Mach 1 Racing was a

NASCAR The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. The privately owned company was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1948, and ...

Winston Cup Series team. It was owned by Hollywood stuntman

Hal Needham Hal Brett Needham (March 6, 1931 – October 25, 2013) was an American stuntman, film director, actor, writer, and NASCAR team owner. He is best known for his frequent collaborations with actor Burt Reynolds, usually in films involving fast c ...

and actor Burt Reynolds. The team made its debut in

1981 Events January * January 1 ** Greece enters the European Economic Community, predecessor of the European Union. ** Palau becomes a self-governing territory. * January 10 – Salvadoran Civil War: The FMLN launches its first major offensiv ...

, fielding the No. 22 Skoal Pontiac driven by

Stan Barrett Stan Barrett (born June 26, 1943) is a Hollywood stuntman, stunt coordinator actor, and former stock car racing driver. His biggest act was however outside the movie world. On December 17, 1979, he attempted to break the land speed record, and t ...

. Barrett ran ten races for the team that season, his best finish coming at

Talladega Superspeedway Talladega Superspeedway, nicknamed “'Dega”, and formerly named Alabama International Motor Speedway (AIMS) from 1969 to 1989, is a motorsports complex located north of Talladega, Alabama. It is located on the former Anniston Air Force Base ...

, where he finished 9th. Midseason, Mach 1 created a second car, the No. 33, driven by Harry Gant. Gant did not win that season, but he won three poles and had thirteen top-tens, finishing third in points. In 1982, Gant drove the No. 33 Buick full-time with sponsorship from 7-Eleven/ Skoal. He won at Martinsville and

Charlotte Charlotte ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 census, making Charlotte the 16th-most populo ...

and finished fourth in points. After just one win the following season, the team switched to Chevrolet, and Gant won three races, finishing a career best second in points. He followed that season up with another three wins in

1985 The year 1985 was designated as the International Youth Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** The Internet's Domain Name System is created. ** Greenland withdraws from the European Economic Community as a result of a ...

. For the next three years, Gant and Mach 1 failed to visit victory lane. Midway into the

1988 File:1988 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The oil platform Piper Alpha explodes and collapses in the North Sea, killing 165 workers; The USS Vincennes (CG-49) mistakenly shoots down Iran Air Flight 655; Australia celebrates its Bicenten ...

season, Gant suffered injuries at the

Coca-Cola 600 The Coca-Cola 600, originally the World 600, is an annual NASCAR Cup Series points race held at the Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord, North Carolina, on a Sunday during Memorial Day weekend. The first race, held in 1960, was also the first on ...

Morgan Shepherd Clay Morgan Shepherd (born October 12, 1941) is an American retired professional stock car racing driver and current team owner. He last competed part-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driving the No. 89 Chevrolet Camaro for Shepherd Racing Ven ...

filled in for him, and had one top-five and two top-tens. After Gant finished 27th in the final standings, he left the team for Jackson Bros. Motorsports, taking Skoal and No. 33 with him. In

1989 File:1989 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Cypress structure collapses as a result of the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake, killing motorists below; The proposal document for the World Wide Web is submitted; The Exxon Valdez oil tanker runs ...

, Needham sold the team to Bill Edwards, a North Carolina businessman, switched to the No. 66 and signed rookie driver

Rick Mast Richard K. Mast (born March 4, 1957) is a former NASCAR driver. He competed in both the Winston Cup and Busch Series before retiring in 2002. He holds a business administration degree from Blue Ridge Community College. Early and Busch career M ...

. In their first race together, the Daytona 500, Mast drove the unsponsored car to a sixth-place finish, an accomplishment he later said was the one he was the most proud of. Mast and Mach 1 ran twelve more races together that season, they were unable to duplicate that effort. Edwards closed the team and sold it to their crew chief,

Travis Carter Travis Carter (born November 21, 1949) is a former car owner and crew chief in the NASCAR The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known fo ...

Travis Carter Motorsports Travis Carter Enterprises (later known as Haas-Carter Motorsports, K Mart Racing, BelCar Motorsports and Richardson-Haas Motorsports) was a NASCAR and USAR Pro Cup team. It was mostly owned by former crew chief Travis Carter and Carl Haas. The ...

entered NASCAR competition in the

1990 Daytona 500 The 1990 Daytona 500, the 32nd running of the event, was held on February 18, 1990 at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida over 200 laps on the 2.5 mile (4 km) asphalt tri-oval. The first race of the 199 ...

External links

Hal Needham Winston Cup Owner Statistics
{{Travis Carter Enterprises 1981 establishments in the United States 1989 disestablishments in the United States Defunct NASCAR teams American auto racing teams