Bang! Racing

Last updated
BANG Racing
Bang! Racing logo.gif
Owner(s)Alex Meshkin, Larry McReynolds, George Blacker
Base Mooresville, North Carolina
Series Craftsman Truck Series
Race drivers Travis Kvapil, Mike Skinner
Sponsors Line-X, Toyota
ManufacturerToyota
Opened 2003
Closed 2005
Career
Drivers' Championships 0
Race victories2

Bang! Racing is a former NASCAR team. It was majority owned by entrepreneur Alex Meshkin, and minority owned by both crew chief and analyst Larry McReynolds and its 'hands off' seed investor George Blacker, LTD- each with a 5% minority equity share. Bang! Racing fielded entries in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series. It only ran one full season, in 2004.

Contents

History

Car No. 24/42 history

Travis Kvapil's No. 24 truck after winning the team's first race Nascar 1st Win pic.jpg
Travis Kvapil's No. 24 truck after winning the team's first race

The team was founded in 2003 by Alex Meshkin, an internet entrepreneur who had achieved notoriety by losing more than $3 million of investors' money in his failed Surfbuzz.com venture. [1] [2] [3] Initially planning to race in the then-Winston Cup Series by purchasing Andy Petree Racing, [4] [5] the team instead signed a three-year contract with manufacturer Toyota to run in the Craftsman Truck Series as one of four new and independent of Toyota race teams to utilize Toyota Tundra's for Toyota's debut into NASCAR. Meshkin also recruited Larry McReynolds as a part-owner and vice president [4] [5] [6] and he received $400,000 of seed money from investor George Blacker's investor group which was used to procure a racing shop which was a contingent requirement dictated by Toyota in order to be granted a Toyota race team contract. [7] Accordingly, the team then leased operating race shop space from veteran driver Jimmy Spencer. [5] [8] The team was named after one of Meshkin's companies, Bang Technology Software. [6] [9]

The team made its debut at a Daytona International Speedway race in February of 2004. Its two drivers were Travis Kvapil in the No. 24 Line-X Truck and Mike Skinner in the No. 42 Toyota Truck. It marked the first time in series history two former champions raced for the same operation. [10] [11] By lap 15 of the race, both Bang! Racing drivers had already led the race. Kvapil finished second in the race, while Skinner finished 28th due to a crash. [12] Bang! also announced plans to run several late-season Cup Series races, with sponsorship from eBay. [10] [12] [13] From then on, Bang! lived up to its namesake, with Kvapil racking up two victories, including the first NASCAR win for a Toyota at Michigan, earning one "fast time" qualifier pole, and finished in eighth-place in season points. [5] Skinner, despite not winning a race, had two poles during his tenure with the team. Meshkin meanwhile was credited for his salesmanship abilities, as he recruited sponsors such as Line-X and eBay. [5] [12] [14] Later in the year Meshkin announced he would field the No. 82 Dodge in the Busch Series in 2005, with Kvapil at the wheel. [5] He also began negotiations for a potential NEXTEL Cup Series team (the No. 28 Dodge) with driver Ward Burton and NetZero sponsoring; both were with Haas CNC Racing at the time. The Cup Series deal ultimately fell through. [15]

However, trouble soon began brewing within the organization. Despite the team's success, McReynolds left the team in July due to funding and financial disagreements with Meshkin, including unpaid bills to suppliers. [5] [14] In August, Toyota ended its factory support of the team due to the departure of McReynolds, with the No. 42 team shutting down and driver Mike Skinner moving to Bill Davis Racing. [5] [14] Toyota later maintained its agreement until the end of the season which saw Bang! Racing end that season as the first race team to both lead a lap and win a race for Toyota Racing in a major NASCAR series. [5] [14] But after the season, several key executives at Bang resigned, and in January 2005, Bang let all of its help go and closed down its shop. [5] Blacker wrote off his Bang! Racing seed investment money as a complete loss.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series</span> Pickup truck racing series

The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series is a pickup truck racing series owned and operated by the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, and is the only series in NASCAR to race production pickup truck-based stock cars. The series is one of three national divisions of NASCAR, ranking as the third tier behind the second-tier NASCAR Xfinity Series and the top level NASCAR Cup Series.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mike Skinner (racing driver)</span> American racing driver

Michael Curtis Skinner is an American former stock car racing driver. He has competed in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, NASCAR Busch Series and NASCAR Camping World Truck Series. He has most recently driven the No. 98 Ford Fusion for Phil Parsons Racing in the Cup Series. He is the father of former NASCAR drivers Jamie Skinner and Dustin Skinner. He was born in Susanville, California. Skinner failed to win a single race in his NASCAR Cup career.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Travis Kvapil</span> American racing driver

Travis Wade Kvapil is an American professional stock car driver. He last competed part-time in the NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series, driving the No. 1 Chevrolet Silverado for Beaver Motorsports.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">RFK Racing</span> NASCAR racing team

Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing, doing business as RFK Racing, is an American professional stock car organization that currently competes in the NASCAR Cup Series. One of NASCAR's largest racing teams in the 2000s and early 2010s, Roush formerly ran teams in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, ARCA Menards Series, Trans-Am Series and IMSA Camel GT. The team currently fields the No. 6 Ford Mustang GT full-time for driver/co-owner Brad Keselowski and the No. 17 Mustang full-time for Chris Buescher.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Arnold Motorsports</span> Former NASCAR team

Arnold Motorsports was a NASCAR Nextel Cup Series team operated by Don Arnold, owner of Arnold Development Companies and Arnold & Arnold Real Estate. 1983 Winston Cup champion Bobby Allison was the Vice President of operations and also served a consultant. From 2004 to 2005, the team formed a partnership with then-Craftsman Truck Series team Germain Racing as Germain-Arnold Racing, although Germain fielded Toyota Tundras in the Truck Series while the Cup Series team fielded Dodges.

Front Row Motorsports (FRM) is an American professional stock car racing team that currently competes in the NASCAR Cup Series and NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series. The team began running part-time in 2004 as Means-Jenkins Motorsports under a partnership with Jimmy Means and restaurant entrepreneur Bob Jenkins, with Jenkins becoming the full team owner in 2005. In the Cup Series, FRM currently fields two Ford Mustang GT teams full-time: The No. 34 for Michael McDowell and the No. 38 for Todd Gilliland and Zane Smith. It also fields the No. 36 part-time for Zane Smith and Todd Gilliland. In the Truck Series, they field the No. 38 Ford F-150 for Zane Smith.

Xpress Motorsports was a NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series team. The team won the Truck Series championship in 2002 and 2003 with Mike Bliss and Travis Kvapil, respectively. The team was owned by Steve Coulter until 2004, when he sold the team to then team manager Dave Fuge, who owned the team until 2007 when the team was sold to J. B. Scott. In late 2009 the team was again sold to Sprint Cup Series driver Kyle Busch.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Randy Moss Motorsports</span> American truck racing team

Randy Moss Motorsports with HTM was a NASCAR Camping World Truck Series team. It was owned by David Dollar and NFL Hall of Fame wide receiver Randy Moss. Former driver Rob Morgan co-owned the team until 2004.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">San Bernardino County 200</span> American motor racing event

The San Bernardino County 200 is a discontinued NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race held at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, California. It was first held in 1997, the year Auto Club Speedway opened, and last held in 2009. The race had been held as the second race of the Truck Series season since 2005, but was removed from the schedule after 2009 in order to save teams money in travel costs, no longer forcing them to travel from east coast to west coast for a race.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Henry Ford Health System 200</span> Annual auto race at Michigan International Speedway

The Henry Ford Health System 200 was a NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series race that took place at Michigan International Speedway. The event was started in 1999 and was won by Greg Biffle. In 2001 Michigan did not hold a Truck race because of date conflicts with the CART event which it had been associated. The 2004 race marked the first win for Toyota in a national NASCAR series when Travis Kvapil won for Bang! Racing. The race was removed from the 2021 schedule.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2007 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series</span> 13th season of third-tier NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series

The 2007 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series season was the thirteenth season of the third highest stock car racing series in North America. Sanctioned by NASCAR, the season began on February 16, 2007, at Daytona International Speedway with the Chevy Silverado HD 250, and ended on November 16, 2007, with the Ford 200 at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Ron Hornaday Jr. of Kevin Harvick, Inc. was crowned champion.

Since its introduction to motorsport in the early 1970s, Toyota has been involved in a number of motorsport activities, most notably in Formula One, NASCAR, IndyCar, sports car racing, various off road rallies and the WRC. Currently, Toyota participates in the Toyota Racing Series, Super Formula, Formula Three, Formula Drift, NHRA, USAC, Super GT, NASCAR, the WRC and the WEC.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kyle Busch Motorsports</span> American stock car racing team

Kyle Busch Motorsports (KBM) is an American professional stock car racing team that currently competes in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series. They formerly competed in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, CARS Tour, ARCA/CRA Super Series, Southern Super Series, ARCA Menards Series, ARCA Menards Series East, and ARCA Menards Series West, and is also the parent company of Super Late Model chassis constructor Rowdy Manufacturing. Originally fielding Toyota Tundras since its inception, the team switched to Chevrolet Silverados beginning in 2023. The team currently fields two full-time Chevrolet Silverados: the No. 4 for Chase Purdy and the No. 51, which is driven each year by the team owner Kyle Busch along with Jack Wood and multiple Chevrolet drivers from other NASCAR series to be named in the future.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2011 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series</span> 17th season of third-tier NASCAR Camping World Truck Series

The 2011 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series was the seventeenth season of the third highest stock car racing in the United States. The season included twenty-five races, beginning with the NextEra Energy Resources 250 at Daytona International Speedway and ending with the Ford 200 at Homestead-Miami Speedway. During the 2010 season, NASCAR announced a few notable calendar changes, including a race addition at Kentucky Speedway and the removal of Gateway International Raceway from the schedule. DeLana Harvick won the owners' championship, while Austin Dillon of Richard Childress Racing won the drivers' championship with a tenth-place finish at the final race of the season. Chevrolet won the manufacturers' championship with 193 points.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">BK Racing</span> Stock car racing team

BK Racing was an American professional stock car racing team that fielded entries in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series from 2012 to 2018. It most recently fielded the No. 23 Toyota Camry and Ford Fusion for J. J. Yeley, Gray Gaulding, and other drivers. In 2018, the team was involved in a court case involving team owner Ron Devine and Union Bank & Trust Company over outstanding loans. In August of that year, after being turned over to a trustee who oversaw the team's operations, BK Racing was liquidated, with the assets going to Front Row Motorsports. However, BK Racing still fielded a car until the end of the 2018 season, with help from Front Row Motorsports and NY Racing Team.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Athenian Motorsports</span> Former NASCAR team

Athenian Motorsports was an American professional stock car racing team that last competed in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, the Camping World Truck Series, and the ARCA Racing Series. In the Xfinity Series, the team last fielded the No. 05 Zaxby's Chevrolet Camaro part-time for John Wes Townley. In the Camping World Truck Series, the team last fielded the No. 05 Zaxby's Chevrolet Silverado full-time for part-time drivers: John Wes Townley, Parker Kligerman, Brady Boswell, Cody Coughlin, and Matt DiBenedetto. In the ARCA Racing Series, the team last fielded the No. 05 Zaxby's Chevrolet Impala part-time for Townley. The team was sponsored by Zaxby's Chicken Restaurants, co-founded by John Wes' father and team owner Tony Townley, and the team name is likely a reference to the company's home in Athens, Georgia. The team closed down in 2017, and sold its owner points to MDM Motorsports' No. 99 team.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2016 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series</span> 22nd season of third-tier NASCAR Camping World Truck Series

The 2016 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series was the 22nd season of the Camping World Truck Series, the third highest stock car racing series sanctioned by NASCAR in North America. It was contested over twenty-three races, beginning with the NextEra Energy Resources 250 at Daytona International Speedway and ending with the Ford EcoBoost 200 at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Johnny Sauter of GMS Racing won the driver's championship with three victories. Toyota won the manufacturer's championship with 14 wins and 32 points over Chevrolet.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2017 NASCAR Xfinity Series</span> 36th season of second-tier NASCAR Xfinity Series

The 2017 NASCAR Xfinity Series was the 36th season of the Xfinity Series, a stock car racing series sanctioned by the NASCAR in the United States. The season began with the PowerShares QQQ 300 at Daytona International Speedway and ended with the Ford EcoBoost 300 at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Daniel Suárez was the defending drivers' champion while Toyota was the defending manufacturer's champion, although Suárez couldn't defend his title due to him racing in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2018 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series</span> 24th season of third-tier NASCAR Camping World Truck Series

The 2018 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series was the 24th season of the third highest stock car racing series sanctioned by NASCAR in North America. Christopher Bell entered as the defending champion, but he did not defend his championship, leaving his No. 4 Kyle Busch Motorsports entry to a number of drivers throughout the season, with Todd Gilliland covering the majority of the schedule in the truck. Title sponsor Camping World Holdings rebranded the series with their Gander Outdoors brand they acquired in 2017 for the 2019 season, replacing the Camping World brand.

Jay Robinson is an American auto racing executive who is a part-owner of Premium Motorsports. Prior to this, Robinson earned his wealth in the wholesale grocery business.

References

  1. ↑ "Wipeout! Surfbuzz Goes Under". Wired. 6 June 2000. Retrieved 23 June 2018. If ever a startup embraced the whole make-a-fast-buck, dot-com ethos, it was Surfbuzz.com, an auction site that awarded expensive prizes to its customers. The only buzzing to be heard now is from the flies swarming over the corpse of Surfbuzz, which said Tuesday that it is going out of business.
  2. ↑ Walker, Leslie (25 November 1999). "Brothers With a Selling Point". Washington Post. Retrieved 26 June 2018.
  3. ↑ Dean, Katie (26 October 1999). "Teen trades education for e-biz". Wired. Retrieved 26 June 2018.
  4. 1 2 "Toyota confirms Truck Series teams". crash.net. November 15, 2003. Retrieved 12 April 2016.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Ashenfelter, Mark (May 16, 2005). "Broken dreams". Scene Daily . Archived from the original on 2012-02-04. Retrieved 12 April 2016.
  6. 1 2 Brinster, Dick (June 12, 2004). "Young millionaire trying to win racing championships". The St. Augustine Record, Associated Press . Retrieved 12 April 2016.
  7. ↑ Hyman, Mark (February 7, 2005). "A Wild Ride in Nascar". Bloomberg News . Archived from the original on 2016-04-22. Other refugees from the race team.....is Investor George Blacker....
  8. ↑ Jenkins, Chris (September 11, 2004). "Spencer growing impatient with race shop buyer". USA Today . Richmond, Virginia . Retrieved 12 April 2016.
  9. ↑ Chemris, Thomas (March 29, 2004). "Bang Racing showing championship form". motorsport.com. Retrieved 12 April 2016.
  10. 1 2 James, Brant (February 11, 2004). "Aid urged for family in speedway death". St. Petersburg Times . Daytona Beach, Florida . Retrieved 12 April 2016.
  11. ↑ Rose, Shannon (February 8, 2004). "Kvapil Out To Defend His Title: Travis Kvapil Will Drive A Toyota Tundra For Alex Meshkin, His Third Racing Team In As Many Seasons". Orlando Sentinel . Retrieved 12 April 2016.
  12. 1 2 3 "Bang Racing embarks on its first season". motorsport.com. February 29, 2004. Retrieved 12 April 2016.
  13. ↑ "NASCAR series gets Ebay sponsorship". San Francisco Business Times . February 24, 2004. Retrieved 12 April 2016.
  14. 1 2 3 4 Hyman, Mark; Burke, Jordan; France, Mike; Cady, John (February 7, 2005). "A Wild Ride At NASCAR: How a whiz kid talked his way into owning a race team -- and then hit a wall". Bloomberg News . Retrieved 12 April 2016.
  15. ↑ "Bang Racing goes Nutzz". crash.net. 2004. Retrieved 12 April 2016.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.