover International Speedway for TriStar Motorsports". tristarmotorsportsnc.com. Mooresville, North Carolina: TriStar Motorsports, U-Design, WordPress. May 16, 2014. Archived from the original on 14 August 2014. Retrieved 14 August 2014.
- ^ Press Release (June 2, 2014). "TriStar Motorsports (Mike Bliss / Jeff Green / Paulie Harraka) 2014 NNS Buckle Up 200 Post Race Reports". catchfence.com. Dover, Delaware (Dover International Speedway): Catchfence. Retrieved 14 August 2014.
- ^ ":: 2010 Customers/Info :: Contact :: Directions Pro Motor Engines". pme-engines.com. Pro Motor Engines. 2010. Retrieved 22 October 2014.
- ^ Green Earth Technologies, Inc. (February 21, 2012). "Pro Motor Engines and Tristar Choose G-OIL® for 2012 NASCAR Nationwide Series Campaign". PR Newswire. Celebration, Florida: PR Newswire. Retrieved 22 October 2014.
- ^ "The history of the MAHLE Engine Builder Showdown". Mahle.com. Mahle GmbH. Retrieved 22 October 2014.
External links
- TriStar Motorsports owner statistics at Racing-Reference (Mark Smith)
- TriStar Motorsports owner statistics at Racing-Reference (Bryan Smith, 2017-2018)
- TriStar Motorsports website