Jay Robinson (auto racing)

Last updated
Jay Robinson
Born (1959-11-07) November 7, 1959 (age 64)
Occupation NASCAR team owner
Employer Premium Motorsports (owner)

Jay Robinson (born November 7, 1959) is an American auto racing executive who is a part-owner of Premium Motorsports (previously known as Jay Robinson Racing). Prior to this, Robinson earned his wealth in the wholesale grocery business. [1]

Contents

Racing career

Driver

Robinson first competed in the NASCAR All-American Series in 1998 and 1999. [1]

In 2000, he won six races in the series. [1]

Team owner

Jay Robinson Racing

Xfinity Series
Robbie Faggart in Robinson's car at the 2001 CVS Pharmacy 200 at New Hampshire International Speedway. Robbie Faggart Jay Robinson Racing Chevrolet Loudon 2001.jpg
Robbie Faggart in Robinson's car at the 2001 CVS Pharmacy 200 at New Hampshire International Speedway.

Robinson first competed as a team owner in the NASCAR Xfinity Series in 2000. [2] The team's first race was the Myrtle Beach 250 at Myrtle Beach Speedway with Rodney Childers driving the #49 Southern Marine Chevrolet Monte Carlo. [2] Childers started 33rd and finished 43rd (out of 43 cars) due to a crash after 69 laps. [3]

The team generally competed with different drivers in a particular car throughout the season. [2] The first season the team competed with the same driver was when Kenny Wallace drove the #28 United States Border Patrol Chevrolet Impala SS in 2008. [2] That season, Wallace got a best finish of 7th at the U.S. Cellular 250 at Iowa Speedway. [4] Wallace would also finish 11th in the final point standings. [5]

Robinson's team competed in the series through 2011, [2] getting a best finish of 3rd place with Wallace at the 2011 Kroger On Track for the Cure 250 at Memphis Motorsports Park. [6]

Kertus Davis in Robinson's car at the 2008 Camping World RV Sales 200 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. Davis frequently started and parked that season. He finished 35th in this race, claiming clutch issues. Kertus Davis's -49 car for Jay Robinson Racing sitting on pit road at NHMS in 2008.JPG
Kertus Davis in Robinson's car at the 2008 Camping World RV Sales 200 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. Davis frequently started and parked that season. He finished 35th in this race, claiming clutch issues.

Later in their history, the team often used the practice of starting and parking (starting a race with no intention of finishing the race to collect the prize money) to fund their primary car. [9] Robinson said of this activity, "The 28 car wouldn’t run without the start-and-park car. No chance. These haulers haul two cars. If you bring both of them in one transporter, you can make the numbers work out. If I brought only one car, I couldn’t make it work without more sponsorship. We’d race the 49 tomorrow, too, if there was a way." [9]

Robinson-Blakeney Racing

Robinson partnered with Houston, Texas, Texas businessman Troy Blakney to form Robinson-Blakeney Racing. [10]

Cup Series

In the Cup Series in 2012, the team fielded the #49 America Israel Racing/JPO Absorbents Toyota Camry with J. J. Yeley and later Jason Leffler serving as the drivers. [11]

Yeley drove the car through the Lenox Industrial Tools 301 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. [12] Yeley's best finish in the car was a 30th-place finish at the Food City 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway. [12]

Leffler then attempted six races later in the season, qualifying for three of them. [13] The best finish by Leffler in the car also came at Bristol, as he finished 31st at the Irwin Tools Night Race. [13]

Following the season, most of the team's equipment was put up for auction. [14]

Xfinity Series

The team also competed in the Xfinity Series in 2012 with Yeley, David Green, Derrike Cope, Kevin Lepage and Tony Raines driving the #28 JPO Absorbents Chevrolet Camaro and Dodge Challenger. [11]

Lepage would get the finish for the team, finishing 31st at the Ford EcoBoost 300 at Bristol Motor Speedway. [15]

NEMCO-JRR Motorsports

Prior to the 2013 season, Robinson merged his team with Joe Nemechek's NEMCO Motorsports. [16]

Cup Series
Nemechek at the 2013 NRA 500 at Texas Motor Speedway. Joe Nemechek NEMCO-JRR Toyota Texas April 2013.jpg
Nemechek at the 2013 NRA 500 at Texas Motor Speedway.

Nemechek drove the #87 Toyota Camry in 34 races, qualifying for 33 of them, getting a best finish of 25th place at the Camping World RV Sales 301 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. [17]

Tomy Drissi also drove the car at the two road course races, finishing 38th at the Toyota/Save Mart 350 at Sonoma Raceway and 42nd, due to a crash, at the Cheez-It 355 at The Glen at Watkins Glen International. [18]

Xfinity Series

Nemechek also drove the #87 AM/FM Energy Wood & Pellet Stoves/England's Stove Works Toyota Camry in 28 of 33 Xfinity Series races in 2013, with Lepage and Johnny Sauter driving the car at the Iowa Speedway races. [19]

During the season, Nemechek got a best finish of 14th place at the Royal Purple 300 at Auto Club Speedway. [20] Despite missing five races, Nemechek finished 19th in the final point standings with 513 points. [21]

Identity Ventures Racing

Prior to the 2014 season, Nemechek and Robinson created a partnership with five business leaders, including housing investor Nat Hardwick. [22] Michael Waltrip Racing later joined the team as a partner. [23]

Cup Series

The fielded the #66 BlueDEF Diesel Exhaust Fluid/Land Castle Title/Royal Teak Collection Toyota Camry with Michael Waltrip, Nemechek, Jeff Burton, Brett Moffitt, Drissi, Timmy Hill and Mike Wallace driving at various points in the year. [2] The car was run out of Waltrip's shop when Waltrip, Burton and Moffitt drove the car. [23] [24] Separate cars for the team were also driven by Nemechek, Hill and Wallace [2]

Burton got the best finish in the car with a 17th-place finish at the Kobalt 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. [25] Moffitt got the best finish in the car when it came out of Robinson's shop with a 22nd-place finish at the FedEx 400 at Dover International Speedway. [24]

It was later revealed that Hardwick embezzled at least $30 million from his companies, causing him and Land Castle Title (a company he was chief executive officer of) to be removed from the team. [26]

Premium Motorsports

After Identity Ventures' demise, Robinson reformed the team as Premium Motorsports. [27]

Cup Series
Brendan Gaughan's car at the 2015 Toyota/Save Mart 350 at Sonoma Raceway. Diagnostic tests - Toyota Save Mart 2015 - Sarah Stierch.jpg
Brendan Gaughan's car at the 2015 Toyota/Save Mart 350 at Sonoma Raceway.

The team started to compete in the Cup Series in 2015. Like Robinson's earlier Xfinity Series team, the team often uses multiple drivers in a car throughout the season. [2]

Since entering the Cup Series, Robinson has purchased various teams and folded them into his organization. These purchases started with purchasing Tommy Baldwin Racing's second car (namely the owners points and equipment). [28] Robinson subsequently purchased Phil Parsons Racing in 2015, Hillman Racing in 2016 and the remainder of Baldwin's team in 2017. [29] [30] [31]

At the 2016 AAA Texas 500 at Texas Motor Speedway, #55 Toyota Camry driven by Reed Sorenson was sponsored by Donald Trump's Presidential campaign, [32] which proved to be controversial. [33]

Kevin O'Connell practicing for the 2017 Toyota/Save Mart 350 at Sonoma Raceway. Kevin O Connell 2017 Toyota Save Mart 350 qualifying.jpg
Kevin O'Connell practicing for the 2017 Toyota/Save Mart 350 at Sonoma Raceway.
Tommy Regan practicing for the 2017 Toyota/Save Mart 350 at Sonoma Raceway. Tommy Regan 2017 Toyota Save Mart 350 qualifying.jpg
Tommy Regan practicing for the 2017 Toyota/Save Mart 350 at Sonoma Raceway.

A car owned by Robinson got its first top 10 finish in a Cup Series race when Michael Waltrip finished in 9th place at the 2017 Daytona 500. [34]

Truck Series

Premium Motorsports also began to compete in the Truck Series in 2015. The made their debut at the season-opening NextEra Energy Resources 250 at Daytona International Speedway with Travis Kvapil driving the #94 Chargebacks 911/MerchantSystems.com Chevrolet Silverado. [2] Kvapil qualified 2nd, but finished 15th, seven laps down. [35]

In 2017, Wendell Chavous started 21 of 23 races for the team, getting a best finish of 14th place at the Las Vegas 350 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. [36] Chavous would finish 16th in the final standings with 348 points. [37]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michael Waltrip</span> American racing driver, sports announcer, and businessman (born 1963)

Michael Curtis Waltrip is an American former professional stock car racing driver, racing commentator, racing team owner, amateur ballroom dancing competitor and published author. He is the younger brother of three-time NASCAR champion and racing commentator Darrell Waltrip. Waltrip is a two-time winner of the Daytona 500, having won the race in 2001 and 2003. He is also a pre-race analyst for the NASCAR Cup Series and color commentator for the Xfinity Series and the Craftsman Truck Series broadcasts for Fox Sports. He last raced in the 2017 Daytona 500, driving the No. 15 Toyota Camry for Premium Motorsports. All four of his NASCAR Cup Series wins came on superspeedways driving for Dale Earnhardt Inc.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joe Nemechek</span> American racing driver (born 1963)

Joseph Frank Nemechek III is an American professional stock car racing driver who last competed part-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driving the No. 24 Toyota Supra for Sam Hunt Racing. Nemechek has made the second most national series starts in NASCAR history. He claimed the record in 2019 after he passed seven-time Cup Series champion Richard Petty, but was surpassed by Kevin Harvick in 2021. Nemechek won the 1992 NASCAR Busch Series championship.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">J. J. Yeley</span> American racing driver (born 1976)

Christopher Beltram Hernandez "J. J." Yeley is an American professional stock car racing driver. He competes part-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 44 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 for NY Racing Team and part-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series driving the No. 14 Chevrolet Camaro for SS-Green Light Racing, and the No. 35 Toyota for Joey Gase Motorsports. He has previously competed in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, what is now the ARCA Menards Series, and what is now the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour as well as the IndyCar Series.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Reed Sorenson</span> American racing driver (born 1986)

Bradley Reed Sorenson is an American former professional stock car racing driver and spotter. He last competed part-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 27 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE for Premium Motorsports, the Nos. 74/77 Camaro for Spire Motorsports, and the No. 7 Camaro for Tommy Baldwin Racing. As of 2021, he works as a spotter for DGM Racing's No. 92 of Josh Williams in the NASCAR Xfinity Series. Sorenson began competing in NASCAR in 2004 as a Busch Series driver; he has four wins in the series. His first Cup start came in 2005 before moving to a full schedule the following year.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">David Reutimann</span> American racing driver

Emil David Reutimann is an American professional stock car racing crew chief and former driver. A native of Zephyrhills, Florida, he has competed in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, NASCAR Nationwide Series, and Camping World Truck Series. In 2004, he won NASCAR Rookie of the Year honors in the Craftsman Truck Series. He is the son of Buzzie Reutimann.

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

Joe Gibbs Racing (JGR) is an American professional stock car racing organization founded by Pro Football Hall of Fame coach Joe Gibbs. His son, J. D. Gibbs, ran the team with him until his death in 2019. Founded in Huntersville, North Carolina, in 1992. JGR has won five Cup Series championships.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michael Waltrip Racing</span> Former NASCAR team

Michael Waltrip Racing Holdings LLC, doing business as Michael Waltrip Racing ("MWR"), was an American professional stock car racing team that last competed full-time in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. The company was as a 50–50 partnership between Robert Kauffman, the founder and managing partner of Fortress Investment Group, and two-time Daytona 500 winner Michael Waltrip, who first established the team in 1996 in the Busch Series. The team was the first full-time three-car team to field Toyota Camrys when Toyota entered the Sprint Cup racing fold in 2007, before being joined by Joe Gibbs Racing in 2008. MWR was also the last original Toyota team in the Sprint Cup Series to still be in operation, as Bill Davis Racing and Red Bull Racing Team had both ceased operations in the preceding years.

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

Premium Motorsports was an American professional stock car racing team that competed in the NASCAR Cup Series. The team last fielded the No. 15 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 LE full-time for Brennan Poole, and the No. 27 Camaro part-time for Reed Sorenson.

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

NEMCO Motorsports is an American professional stock car racing team that competes in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series. The team is owned by driver Joe Nemechek and his family. NEMCO Motorsports has had success, winning the 1992 Busch Series Championship. The team previously competed in both Cup and Xfinity Series competition. NEMCO currently competes in late models.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michael McDowell (racing driver)</span> American racing driver (born 1984)

Michael Christopher McDowell is an American professional stock car racing driver. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 34 Ford Mustang Dark Horse for Front Row Motorsports. He has also raced in open-wheel and sports cars.

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

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Phil Parsons Racing</span> Former NASCAR team

Phil Parsons Racing, formerly named MSRP Motorsports, Prism Motorsports, and later HP Racing, was a NASCAR team that competed in the Sprint Cup Series and Nationwide Series. It was owned by former NASCAR driver Phil Parsons, and most recently fielded the No. 98 Ford for Josh Wise.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tommy Baldwin Racing</span> NASCAR team

Tommy Baldwin Racing is an American professional stock car racing team that currently competes in the modified ranks. The team is based in Mooresville, North Carolina, and is owned by former crew chief Tommy Baldwin Jr., son of the late modified driver Tom Baldwin.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ryan Truex</span> American racing driver (born 1992)

Ryan Matthew Truex is an American professional stock car racing driver. He competes part-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driving the No. 19 and 20 Toyota Supra for Joe Gibbs Racing. Truex's older brother Martin was the 2017 NASCAR Cup Series champion.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Josh Wise</span> American racing driver

Joshua Wise is an American former professional stock car racing and dirt track racing driver and athletic trainer. He is currently a trainer for Chevrolet's development program for upcoming drivers and oversees driver development for Pinnacle Racing Group.

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

BK Racing is a former 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.

Swan Racing was a stock car racing team that competed in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series until the 2014 season. The team was founded as Inception Motorsports which fielded a single No. 30 team in the Cup Series in 2011 and 2012 before being purchased by Swan Energy CEO Brandon Davis late in 2012. The team was headquartered in Mooresville, North Carolina in the United States. David Stremme was the team's original driver, before being replaced by rookies Cole Whitt and Parker Kligerman at the end of 2013. The team expanded to two teams in 2014 for Whitt and Kilgerman, attempting and qualifying for every event that season until the woes of sponsorship kicked in following the eighth race of the season. The team shut down in April 2014; its owners points, employees, and most of its assets moved to Xxxtreme Motorsport and BK Racing, though Parker Kligerman remained under contract through year's end.

Identity Ventures Racing was an American professional stock car racing team that last competed in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. The team was founded by Identity Ventures Owners James Hamilton and Mark Bailey, Atlanta-based investor Nat Hardwick and Jay Robinson, longtime owner of a Nationwide Series team. IVR formed before the 2014 NASCAR season, and was run out of Robinson's Nationwide Series shop. The team operated as a satellite team of Michael Waltrip Racing to handling that organization's research-and-development operations, using the equipment of Joe Nemechek, one of the team's drivers. Following lawsuits against Hardwick in August and September 2014, his ownership stake in the team passed back to Hamilton, Bailey and Robinson. The team folded after one season, and Robinson moved the equipment and owner's points to his own team, now known as Premium Motorsports.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">NY Racing Team</span> NASCAR team

NY Racing Team is an American professional stock car racing team in the NASCAR Cup Series. The team is owned by John Cohen, who is one of the few African-Americans to have owned a NASCAR team in a major touring series. They field the No. 44 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 part-time for J. J. Yeley, with car bodies supplied by Richard Childress Racing and engines by Hendrick Motorsports.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Jay Robinson". Premium Motorsports. April 17, 2017. Retrieved December 18, 2017.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 "Jay Robinson". Racing-Reference.info. Retrieved December 18, 2017.
  3. "2000 Myrtle Beach 250". Racing-Reference.info. Retrieved December 18, 2017.
  4. "Kenny Wallace-2009 NASCAR Nationwide Series Results". Racing-Reference.info. Retrieved December 18, 2017.
  5. "NASCAR Nationwide Series standings for 2009". Racing-Reference.info. Retrieved December 18, 2017.
  6. "2008 Kroger On Track For The Cure 250". Racing-Reference.info. Retrieved December 18, 2017.
  7. "Kertus Davis-2008 NASCAR Nationwide Series Results". Racing-Reference.info. Retrieved December 18, 2017.
  8. "2008 Camping World RV Sales 200 Presented by RVs.com". Racing-Reference.info. Retrieved December 18, 2017.
  9. 1 2 Zeller, Bob (February 2009). "The Quitting Game". Car and Driver. Retrieved December 18, 2017.
  10. Team Release (January 16, 2012). "Robinson-Blakeney Racing to field Cup car in 2012". NASCAR.com. Retrieved December 21, 2017.
  11. 1 2 "Robinson-Blakeney Racing". Racing-Reference.info. Retrieved December 21, 2017.
  12. 1 2 "J.J. Yeley-2012 NASCAR Sprint Cup Results". Racing-Reference.info. Retrieved December 21, 2017.
  13. 1 2 "Jason Leffler-2012 NASCAR Sprint Cup Results". Racing-Reference.info. Retrieved December 21, 2017.
  14. Steven, Ellis (October 24, 2012). "Robinson-Blakeney Racing for Sale". TheRacingExperts.Com. Retrieved December 21, 2017.
  15. "2012 Ford EcoBoost 300". Racing-Reference.info. Retrieved December 21, 2017.
  16. Press Release (February 5, 2013). "NEMCO and Jay Robinson Racing join together to field No 87 in 2013". Speedway Digest. Retrieved December 21, 2017.
  17. "Joe Nemechek-2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Results". Racing-Reference.info. Retrieved December 21, 2017.
  18. "Tomy Drissi-2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Results". Racing-Reference.info. Retrieved December 21, 2017.
  19. "Joe Nemechek". Racing-Reference.info. Retrieved December 21, 2017.
  20. "Joe Nemechek-2013 NASCAR Nationwide Series Results". Racing-Reference.info. Retrieved December 21, 2017.
  21. "NASCAR Nationwide Series standings for 2013". Racing-Reference.info. Retrieved December 21, 2017.
  22. Wilson, Steven B. (January 29, 2014). "Identity Ventures Racing Launches NASCAR Cup Team". Speedway Digest. Retrieved December 22, 2017.
  23. 1 2 Benton, Dan (February 1, 2014). "Michael Waltrip Racing and Jay Robinson Racing Partner to Run the No. 66 for Full Season". Speedway Digest. Retrieved December 22, 2017.
  24. 1 2 "Brett Moffitt-2014 NASCAR Sprint Cup Results". Racing-Reference.info. Retrieved December 22, 2017.
  25. "Jeff Burton-2014 NASCAR Sprint Cup Results". Racing-Reference.info. Retrieved December 22, 2017.
  26. Lane, Ben (September 3, 2014). "What's the latest with Nat Hardwick and LandCastle Title?". HousingWire. Retrieved December 22, 2017.
  27. "#55 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Team News and Links". Jayski. October 18, 2017. Retrieved December 22, 2017.
  28. Estrada, Chris (February 6, 2015). "NASCAR: Jay Robinson buys Tommy Baldwin Racing's No. 36 team, re-numbers to No. 62". NBC Sports. Retrieved December 22, 2017.
  29. Wolkin, Joseph (August 6, 2015). "Premium Motorsports Officially Completes Purchase of Phil Parsons Racing". Frontstretch.com. Retrieved December 22, 2017.
  30. Haverlin, John (January 5, 2016). "Premium Motorsports Buys Out Hillman Racing". Popular Speed. Retrieved December 22, 2017.
  31. "Premium Motorsports Acquires TBR". Motor Racing Network. September 21, 2017. Archived from the original on October 14, 2017. Retrieved December 22, 2017.
  32. Tsuji, Alysha (November 4, 2016). "Sprint Cup driver to race car with Donald Trump paint scheme at Texas Motor Speedway". For The Win-USA Today Sports. Retrieved December 22, 2017.
  33. Schrader, Stef (November 3, 2016). "God Willing We'll Never See This Trump-Branded Race Car Again After This Weekend". Jalopnik. Retrieved December 22, 2017.
  34. "2017 Daytona 500". Racing-Reference.info. Retrieved December 22, 2017.
  35. "2015 NextEra Energy Resources 250". Racing-Reference.info. Retrieved December 22, 2017.
  36. "Wendell Chavous-2017 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Results". Racing-Reference.info. Retrieved December 22, 2017.
  37. "NASCAR Camping World Truck Series standings for 2017". Racing-Reference.info. Retrieved December 22, 2017.