MB2 Motorsports

MB2 Motorsports was a NASCAR Cup Series team based in Mooresville, North Carolina, near the sport's hub in Charlotte.

Throughout the existence of the team in both MB2 Motorsports and Ginn Racing iterations, the organization ran General Motors brands.

Dick Trickle temporarily replaced Irvan before the driving chores were permanently turned over to journeyman Jerry Nadeau.

Nadeau left MB2 due to a prior commitment to drive for Hendrick Motorsports, and MB2 signed four-time winner Ken Schrader to fill the seat.

He suffered fractures to his skull and several ribs along with a collapsed lung and temporary paralysis on his left side, and the cumulative effects forced him into retirement at age 33.

[4] Busch Series veteran Jason Keller replaced Nadeau at the Richmond race and finished 32nd.

Mike Skinner, released from Morgan McClure Motorsports, made eleven starts in the #01, earning a pole at Richmond.

Nemechek finished 19th in points in 2004, but won two consecutive poles with the second leading to victory at the 2004 Banquet 400, in which he led the final 37 laps to win his fourth and final career Nextel Cup race and giving him a weekend sweep at Kansas Speedway, after having won the Mr. Goodcents 300 Busch Series race the day before.

01 team found itself as a longshot of making the Chase, sitting 16th in the standings 135 points out of 10th place[8] as the last mathematical contender for a spot in the 10-race playoff.

[9] The team's chase hunt was ultimately foiled when Travis Kvapil collided with Nemechek under caution right after he had gotten back on the lead lap, relegating them to a 26th-place finish.

Regan Smith was pinned to fill the remaining 16 races of the season, while driving in the Busch Series for the team as well.

[13] Martin put together more strong finishes, and after the fourth race at Atlanta was leading the points standings in what was supposed to be his first season of semi-retirement.

Resisting the chance to capture his first championship, Martin did step out of the car as scheduled, breaking a streak of 621 consecutive starts.

Rookie Regan Smith meanwhile made his debut at Bristol Motor Speedway in March, finishing 25th.

[15] With the merger of Ginn and Dale Earnhardt, Inc. not long afterwards, Smith was left on the sidelines while Almirola ran five races.

On April 30, 2004, MB2 Motorsports announced a partnership with CENTRIX Financial, LLC, coming on as an associate sponsor for the No.

[19] Said ultimately attempted 12 races, struggling on oval tracks, with a best finish of 27th at Daytona and Texas and three DNQs.

[21] Said shined later in the year at Watkins Glen, starting 41st after qualifying was rained out, and racing with NASCAR Road Course aces Tony Stewart and Robby Gordon for the win.

Early in 2006, 1988 Cup Champion and two-time Daytona 500 winner Bill Elliott announced that he would pilot the No.

13 team was shut down after the merger with DEI, and Nemechek would move to Furniture Row Racing for the remainder of the season beginning at Fontana.

When MB2 bought the team, Benson remained the driver, with an announcement that Aaron's and RCA would sponsor the No.

32-year-old Busch Series driver Scott Riggs was signed to a multi-year contract, and would to replace Benson for the 2004 season.

[27] Riggs was set to compete against a strong rookie class that included his former Busch Series competitors Brian Vickers, Kasey Kahne, Scott Wimmer, and Johnny Sauter as well as Truck Series driver Brendan Gaughan.

Riggs had a career best performance at Michigan, using a fuel mileage gamble to drive from 29th to 2nd place in the final 51 laps.

Valvoline announced that it was to sell its ownership stake back to MB2's principal owners and ended sponsorship of the car,[29] taking Riggs and the No.

In November 2005, it was announced that veteran driver Sterling Marlin would come over from Chip Ganassi Racing to drive for MB2 in 2006.

The team would be sponsored by Waste Management in 12 races, with Centrix Financial returning and Ginn Resorts coming on to fill the remainder of the schedule.

[32] After a 2007 season filled with struggles and a best finish of 13th, in July Marlin was to be replaced by Regan Smith, who had previously been co-piloting the No.

[1] Kinser returned to the Truck Series, scheduled to share the ride with Hernandez, with Ginn Resorts sponsoring.

4 Busch Series team was shut down after the Kentucky race in June, with Smith 12th in the championship standings at the time.