JR Motorsports

Elliott Sadler at Road America in 2016.

Elliott Sadler (2016-2018)

It was announced in late 2015 that Elliott Sadler would drive the new No. 1 OneMain Financial Chevy, replacing Chase Elliott as he moved up to take over the No. 24 replacing Jeff Gordon.[3] Sadler started the season with a fourth-place finish in the season opener at Daytona. He would win three races in 2016 and ended up finishing second in the overall standings after a controversial restart with less than ten laps remaining at Homestead that cost Sadler and his teammate, Justin Allgaier, a shot to win the title. In 2017, Sadler didn't win a race but ended up finishing 2nd in points behind only teammate William Byron.

Michael Annett (2019)

Michael Annett at Road America in 2019.

On September 25, 2018, Noah Gragson was announced as the new driver of the No. 1 after Sadler announced his retirement earlier that year; However, on January 25, 2019, it was announced that Michael Annett would drive the No. 1 car with the points from the 5 car going over to the 1 car while Gragson would drive the No. 9 car.[4]

Dale Earnhardt Jr. and the No. 83 Navy Chevrolet in 2008.

Part-time (2006-2012)

The No. 5 team started in 2006 as the No. 83 team, a part-time second car for JR Motorsports. The car was driven by Shane Huffman with sponsorship from the Make a Wish Foundation. The car returned in 2008 driven by Dale Earnhardt Jr. with the US Navy sponsoring. In 2010, JR Motorsports and Richard Childress Racing announced that the number would switch from No. 83 to No. 3 with Dale Earnhardt Jr. driving the car at Daytona in July with Wrangler sponsoring the car. This was a tribute to Dale Earnhardt, being inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame in May. Earnhardt Jr. won the race in the No. 3 car.

Johnny O'Connell at Road America in 2013.

In 2011, the team changed numbers from 3 to 5 which was JR Motorsports' 3rd entry, with Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Ron Fellows running a handful of races part-time. The car returned in 2012 once more with Dale Jr. and Fellows driving, and Regan Smith would win the Ford 300 after announcing his addition to the team. Ron Fellows would nearly win a few races at Road America in 2011 & 2012, and then at Watkins Glen in 2012 before running one last race for the team in the inaugural race at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in 2013. Fellows would part ways with the team at year's end, due to a sponsor conflict related to NAPA Auto Parts joining the team for 2014.[5]

Kasey Kahne and Brad Sweet (2013)

The car was originally slated for Smith in 2013, but he was moved to the No. 7 when Jr's Cup teammate Kasey Kahne and USAC driver Brad Sweet signed to drive the No. 5 with sponsorship from Great Clips.

Multiple drivers (2014-2016)

On Monday October 14, 2013, JR Motorsports announced that Kevin Harvick would begin driving the No. 5 car in at least 12 races for the 2014 season. Four of the races the car was sponsored by Hunt Brothers Pizza.[6] Super Late Model driver Austin Theriault drove the car in a three races for the team starting at Iowa. JR development driver Josh Berry drove two races starting at Iowa in August. For 2015, the No. 5 was driven by Kahne in a single race at Charlotte as a 4th team car, where he finished 3rd.

Annett in the JR Motorsports No. 5 at Road America in 2017

Michael Annett (2017-2018)

Michael Annett drove the car full-time in 2017 with Pilot Flying J as the sponsor en route to a 9th-place finish in the standings as well as earning a career-best 2nd-place finish at Road America.[7]

On January 25, 2019, it was announced that Annett would be piloting the No. 1 car with the points from the 5 car going over to the 1 car with the 5 car being shut down.[4]

As the No. 5 (2008–2009)

The No. 7 car joined in 2008 as the No. 5 as part of the merger with Hendrick Motorsports' Nationwide teams. It was driven by Jimmie Johnson, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Martin Truex Jr., Mark Martin, Landon Cassill, Ron Fellows and Adrian Fernandez,[8] with sponsorship from Lowe's (Johnson and Fernandez), National Guard (Truex, Earnhardt Jr and Cassill), Delphi, (Martin) and Godaddy.com (Earnhardt and Fellows). The No. 5 car won two races in 2008, with Martin at Las Vegas and Ron Fellows in Montreal, the first NASCAR race run in the rain.

The 5 car returned in 2009 with sponsorship from Fastenal, GoDaddy.com, Unilever and Delphi. The team's best finish was a third with Earnhardt at Atlanta.

Danica Patrick driving the No. 7 in the 2012 Sargento 200

Danica Patrick (2010–2012)

The team changed numbers from No. 5 to No. 7 with Danica Patrick driving about 12 races for JR Motorsports with GoDaddy.com sponsorship in 2010. The remainder of the schedule was filled out with Scott Wimmer, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Landon Cassill, Steve Arpin, Josh Wise and J. R. Fitzpatrick. Patrick recorded a best finish of 4th at Las Vegas. Wise returned to the team for 2011, recording three top tens and one top-five in fourteen starts. Earnhardt Jr. drove the car at Talladega, and Cup drivers Jimmie Johnson, Kasey Kahne and Jamie McMurray drove the car for a combined six starts that season. Danica Patrick returned to the No. 7 in 2012, this time running a full schedule with sponsorship from GoDaddy, Tissot and Hot Wheels. Patrick departed JR Motorsports to compete full-time in the Cup Series for the 2013 season.

Regan Smith at Road America in 2014.

Regan Smith (2013–2015)

Regan Smith, a former teammate to Dale Earnhardt Jr. at DEI who served as his substitute driver in the Cup Series late in 2012, was signed to drive for the team in 2013. Initially announced to drive the No. 5 car, he would be moved to the No. 7. Smith won twice at Talladega and Michigan, but suffered a run of bad luck in the summer and finished third in points. In 2014, Regan Smith returned to drive the No. 7 car, starting the season with a win in the DRIVE4COPD 300 at Daytona. From there, he would go on to help JRM complete a one-two points finish behind Chase Elliott. In 2015, Regan Smith returned to the No. 7 full-time. He also gained two victories including Mid-Ohio and Dover. Following the Kansas race, Smith stated that he will not return for JR Motorsports in 2016.

Allgaier's No. 7 Camaro at Road America in 2017.

Justin Allgaier (2016–present)

Justin Allgaier would be later announced to be the new driver of the No. 7 Chevy, bringing sponsorship from BRANDT. After finishing the 2016 season 3rd in the final standings while going winless, he picked up two wins at Phoenix and Chicagoland in 2017 en route to another 3rd-place finish in the standings. In 2018, Allgaier had a career-best season winning 5 races at Dover, Iowa, Road America, Mid-Ohio and Indianapolis while also clinching the regular-season championship, but he ended up finishing 7th in the final standings after being eliminated in the round of 8. At the second-to last race of the 2019 season at Phoenix, Allgaier had possibly been set to finish 2nd for the sixth time of the year until he suddenly witnessed race leader Christopher Bell getting flagged for speeding on pit road at the end of Stage 2, nabbing his 1st victory of the season and 3rd Championship 4 appearance in the last four years after leading 85 laps. He finished 4th in the final points standings after finishing 14th at Homestead.

No. 8 in 2019

Multiple drivers (2019–present)

The No. 8, long driven by Earnhardt Jr. during his early Cup career with Dale Earnhardt, Inc., became a JRM number in 2019 after acquiring it from B. J. McLeod Motorsports.[4][17] The team inherited the No. 1 car points and it is being shared by Zane Smith, Brett Moffitt, Jeb Burton, Ryan Truex, Ryan Preece, Regan Smith, and Sheldon Creed.[4][18] Elliott and Earnhardt returned to the car for one-off races at Daytona and Darlington, respectively. For 2020, Jeb Burton, Dale Earnhardt Jr., and Daniel Hemric all share the No. 8 for 2020 with Hemric doing a majority of the driving.[19][20]

Chase Elliott at Road America in 2014.

Chase Elliott (2014–2015)

The No. 9 car made its debut in 2014, when an 18-year-old Hendrick development driver named Chase Elliott was signed to drive a fourth entry for JR Motorsports. The car was renumbered to 9, the longtime number of Chase's father Bill Elliott. In a surprise move, NAPA Auto Parts, which recently left Michael Waltrip Racing and was rumored to depart from the sport, signed on to sponsor the full season.[21] After the Boyd Gaming 300 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, the team was revealed to have violated Sections 12–4.2 (P2 penalty) and 20A–12.8.1B (car exceeded minimum front height) of the NASCAR rulebook. As a result, crew chief Greg Ives was placed on probation until December 31.[22] At the O'Reilly Auto Parts 300, Elliott passed teammate Kevin Harvick for his first Nationwide Series win.[23] Elliott's second win came in the VFW Sport Clips Help a Hero 200 at Darlington Raceway, where he led 52 laps. A late race caution and a slow pit stop would find Elliott restarting in 6th with just 2 laps to go. Elliott managed an outstanding feat of passing the 5 cars in front of him en route to his second win of the season. Elliott would win his third race of the season in the EnjoyIllinois.com 300 at Chicagoland Speedway after holding off Trevor Bayne.[24] Elliott won the 2014 Nationwide Series championship, the first rookie to win a NASCAR national series championship.

In 2015, Elliott returned to the No. 9 full-time to defend his championship, but only won one race at Richmond and finished 2nd in the final standings. Elliott's 2014 crew chief Greg Ives would move up to Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s Cup Series team, replaced by longtime Xfinity crew chief Ernie Cope. The No. 9 team did not race in 2016.[25]

William Byron (2017)

Byron's No. 9 at Road America in 2017

On August 18, 2016, William Byron and Hendrick Motorsports announced a multi-year driver development agreement, with Byron running full-time in the Xfinity Series driving the No. 9 Liberty University Chevrolet Camaro for JR Motorsports in 2017. It was the first time since 2014 that the No. 9 was driven by a rookie driver.[26] At the 2017 Ford Eco Boost 300, as William Byron and Elliott Sadler were battling late, Byron took advantage of Sadler's mistake of trying to pass Ryan Preece when he was too far back, slowing Sadler and allowing Byron to pass both drivers. When Sadler tried to follow, he made contact with Preece, sending Preece sideways and Sadler into the wall. After that Byron pulled away and finished 3rd, ultimately winning the championship and Rookie of the Year honors while winning four races at Iowa, Daytona, Indianapolis and Phoenix.

Tyler Reddick (2018)

Tyler Reddick's 2018 championship car

Tyler Reddick was signed to a full-time schedule for the 2018 Xfinity season, replacing William Byron, who was promoted to the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series. On February 17, 2018, Reddick beat teammate Elliott Sadler in a photo finish to win the season-opening race at Daytona. At a margin of .0004 seconds, it is the closest finish in NASCAR history. At the Ford EcoBoost 300, Reddick took advantage of pitting while leader Cole Custer stayed longer than him and won the race while also winning the championship, joining Chase Elliott and William Byron as the third different driver to win the championship and Rookie of the Year honors in the 9 car.

Noah Gragson (2019–2020)

Noah Gragson at Road America in 2019.

On December 18, 2018, it was announced that the No. 9 car will be driven by Zane Smith for 8 races while other drivers fill out the other 25 races; however, on January 25, 2019, it was announced that Noah Gragson would drive the No. 9 car full-time while Smith will run 8 races in the new No. 8 entry.[4] Gragson would be assigned to the car for another full-time season in 2020.

Mark McFarland, the team's first driver, in 2006.

Mark McFarland (2005-2006) and Shane Huffman (2006-2007)

The No. 88 debuted in 2005 at the Ford 300 with Mark McFarland driving with sponsorship from the United States Navy, qualifying eighteenth and finishing twentieth. McFarland was named the full-time driver and had a seventh-place finish at Talladega Superspeedway, but was replaced by Shane Huffman after twenty-one races,[27][28] with Martin Truex Jr. and Robby Gordon filling-in for certain races. Huffman was hired as the full-time driver in 2007, and had two top-ten finishes before he was released from the ride as well.[29]

Brad Keselowski (2007-2009)

Brad Keselowski earned six victories for the team from 2007 to 2009.

Brad Keselowski, son of former Craftsman Truck Series driver Bob Keselowski, was hired to replace Huffman for three races,[30] with SCCA driver Andy Pilgrim to be in the car for the road course races in Montreal and Watkins Glen.[31] Keselowski then returned at his hometown track Michigan.[32] He was involved in a hard crash at Fontana, in which he was tagged by a spinning car, collided head first and then driver side with the turn 1 wall, temporarily was airborne, and then rode the guardrail while his car was on fire before coming to a stop. Keselowski was taken to a local hospital,[33] and was later cleared to race at Richmond the next week. Keselowski finished the season with five top-ten finishes[34] Keselowski signed a two-year contract with JR Motorsports with the Navy returning as sponsor in 2008.[35] He won his first race at Nashville Superspeedway and later picked up another win at Bristol Motor Speedway, finishing third in points but lost the Navy sponsorship for 2009.[36] GoDaddy.com and Delphi Corporation sponsored the No. 88 for a total of 24 races in 2009, with Unilever brands sponsoring 11 races on the No. 88 car. Keselowski won four races and finished third in points for the second consecutive season before leaving for Penske Racing.

Multiple drivers (2010)

At the end of the 2009 season, Kelly Bires signed a two-year contract to drive for JR Motorsports in the No. 88 Chevy through 2011, with Earnhardt eager to see what Bires could do in his equipment.[37] Bires drove the No. 5 Ragu Chevy for Junior at Homestead in preparation for running full-time in 2010.[38] Due to sponsorship obligations with Unilever and their Hellmann's Mayonnaise brand, owner Dale Earnhardt Jr. ran the No. 88 car at the 2010 season opener at Daytona and Danica Patrick ran the No. 7 car with her sponsor GoDaddy.com, forcing Bires to sit out.[39] In his debut at Fontana, Bires scored a seventh-place finish. Even more curious than his missing Daytona was when Bires was removed from the No. 88 car in favor of Cup driver Jamie McMurray after only five races run, with only one finish below 17th (a crash at Las Vegas).[40] Earnhardt Jr. cited chemistry issues between Bires, JR Motorsports management, and the team including Tony Eury Sr. and Jr., and implied that Bires was taking a seat from "the next Brad Keselowski, the next Jeff Gordon." Bires was the third young driver to be hastily removed from the 88 car.[41] Elliott Sadler, Greg Sacks, Aric Almirola, Steve Arpin, Coleman Pressley, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Ron Fellows all ran races in the car to finish out the season. The No. 88 team took home one win in 2010, with McMurray victorious in the Great Clips 300 at Atlanta. They also came close to winning the inaugural race at Road America with Ron Fellows.

Aric Almirola driving the No. 88 car in the 2011 Bucyrus 200.

Aric Almirola (2010-2011)

Former DEI development driver Aric Almirola moved up from the Truck Series to drive the car full-time in 2011 as a part of a 2-year deal. With sponsorship from Unilever, Grand Touring Vodka, and TaxSlayer, Almirola ended up fourth in points in his first full-time season.

Whitt in 2012 at Road America

Cole Whitt (2012)

Almirola then left JRM after 2011 to join Richard Petty Motorsports in the Cup Series, while the No. 88 was taken by former Red Bull development driver Cole Whitt in 2012 for his rookie season. Whitt had a consistent rookie season despite switching crew chiefs from Tony Eury Sr. to Bruce Cook. Whitt recorded a best finish of 4th at Daytona, Talladega, and Michigan, finishing 7th in the point standings but lost the Rookie of the Year battle to Austin Dillon.

Part-time (2013-2018)

With the team unable to find sponsorship for Whitt for 2013, the No. 88 was used by Dale Jr. in his limited Nationwide Series schedule (to keep consistency with his Cup Series number). Dale Jr. and Kevin Harvick drove the car for the first two races of the 2014 season before switching the owners points to the No. 5. In 2015 the No. 5 team became the No. 88 team, and was driven by Dale Jr. in 4 races, Kevin Harvick in 12 races, Kasey Kahne in 7 races and Ben Rhodes in 10 races. On April 23, 2016, Dale Earnhardt Jr. piloted the No. 88 to victory at Richmond International Raceway, his first Xfinity win in six years and first with JR Motorsports.

It was announced in late-2016 that the No. 88 would be downgraded to a part-time ride for 2017 for Earnhardt Jr. and Kahne.[7]

Chase Elliott drove the No. 88 in the 2018 season opening race at Daytona. Despite being black flagged after losing a window, he still managed to finish 12th.[42] Earnhardt Jr. raced the car at the Federated Auto Parts 250 in Richmond, where he led a race-high 96 laps before finishing in fourth place.[43][44] Impressed by his finish, Earnhardt Jr. said he will try to run another race in the 2019 season.[45]

Cole Custer at Bristol in 2015.

Cole Custer (2015-2016)

On January 12, 2015, JR Motorsports announced that Haas Racing Development driver Cole Custer would drive a truck for the team in 10 races in 2015, marking the team's first foray into the Camping World Truck Series. Trucks were acquired from former Hendrick development partner Turner Scott Motorsports, after that team ceased operations. The team operates out of a satellite facility in Mooresville, North Carolina.[46][47] The truck's number (No. 00) and sponsor (Haas Automation) both came with the team from Haas Racing.

Under NASCAR's age requirement rules for the Truck Series, the 17-year-old Custer ran 10 races, all at tracks under 1.1 miles (1,800 m) in length (and Gateway Motorsports Park), with the team planning a full-time run in 2016 for the championship. Kasey Kahne, Kevin Harvick, Kyle Larson, Alex Bowman, and Jeb Burton also ran races in the No. 00 truck.[48] The No. 00 ran 15 races, winning twice: with Kahne at Charlotte in May, and with Custer at Gateway in June. In 2016, Custer won the pole at Canadian Tire Motorsports Park, and looked to be the car to beat. After leading the most laps, it seemed as though Custer would score his first win of the season and a spot in the inaugural chase, until John Hunter Nemechek put Custer into the grass and into the fence to win the race. After the race, Custer tackled Nemechek to the ground and was soon separated by NASCAR officials. No fines or penalties would be handed out to either driver.

In early January, 2017, JRM announced the end of their participation in truck racing - as to focus fully on their Xfinity Series entries.

In 2016, the team fielded a second truck numbered 49 for Nick Drake, like Cole Custer a Haas Racing Development driver, beginning at Dover. The entry was fielded in a collaboration with Premium Motorsports, a fellow Truck Series team which normally runs the No. 49. Drake's paint scheme is similar to Cole Custer's, with the same Haas Automation sponsorship.[49][50] In Drake's first career start at Dover, he finished a solid 16th.[51] Drake made his second start at Iowa Speedway.[51] The truck did not make any other starts with JR Motorsports equipment. Like the No. 00, the No. 49 was shut down due to sponsor Haas Automation leaving the team.

In 2016, JR Motorsports entered a second truck in collaboration with Contreras Motorsports for Chase Elliott in the Texas Roadhouse 200 at Martinsville Speedway with NAPA and Valvoline as co-sponsors. Elliott started on the pole and led 109 of 200 laps before finishing in 2nd.