GMS Racing
GMS Racing, formerly known as Gallagher Motorsports, is an American professional stock car racing team that currently competes in the NASCAR Xfinity Series and the NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series. In the NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series, the team currently fields the No. 2 Chevrolet Silverado full-time for Sheldon Creed, the No. 21 Silverado full-time for Zane Smith, the No. 23 Silverado full-time for Brett Moffitt, the No. 26 Silverado full-time for Tyler Ankrum, and the No. 24 Silverado part-time for Chase Elliott, Chase Purdy, Justin Haley, Sam Mayer, and David Gravel. GMS Racing has a technical alliance with Hendrick Motorsports. The team had formerly competed in the ARCA Menards Series from 2011 to 2015. But did return in 2019.
Owner Maurice J. Gallagher Jr. is the chairman and CEO of Allegiant Travel Company, which sponsors the team.
History
The team started around 2006, when Maurice Gallagher helped local driver and friend Spencer Clark gain NASCAR Busch East Series and Busch Series rides.The team entered ARCA competition in 2011, Camping World Truck competition in 2013, and Xfinity Series competition in 2016. The team was initially based in Charlotte, North Carolina, in the former facility of BAM Racing. This shop is currently used by BK Racing.
For the 2014 season, the team acquired the assets of Richard Childress Racing's truck series program, and entered a technical alliance with the organization. In 2015, former crew chief Mike Beam became competition director, while RCR and manufacturer Chevrolet increased their technical support. In addition, the team relocated from Charlotte to Statesville, North Carolina near the Statesville Regional Airport. This was the former facility of Evernham Motorsports and later Richard Petty Motorsports, which had been unoccupied since 2010. GMS also began using the number font formerly used by Braun Racing and Turner Scott Motorsports. As of 2016, the No. 21 team in the Xfinity Series uses the same number font as Wood Brothers Racing, alternating with the number style of the rest of the team. In early 2017, the team formed an alliance with Halmar Friesen Racing. This alliance was expanded in August of that year.
In early 2019 it was announced that GMS Racing had started a Chevrolet development program, Drivers Edge Development, with JR Motorsports. Drivers in the program would race in GMS Racing's NASCAR K&N Pro Series, ARCA Menards Series, and NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series teams, as well as JR Motorpsorts's Late Model and NASCAR Xfinity Series teams. They will be mentored by Mardy Lindley and Josh Berry. GMS Racing drivers John Hunter Nemechek, Sheldon Creed, and Sam Mayer were among the inaugural members of the program.
Xfinity Series
Car No. 23 history
;Part-timeOn February 4, 2016, GMS announced that they would field a part-time Chevrolet Camaro for Spencer Gallagher for 13 races starting at Phoenix. The car number would be 21. Gallagher finished 23rd in that race. Gallagher ran a total of seven races in the No. 21 car in 2016, with a best finish of eight in the Daytona July race.
;Spencer Gallagher
On December 1, 2016, GMS announced that they will field a full-time No. 23 Chevrolet Camaro for Spencer Gallagher. Gallagher had a disappointing rookie season, with just only one top 10 at Richmond and eight DNF's in the 2017 season. The organization scored its first NXS victory with Gallagher in spring 2018 at Talladega Superspeedway. On May 2, 2018, four days after his first win, NASCAR announced that Gallagher was suspended indefinitely for a substance abuse violation. Johnny Sauter was announced as a substitute driver. Brennan Poole tested the car at Charlotte, leading some to believe that he would drive in the Charlotte race later that month. However, it was later announced that Cup Series driver Chase Elliott would be in the car for that race, as well as the races at Pocono, Chicagoland, Daytona, and Bristol. Alex Bowman was later announced as the driver of the 23 at Michigan and Kentucky while Justin Haley drove the 23 at Iowa in his XFINITY Series debut. Casey Roderick made his return to the series driving the 23 at the July Iowa race and it was also announced later that night that A. J. Allmendinger would pilot the 23 at Watkins Glen the following weekend.
On August 4, 2018, GMS Racing announced that NASCAR Hall of Famer and 1988 NASCAR Winston Cup Series champion Bill Elliott will come out of retirement to drive the No. 23 at the Road America race on August 25.
;John Hunter Nemechek
John Hunter Nemechek ran the full season in the No. 23 in 2019 getting a highest finish of third at two races before finishing seventh in points.
Car No. 24 history
;Ben KennedyOn April 17, 2017, it was announced that Ben Kennedy would pilot a new second Xfinity entry for GMS in twelve races, beginning with the May race at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Jeff Stankiewicz, who was Kennedy's crew chief for his 2016 Chase run in the trucks, was also crew chief for the No. 96. Brett Moffitt drove the 96 at the second Iowa race picking up an 11th-place finish. The No. 96 team has not run since Darlington Raceway and has withdrawn from some races after that with no sponsor listed.
;Justin Haley
Although it was rumored for many months Brennan Poole and Brett Moffitt would drive the car full-time sharing the car in 2018, the car didn't return till later in the year renumbered to the No. 24. with Justin Haley driving the car in 2018 at Daytona in July and Watkins Glen in August. At the Daytona race, Haley was running third on the last lap off of turn 4 who then made an elevator move to pass both Kyle Larson and Elliott Sadler to cross the line first, though it was determined that Haley put two wheels below the line while passing both even though he had plenty of room to pass. They stripped Haley of the win to Kyle Larson and Haley was placed as the last car on the lead lap. Many thought this would be Haley's ride for 2019 but he moved onto Kaulig Racing instead.
Closure
On November 21, 2019, GMS Racing announced they will shut down their Xfinity Series program to focus on their NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series and ARCA Menards Series teams.Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series
Truck No. 2 history
;Cody CoughlinOn January 16, 2018, it was announced that Cody Coughlin would drive the No. 2 JEGS Chevrolet for the 2018 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series.
On September 24, 2018, Coughlin was released due to sponsorship issues. Spencer Gallagher drove the Talladega race where he finished 25th. Sheldon Creed was announced as the driver for the rest of the season.
;Sheldon Creed
Sheldon Creed took over the No. 2 truck full-time in 2019. On July 22, 2019, GMS Racing announced that Jeff Stankiewicz would replace Doug Randolph as the crew chief of the No. 2. On August 6, 2019, NASCAR suspended Stankiewicz, truck chief Austin Pollak, and engineer Jonathan Stewart for three races through September 10 after the No. 2 truck was discovered to have a ballast container violation during post-race inspection at Eldora. Darren Fraley served as interim crew chief during Stankiewicz's suspension.
Truck No. 21 history
;Spencer GallagherThe 21 made 5 attempts in 2013 with Spencer Gallagher, qualifying for 3 races. Gallagher finished 22nd at Kansas, 20th at Texas, and 32nd at the season finale at Homestead.
;Joey Coulter
In January 2014, it was announced that 23-year-old Joey Coulter would drive the 21 Silverado full-time for GMS after driving Toyotas in 2013 for Kyle Busch Motorsports and Joe Gibbs Racing. GMS also announced a technical alliance with RCR, the team Coulter drove for in 2011 and 2012 and won at Pocono. Jeff Stankiewicz was announced as the crew chief. Coulter earned three top 5s and ten top 10s to finish 7th in points.
;Part-time
Due to a lack of sponsorship, Joey Coulter did not return to the driver's seat in 2015. Instead, he assumed the post of team relationships coordinator for the team. At Las Vegas in October, Brennan Poole made his series debut in the 21 Truck with sponsorship from DC Solar.
;Johnny Sauter
Johnny Sauter drove full-time in 2016 in the No. 21 Chevrolet Silverado with crew chief Marcus Richmond. Sauter won in his debut with GMS at Daytona. However, in the next 3 races, he finished 28th, 32nd, and 16th respectively. Sauter won at a fall Martinsville race to clinch a final four championship race at Homestead. In the next week, Sauter won at a fall Texas race, his third victory of the season. Sauter clinched his first career Truck Series championship at Homestead by virtue of his 3rd-place finish in the event.
Sauter returned to the team in 2017. After qualifying for the Championship 4 round in 2017 and 2018, but losing to Christopher Bell and Brett Moffitt in each year respectively, Sauter was released from the team due to lack of sponsorship, in order to make room for Brett Moffitt in 2019.
;Sam Mayer
It was later announced that Sam Mayer would drive the 21 on a part-time schedule towards the end of the 2019 season.
;Zane Smith
On November 19, 2019, it was announced that Zane Smith would drive a fourth full-time truck for the 2020 season, which was later revealed to be the No. 21.
Truck No. 23 history
;Spencer GallagherThe No. 23 truck ran part-time in 2014, with Spencer Gallagher and Max Gresham. The team struggled in their first three races, with crashes at Martinsville and Kansas with Gallagher and a transmission failure with Gresham at Charlotte. They bounced back with an 11th at Kentucky with Gresham and top 15's at Iowa, Pocono, and Michigan with Gallagher. Gallagher earned a career best finish of third at Talladega in October.
In a 2014 interview with NASCAR.com, Spencer Gallagher stated that he planned to run full-time in the Truck Series in 2015, presumably in the No. 23. The No. 23 truck was announced as a full-time team with Gallagher in January 2015. He then finished 10th in the points standings.
Gallagher returned for 2016 with new crew chief Jeff Hensley. He earned two poles, with one top-five and eight top-10s to finish 12th in points.
;Part-time
In 2017 the No. 23 truck returned to the track, now part-time, with Spencer Gallagher and Chase Elliott driving. At Martinsville Elliott got the first win for the No. 23 truck. The No. 23 team decided to shut down for the remainder of the season and sold their owner points to Norm Benning Racing.
A year later, the No. 23 team returned with Timothy Peters driving at Martinsville, getting a top 10.
;Brett Moffitt
On December 13, 2019, it was announced that Brett Moffitt would be driving the No. 23 full-time in 2020 with Chad Norris as his crew chief.
Truck No. 24 history
;Part-timeIn 2016, GMS Racing fielded the No. 24 for Kyle Larson at Martinsville, with sponsorship from McDonald's. Clint Bowyer drove the No. 24 at Kansas with sponsorship from Georgia Boot, finishing 5th in his first truck start since 2014. Ben Kennedy drove the truck at Dover as part of his multi-race stint with the team, with Kaz Grala in the No. 33. Grala then drove the truck at Iowa in June, starting fourth and finishing 29th. Grant Enfinger also ran several races. On October 22, Enfinger won the Fred's 250 at Talladega Superspeedway for his first career win. Shane Lee drove the No. 24 at Texas with sponsorship from LeeBoy at Texas where he finished 16th. Grala ran seven races in the No. 24 out of his nine Truck Series starts, with a best finish of seventh at New Hampshire.
;Justin Haley
In December 2016, GMS announced that K&N Pro Series East champion Justin Haley would drive the No. 24 truck full-time in 2017, skipping Daytona and Atlanta due to age restrictions. Scott Lagasse Jr drove the truck at Daytona, and Alex Bowman drove at Atlanta. Haley finished 12th in points, collecting 3 top fives and 12 top tens.
Haley won his first Truck Series race at Gateway in 2018, holding off Todd Gilliland and teammate Johnny Sauter, qualifying for the 2018 Camping World Truck Series Playoffs.
He won his way into the Round of 6 at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park, after Kyle Busch Motorsports teammates Noah Gragson and Todd Gilliland collided in the final corner. Haley then qualified for the Final 4 race with a win at Texas Motor Speedway, after Gilliland ran out of fuel on the final lap.
;Brett Moffitt
On January 10, 2019, GMS Racing announced that 2018 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series champion Brett Moffitt will be in the No. 24 team. Moffitt won his first race with GMS at Iowa after Ross Chastain was disqualified when his truck failed the post-race inspection. He then took an unsponsored truck to victory lane at Chicagoland. Moffitt scored the first playoff win at Bristol, as well as winning the week after at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park.
;Part-time
On October 25, 2019, it was announced that the No. 24 truck would be driven by Sam Mayer for 5 races and on January 10, 2020, it was announced that Mayer would share the ride with World of Outlaws driver David Gravel, who would drive it for 6 races with Eldora being the only one confirmed at this time. Chase Elliott was also later announced to run races with the team, driving at Charlotte, Atlanta and Homestead.
Truck No. 26 history
; No. 33;Brandon Jones
In October 2014, it was announced that 17-year-old K&N Pro Series East driver Brandon Jones, crew chief Shane Huffman and the No. 33 Truck team would move from Turner Scott Motorsports to GMS for the final two races of their partial schedule at Martinsville and Phoenix.
Jones returned to the No. 33 truck for 17 races in 2015, while Richard Childress Racing teammates Austin and Ty Dillon ran the remaining six races with sponsorship from Rheem. Austin Dillon won the New Hampshire race to pick up GMS Racing's first Truck Series win.
;Multiple drivers
Grant Enfinger was promoted from the ARCA Racing Series from GMS Racing, to drive part-time in the No. 33 Chevrolet Silverado for the team in 2016. 17-year old Kaz Grala drove the No. 33 in select races, beginning at Martinsville. On April 25, 2016, it was announced that Ben Kennedy would drive the No. 33 for 10 races, starting at Kansas. Kennedy scored his first career win at Bristol Motor Speedway in August, which clinched a chase spot for the championship. Kennedy would be eliminated Round of 8, after Phoenix and would finish 7th in points.
;Kaz Grala
On December 5, 2016, it was announced that Kaz Grala would drive the No. 33 truck full-time next season with new crew chief Jerry Baxter who previously was a crew chief with Kyle Busch Motorsports.
On February 24, 2017, Kaz Grala won his inaugural race in the No. 33 truck at Daytona International Speedway after clearing a last lap wreck in the NextEra Energy Resources 250.
;No. 25
;Dalton Sargeant
On January 12, 2018 Dalton Sargeant was announced to drive the No. 33 now renumbered to the No. 25. However, Sargeant was released due to sponsorship issues before Mosport. Spencer Gallagher was initially announced as a replacement driver; However, Gallagher sustained a shoulder injury and was replaced by Timothy Peters. Peters would get his 11th Truck Series win at Talladega.
On September 26, 2018, it was announced Tyler Dippel would drive the last 4 races of the 2018 season.
;No. 26
;Tyler Ankrum
On November 19, 2019, it was announced that 2019 Rookie of the Year Tyler Ankrum would move over to GMS Racing to drive a third full-time truck, which would later be revealed as the No. 26.
On February 21, 2020, the No. 26 team was docked 10 owner and driver points prior to the Las Vegas race after an illegal engine oil reservoir tank was discovered during pre-race inspection.
ARCA Menards Series
Car No. 20 history
The 20 car ran two ARCA Menards Series events in 2014. The first was with Spencer Gallagher at Daytona, replacing Scott Sheldon after Gallagher's No. 23 car was disqualified. Sheldon then ran the car at Talladega, finishing 13th.In 2015, Scott Sheldon ran the 20 car at Daytona International Speedway and Talladega Superspeedway.
Car No. 21 history
For 2019 GMS returned to ARCA to run 15-year-old Sam Mayer in a part-time schedule. Mayer also ran the full season in the K&N Pro Series East with the team, and won the series championship.Car No. 23 history
;Spencer GallagherSpencer Gallagher ran 3 races in 2011 in a car numbered 05, with a best finish of 15th. Gallagher ran the full 19-race schedule in 2012, scoring 6 top tens and finishing 7th in points. Gallagher's numbers improved in 2013, scoring five top 5s and eight top 10s, but missing two races to finish 10th in points. Josh Williams replaced Gallagher at Winchester Speedway.
Gallagher returned for 2014, sponsored by Allegiant and Alamo Rent a Car. In October 2014 he got his first win in the 20th and final race of the ARCA season, the ARCA 98.9 at Kansas Speedway. Gallagher started 32nd, and led the final 32 laps of the race.
;Grant Enfinger
For 2015, Grant Enfinger moved over from the 90 car to the 23 for the full season, sponsorship pending. Enfinger had worked in the GMS shop during the off-season. Enfinger won the season opener at Daytona International Speedway, his second consecutive victory at the track. Enfinger won a total of six races en route to winning the championship.
;Bret Holmes Racing
Following 2015, the equipment of the No. 23 team was sold to Bret Holmes Racing, with Enfinger serving as crew chief and part-time driver, and the effort supported by GMS. Enfinger scored a victory at Pocono in 2016 in the car.