Team Ireland was a

stock car Stock car racing is a form of automobile racing run on oval tracks and road courses. It originally used production-model cars, hence the name "stock car", but is now run using cars specifically built for racing. It originated in the southe ...

racing team that competed 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 for stock car racing. It is considered to be one of the top ranked motorsports organizations in ...

Winston Cup Series The NASCAR Cup Series is the top racing series of the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR), the most prestigious stock car racing series in the United States. The series began in 1949 as the Strictly Stock Division, and fro ...

between 1991 and 1992. Owned by Irishman

Martin Birrane Martin Brendan Birrane (19 August 1935 – 9 June 2018) was an Irish businessman and former racing driver. Born in Ballina, County Mayo and educated at St Muredach's College, Birrane made his money in property development, with his company ' ...

, the team posted a best finish of thirteenth with driver

Bobby Hillin Jr. Robert Keith Hillin Jr. (born June 5, 1964) is an American stock car racing driver. He is a former competitor in NASCAR's Winston Cup and Busch Series, and once held the record for being the youngest driver ever to win a Winston Cup Series event. ...

Winston Cup Series

Car No. 31 history

Team Ireland made its debut in the

1991 NASCAR Winston Cup Series Dale Earnhardt won his 5th of seven titles. Ricky Rudd finished second in points. The 1991 NASCAR Winston Cup Series was the 43rd of professional stock car racing in the United States and the 20th modern-era Cup Season. It began February 10 ...

season, competing in four races with the No. 53 Chevrolet; the team intended to field

IndyCar IndyCar, LLC (stylized as INDYCAR), is an auto racing sanctioning body for American open-wheel car racing headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana. The organization sanctions two racing series: the premier IndyCar Series with the Indianapolis ...

driver John Paul Jr. in its cars, but after Paul proved to have a hard time adjusting to the heavy NASCAR cars, he was replaced after two races by

, who joined the team for a planned 15-race schedule in 1992. Changing to the No. 31 and using cars and engines supplied by

Richard Childress Racing Richard Childress Racing (RCR) is an American professional stock car racing team that currently competes in the NASCAR Cup Series and the NASCAR Xfinity Series. The team is based in Welcome, North Carolina, and is owned and operated by Richard C ...

, the team competed in ten races during the

1992 NASCAR Winston Cup Series file:Bill Elliott Champion 1985.jpg, Bill Elliott finished second in the championship. The 1992 NASCAR Winston Cup Series was the 44th season of Winston Cup Series, professional stock car racing in the United States and the 21st modern-era Cu ...

season, posting a best finish of 13th in 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 firs ...

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 ...

, before being forced to close due to a lack of sponsorship; the team was unable to pay a fine levied by NASCAR for the use of illegal cylinder heads in the Mello Yello 500 in October, and team owner Birrane chose to leave the sport.

Car No. 31 results

References

External links

*{{Racing-Reference owner, Martin_Birrane Defunct NASCAR teams Auto racing teams established in 1991 1992 disestablishments in the United States 1991 establishments in the United States