Biagi-DenBeste Racing, originally Biagi Brothers Racing, was an American professional

stock car racing Stock car racing is a form of Auto racing, automobile racing run on oval track racing, oval tracks and road courses. It originally used Production vehicle, production-model cars, hence the name "stock car", but is now run using cars specifical ...

team that last competed in the

NASCAR Xfinity Series The NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS) is a stock car racing series organized by NASCAR. It is promoted as NASCAR's second-tier circuit to the organization's top level NASCAR Cup Series, Cup Series. NXS events are frequently held as a Undercard, support ...

in partnership with Stewart-Haas Racing. The team was based in

Mooresville, North Carolina Mooresville is a town located in the southwestern section of Iredell County, North Carolina, United States, and is a part of the fast-growing Charlotte metropolitan area. The population was 50,193 at the 2020 census, making it the most populo ...

Xfinity Series

2001–2006

The team debuted in

2001 The year's most prominent event was the September 11 attacks against the United States by al-Qaeda, which Casualties of the September 11 attacks, killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror. The United States led a Participan ...

at the

Auto Club 300 Stock car races in the NASCAR Xfinity Series were held at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, California from 1997 to 2023. The race was held as a 150 lap, 300 mile (480 km) race. A second race at the track was also held during the fall as support to ...

as the No. 4 car, qualifying 41st and finishing 31st with

Mike Wallace Myron Leon Wallace (May 9, 1918 – April 7, 2012) was an American journalist, game show host, actor, and media personality. Known for his investigative journalism, he interviewed a wide range of prominent newsmakers during his seven-decade car ...

driving their

Chevrolet Chevrolet ( ) is an American automobile division of the manufacturer General Motors (GM). In North America, Chevrolet produces and sells a wide range of vehicles, from subcompact automobiles to medium-duty commercial trucks. Due to the promi ...

. Wallace made eight starts total that season, his best finish a tenth at

Richmond International Raceway Richmond Raceway (RR) is a , ''D''-shaped, asphalt race track located just outside Richmond, Virginia in unincorporated Henrico County. It currently hosts one NASCAR Cup Series race weekend and the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series. It formerly h ...

. Wallace returned in

2002 The effects of the September 11 attacks of the previous year had a significant impact on the affairs of 2002. The war on terror was a major political focus. Without settled international law, several nations engaged in anti-terror operation ...

, running seventeen races. He finished in the top-twenty seven times, including two fourteenth-place finishes. The team also ran a second car, the No. 07, for Tim Fedewa at Talladega, finishing third, the last car on the lead lap (mostly due to a 27-car pileup on lap 15 that took out most of the field, including Wallace). In

2003 2003 was designated by the United Nations as the International Year of Fresh water, Freshwater. In 2003, a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition 2003 invasion of Iraq, invaded Iraq, starting the Iraq War. Demographic ...

, Biagi moved up to the Busch Series full-time with Wallace. They opened the season with a fourth-place finish at the

Koolerz 300 The Daytona 300, currently known for sponsorship reasons as the United Rentals 300, is the first race of the NASCAR Xfinity Series season, held at Daytona International Speedway. It is held the day before the Daytona 500, and is considered the ...

. Despite missing a race where

Rick Carelli Richard Dean Carelli (born November 9, 1954) is an American former race car driver from Arvada, Colorado. He was nicknamed the "High Plains Drifter". He won multiple times in the No. 6 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series truck. He is the spotter for Er ...

filled in, Wallace finished thirteenth in points that year, one position shy of matching his career-best. The following season, Biagi switched from Chevrolets to Fords, and at the

Winn-Dixie 250 The Wawa 250 Powered By Coca-Cola is a NASCAR Xfinity Series race that is held at Daytona International Speedway. Scheduled as a race, it is held the night before the NASCAR Cup Series' Coke Zero Sugar 400, and was run on Independence Day weeken ...

, Wallace took the lead on the last lap to score Biagi's first career Busch victory. He led eighteen laps the following week at

Chicagoland Speedway Chicagoland Speedway is an inactive tri-oval Oval track racing#Intermediate, intermediate speedway in Joliet, Illinois. It has hosted various major races throughout its existence, including NASCAR and IndyCar races. The track is currently own ...

, but ran out of fuel on the last lap, costing him the victory. After posting three more top-tens, Wallace finished seventeenth in points. After Wallace departed in

2005 2005 was designated as the International Year for Sport and Physical Education and the International Year of Microcredit. The beginning of 2005 also marked the end of the International Decade of the World's Indigenous Peoples, Internationa ...

, Biagi formed a partnership with

Chip Ganassi Racing Chip Ganassi Racing, LLC (CGR), also sometimes branded as Chip Ganassi Racing Teams, is an American auto racing organization competing in the NTT IndyCar Series. They have formerly competed in the NASCAR Cup and Xfinity Series, Global Rally ...

and hired Ganassi development driver

Ryan Hemphill Ryan Hemphill (born December 30, 1981) is an American former NASCAR driver from Apollo, Pennsylvania. Racing career Hemphill, a second generation racer, started his racing career at the age of 12, when his father put him behind the wheel of a go ...

. After he failed to qualify for two consecutive races, Hemphill was briefly replaced by Jeff Green, who finished sixth at Richmond. Hemphill returned for three races and had a twelfth-place run at

Nashville Superspeedway Nashville Superspeedway is a tri-oval intermediate speedway in Lebanon, Tennessee. The track has held a variety of racing events since its opening in 2001, including NASCAR and the IndyCar Series. It is currently owned by Speedway Motorsport ...

before he was permanently removed from the ride. Green took over for three races, before Kevin Hamlin took over for the balance of the season. In fourteen starts, his best finish was fourteenth at

Memphis Motorsports Park Memphis International Raceway (formerly known as Memphis Motorsports Park) was an auto racing park located near the Loosahatchie River in Shelby County, Tennessee, United States, approximately ten miles south of Millington, and a few miles north ...

. For 2006, Mark Green was selected as the team's new driver, and had an eighteenth-place run at Richmond, before he was released in favor of

Auggie Vidovich August Louis "Auggie" Vidovich II (born February 20, 1981) is an American professional stock car racing driver. Racing career Vidovich was born in Lakeside, California. Vidovich has competed in the Elite Division Southwest Series for several year ...

. In addition to Green and Vidovich, Hamlin,

Boris Said Boris Said III (born September 18, 1962) is an American professional racing driver. Said has competed in a variety of disciplines including stock car racing, stock cars, sports car racing, sports cars and touring car racing, touring cars. Said la ...

, and

Paul Tracy Paul Anthony Tracy (born December 17, 1968) is a Canadian professional auto racing driver who participated in Champ Car World Series, the IndyCar Series, and the Championship Auto Racing Teams (CART). He started kart racing at age five and quick ...

have driven the car during the 2006 season. In

2007 2007 was designated as the International Heliophysical Year and the International Polar Year. Events January * January 1 **Bulgaria and Romania 2007 enlargement of the European Union, join the European Union, while Slovenia joins the Eur ...

, BDBR had announced it would switch to

Toyota is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational Automotive industry, automotive manufacturer headquartered in Toyota City, Aichi, Japan. It was founded by Kiichiro Toyoda and incorporated on August 28, 1937. Toyota is the List of manuf ...

and run with sponsorship from Kibbles 'n Bits, but the team shut down in January due to a lack of funding. Its assets and owners points were acquired by

Braun Racing Braun Motorsports, formerly known as Braun Racing, was an American professional stock car racing team that last competed in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series. The team is based in Mooresville, North Carolina. Best known as one of the top in ...

, and the team's number, 4, assigned to

Ginn Racing MB2 Motorsports was a NASCAR Cup Series team based in Mooresville, North Carolina, near the sport's hub in Charlotte. The team was founded by Read Morton, Tom Beard, and Nelson Bowers, from which the original team name derived. Bowers was the l ...

Car No. 4 results

Car No. 07 results

2012–2019

Five years later, the team returned at

Charlotte Motor Speedway Charlotte Motor Speedway (known as Lowe's Motor Speedway from 1999 to 2009 due to sponsorship reasons) is a quad-oval Oval track racing#Intermediate, intermediate speedway in Concord, North Carolina. It has hosted various major races since it ...

in May 2012, with a new sponsor in Caroll Shelby Engine Company (owned by new partners Bill and Lori DenBeste), a new manufacturer

Ford Ford commonly refers to: * Ford Motor Company, an automobile manufacturer founded by Henry Ford * Ford (crossing), a shallow crossing on a river Ford may also refer to: Ford Motor Company * Henry Ford, founder of the Ford Motor Company * Ford F ...

, and a new number 98 car being driven by

Reed Sorenson Bradley Reed Sorenson (born February 5, 1986) is an American former professional stock car racing driver and Spotter (auto racing), spotter. He last competed part-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 27 Chevrolet Camaro (sixth generation ...

. The car was given a black and gold scheme to honor the late

Carroll Shelby Carroll Hall Shelby (January 11, 1923 – May 10, 2012) was an American automotive designer, racing driver, and entrepreneur. Shelby was involved with the AC Cobra and Ford Mustang, Mustang for Ford Motor Company. With driver Ken Miles, he dev ...

and Shelby American's 50th Anniversary. Sorenson finished 16th in the team's return, then finished 13th in their next race at

Kentucky Kentucky (, ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north, West Virginia to the ...

. The team dedicated their third race of the season, at the famed

Indianapolis Motor Speedway The Indianapolis Motor Speedway is a motor racing circuit located in Speedway, Indiana, United States, an enclave suburb of Indianapolis, Indiana. It is the home of the Indianapolis 500 and the Brickyard 400, and and formerly the home of the U ...

, to Shelby, though Sorenson would finish 34th after a crash. He would run two more races, with a crash at

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...

and a 12th place and the second Charlotte race. Sprint Car standout and

ARCA Racing Series The ARCA Menards Series is an American stock car series, the premier division of the Automobile Racing Club of America (ARCA). It is considered a minor, semi-professional league of stock car racing, used as a feeder series into the three nationa ...

winner Kevin Swindell was signed for two races at the end of the season. He finished a strong 9th at Texas, then placed 21st at the season-finale at

Homestead Miami Speedway Homestead may refer to: *Homestead (building), a farmhouse and its adjacent outbuildings; by extension, it can mean any small cluster of houses * Nguni homestead, a cluster of houses inhabited by a single extended family, typically with a kraal ...

. For 2013, Kevin Swindell was signed to run 15 races for the team, beginning at

Las Vegas Las Vegas, colloquially referred to as Vegas, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and the county seat of Clark County. The Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area is the largest within the greater Mojave Desert, and second-l ...

in March. The team partnered with Swindell's long time supporter

Mike Curb Michael Curb (born December 24, 1944) is an American politician, record executive, and philanthropist who served as the 42nd Lieutenant Governor of California, lieutenant governor of California from 1979 to 1983. He is the founder of Curb Recor ...

, who became the listed owner of the No. 98 car (as well as the No. 98 car of Phil Parsons Racing in the Cup Series and the No. 98 truck of

Johnny Sauter Jonathan Joseph Sauter (born May 1, 1978) is an American professional stock car racing driver. He competes part-time in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, driving the No. 66 Ford F-150 for ThorSport Racing. He has also driven in the NASCAR Cup ...

and

ThorSport Racing ThorSport Racing is an American professional stock car racing team competing in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series. Founded in 1996 as SealMaster Racing and based in Sandusky, Ohio, the team is owned by Duke Thorson and his wife, Rhonda. Currently ...

in the Truck Series). Swindell had two top 10s, though he failed to qualify in their first attempt at Las Vegas. In 2014, the team returned again with veteran

David Ragan David Lee Ragan (born December 24, 1985) is an American professional stock car racing driver. He last competed part-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 60 Ford Mustang Dark Horse for RFK Racing, and is also an analyst for NASCAR on ...

as well as up-and-comers

Jeb Burton John Edward "Jeb" Burton IV (born August 6, 1992) is an American professional stock car racing driver. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driving the No. 27 Chevrolet Camaro (sixth generation), Chevrolet SS for Jordan Anderson Ra ...

and

Corey LaJoie Corey Daniel LaJoie (born September 25, 1991) is an American professional stock car racing driver and analyst for ''NASCAR on Prime Video''. He currently competes part-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 01 Ford Mustang (seventh genera ...

; all three are the sons of former racers.

Drive for Diversity The NASCAR Driver Development Program (formerly known as Drive for Diversity / D4D) program is a development system instituted by the American auto racing league NASCAR. The program's purpose is to attract minority and female individuals to the ...

and NASCAR Next member

Ryan Gifford Ryan Gifford (born March 10, 1989) is an American former professional stock car racing driver. A former development driver for Richard Childress Racing and a former member of NASCAR, NASCAR NEXT. As a NASCAR's Drive for Diversity member, he last ...

was signed to run two races for the team:

Iowa Iowa ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the upper Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west; Wisconsin to the northeast, Ill ...

in May and

in June. Gifford finished 20th in his only appearance at Iowa. After winning the Coke Zero 400 at Daytona and earning a spot in the

Chase for the Sprint Cup The NASCAR playoffs, formerly officially known as the Chase for the Nextel/Sprint Cup (Nextel from 2004–2007, Sprint from 2008–2016), is a championship playoff system used in NASCAR's three national series. The system was founded as The Ch ...

Aric Almirola Aric Michael Almirola (born March 14, 1984) is an American semi-retired professional stock car racing driver. He competes part-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driving the No. 19 Toyota GR Supra for Joe Gibbs Racing. Almirola previously compete ...

signed on to pilot the 98 during two companion races at

Chicagoland The Chicago metropolitan area, also referred to as Chicagoland, is the largest metropolitan statistical area in the U.S. state of Illinois, and the Midwest, containing the City of Chicago along with its surrounding suburbs and satellite cities ...

and

Dover Dover ( ) is a town and major ferry port in Kent, southeast England. It faces France across the Strait of Dover, the narrowest part of the English Channel at from Cap Gris Nez in France. It lies southeast of Canterbury and east of Maidstone. ...

in September. Cup sponsor

Smithfield Foods Smithfield Foods, Inc., is an American pork producer and food-processing company based in Smithfield, Virginia. Founded in 1936 as the Smithfield Packing Company by Joseph W. Luter and his son, the company is the largest pig and pork producer in ...

would come on to sponsor Almirola's efforts. Almirola started 10th and finished 14th in his debut for the team at Chicagoland, then 13th at Dover. After running one race earlier in the year, it was announced that

would return to the No. 98 car for four additional races (

Kansas Kansas ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the west. Kansas is named a ...

, Charlotte,

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

, and

Homestead Homestead may refer to: *Homestead (building), a farmhouse and its adjacent outbuildings; by extension, it can mean any small cluster of houses * Nguni homestead, a cluster of houses inhabited by a single extended family, typically with a kraal ...

), with backing from

Richard Petty Motorsports Richard Petty Motorsports (RPM) was an American professional stock car racing team that competed in the NASCAR Cup Series The NASCAR Cup Series is the top racing series of the NASCAR, National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR) ...

primary investor Medallion Financial. In 2015,

Sprint Cup drivers Almirola and

Sam Hornish Jr. Samuel Jon Hornish Jr. (born July 2, 1979) is an American semi-retired professional auto racing driver. He last competed part-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driving the No. 22 Ford Mustang for Team Penske in 2017. Hornish began his top-ti ...

split time driving the No. 98, with sponsorship from both RPM's Cup sponsors and Biagi-DenBeste's regular sponsors. Almirola finished 7th in the season opener at

Daytona Daytona may refer to: Locations * Daytona Beach, Florida * Daytona Beach Shores, Florida * South Daytona, Florida * The Daytona Beach metropolitan area * Halifax area, also known as Daytona, the region around Daytona Beach Motor racing * Dayto ...

, while Hornish finished 15th the next week at

. RPM development driver

Ryan Truex Ryan Matthew Truex (born March 18, 1992) is an American professional stock car racing driver. He competes part-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driving the No. 24 Toyota GR Supra for Sam Hunt Racing. As a reserve driver for Joe Gibbs Racing in t ...

drove four races, starting at Richmond. In 2016, Almirola drove on a partial schedule starting at Daytona. Almirola won the 2016

Subway Firecracker 250 The Wawa 250 Powered By Coca-Cola is a NASCAR Xfinity Series race that is held at Daytona International Speedway. Scheduled as a race, it is held the night before the NASCAR Cup Series' Coke Zero Sugar 400, and was run on Independence Day weeken ...

at Daytona to give the team their second ever win.

will drive two races in the No. 98 car starting with

Indy Indy may refer to: Computing and technology *Indy (software), used for Internet access to music *Internet Direct, or "Indy", a software library * SGI Indy, a computer workstation Periodicals *''The Indy'', shorthand for newspapers that include ...

Richmond Richmond most often refers to: * Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada * Richmond, California, a city in the United States * Richmond, London, a town in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, England * Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town ...

, and Charlotte with

Estes The surname "Estes" originates from the Middle English word est, meaning 'east'.https://forebears.io/surnames/estes The name "Estes" may also have its roots in ancient Greece, where it comes from the Greek "esthesis", which means "sensation" or "pe ...

sponsoring. 2014-15 Formula E Champion Nelson Piquet Jr. will drive the No. 98 car at

Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course is a road course auto racing facility located in Troy Township, Morrow County, Ohio, United States, just outside the village of Lexington. It hosts a number of racing series such as IndyCar, IMSA WeatherTech Sportsc ...

. In 2017, it was announced that

would return to Biagi-DenBeste with the addition of

Casey Mears Casey James Mears (born March 12, 1978) is an American professional off-road racing, off-road and stock car racing driver. He competes part-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 66 Ford Mustang, Ford Mustang Dark Horse for Garage 66. He ...

. On May 6, 2017

won the 2017

Sparks Energy 300 Stock car racing events in the NASCAR Xfinity Series have been held at Talladega Superspeedway, in Lincoln, Alabama during numerous seasons and times of year since 1992. Spring race The Ag-Pro 300 is a NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Talladega ...

Talladega Superspeedway Talladega Superspeedway (Alabama International Motor Speedway from 1969 to 1989) is a tri-oval superspeedway in Lincoln, Alabama. Built in 1969, the track has hosted a variety of racing events, primarily races sanctioned by NASCAR. The track is ...

. On October 23, 2017, it was announced that in 2018 the team would partner with Stewart-Haas Racing under the name Stewart-Haas Racing with Biagi-DenBeste with

Cole Custer Cole Matthew Custer (born January 23, 1998) is an American professional stock car racing driver. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 41 Ford Mustang (seventh generation), Ford Mustang Dark Horse for Haas Factory Team. H ...

driving the No. 00 full time and

Kevin Harvick Kevin Michael Harvick (born December 8, 1975) is an American semi-retired professional stock car racing driver and commentator for '' NASCAR on Fox''. He last competed full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 4 Ford Mustang for Stewa ...

driving the No. 98 part time. It was later announced that

Chase Briscoe Chase David Wayne Briscoe (born December 15, 1994) is an American professional stock car racing driver and team owner. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 19 Toyota Camry, Toyota Camry XSE for Joe Gibbs Racing. He also ...

would drive the No. 98 in at least one race.

Car No. 98 results

Footnotes

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Biagi-Denbeste Racing 2001 establishments in North Carolina 2019 disestablishments in North Carolina American auto racing teams Auto racing teams established in 2001 Auto racing teams disestablished in 2019 Companies based in North Carolina NASCAR teams