- Bobby Hamilton Racing-Virginia
NASCAR_Owner_Infobox
Company Name = Bobby Hamilton Racing-Virginia
Owner(s) Name =Lori Hamilton ,Mac Bailey ,Mark Melling ,Clay Campbell ,Stacy Compton ,Joey Arrington
Racing Series =Craftsman Truck Series
Championships = 1 (2004)
Car Number(s) = #18
Driver(s) =Dennis Setzer (#18)
Primary Sponsor(s) =Tahoe Smokeless (#18)
Shop Location =Martinsville, Virginia
Homepage = [http://www.bobbyhamiltonracing.com BHR-VA Team Website]Bobby Hamilton Racing-Virginia is a
NASCAR team. It was owned by four-timeNEXTEL Cup winner and2004 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series championBobby Hamilton until his death on January 7, 2007.Bobby Hamilton, Jr. was given ownership after the death of his father [http://www.bobbyhamiltonracing.com/cgi-script/kmgArticles/articles/000009/000974.htm] , but the younger Hamilton has disavowed his relationship with the company. [http://www.allheadlinenews.com/articles/7006229244] . The company is currently run by Bobby Hamilton, Sr's widow, Lori Hamilton.The company, based in
Mt. Juliet, Tennessee has made plans to move to Martinsville, Virginia after announcing a partnership withArrington Manufacturing in December 2007 [ [http://www.bobbyhamiltonracing.com/cgi-script/kmgArticles/articles/000011/001117.htm Bobby Hamilton Racing Official Team Website - NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series ] ] and its new owners are based in the Virginia area, with Mac Bailey, Stacy Compton, Clay Campbell, and Joey Arrington all being Virginians.Currently, the team fields one full-time entry in the Truck Series. The team also ran a pair of
NEXTEL Cup races with Hamilton Sr. in 2005 in the #04 car.History
Early beginnings
BHR was originally started by Hamilton and a friend in 1996 in the fledging Truck Series as an after hours project for Hamilton as well as to serve as development program for Bobby Hamilton, Jr.. The elder Hamilton debuted the team in 1997 at
Heartland Park Topeka , as the #1Chevrolet sponsored by Southern Pride Trucking. He qualified sixteenth and finished sixth. He ran another race that year atMartinsville Speedway , as the #51. He finished fifth in that race. Hamilton ran three races the next year, but suffered mechanical failures in each of them. Meanwhile, Bobby Hamilton Jr., whom the team was originally designed for, was building up a successful career in the ARCA series, then signed on to drive forSadler Bros. Racing in theBusch Series .Truck #04 history
The #04 truck made its debut as a brand new team in 2004. Bobby Hamilton, Jr. was the driver and won the pole at
Nashville Superspeedway . With sponsorship fromHyde Park Electronics , Hamilton Jr. won the pole and finished 4th. Hamilton Sr. was the full-time driver in 2005 and won two races total that season and finished 6th in points. Hamilton moved to the #18 in 2006, and rookieScott Lagasse, Jr. took over withDodge Hemi as the sponsor. Lagasse made a total of ten starts and did not finish higher than 18th.Sammy Sanders ,David Stremme , and Timothy Peters drove the truck in one race in addition. The team did not run the first half of the 2007 schedule, and ran two races withJoe Ruttman driving, with a best finish of 33rd.Patrick Carpentier drove at Bristol in 2008 for one race. He finished 26th after a late crash.Truck #4 history
Hamilton began racing the #4 in 1999 with sponsorship from
Dana Corporation . Driving in five races, Hamilton won the pole atRichmond International Raceway and had a best finish of fourth.Olivier Beretta drove the truck in one race atHeartland Park Topeka , finishing seventeenth. Hamilton drove another five races in 2000, winning atMartinsville Speedway .Donny Morelock made an additional four starts that year, his best finish 19th atMichigan International Speedway . In 2001, Hamilton picked up another win atDarlington Raceway , while Hamilton Jr. made his Truck Series debut atThe Milwaukee Mile , finishing 33rd.In 2002, the #4 team began running full-time with Brian Rose as the driver. He began the season with four top-tens in the
Perry Construction truck, but was released midway through the season. Hamilton, Hamilton Jr., Joe Ruttman,Rick Bogart , andRyan Hemphill finished the season in the truck, allowing the team to finish seventeenth in the standings. In 2003, Hamilton Sr. left hisAndy Petree Racing Winston Cup ride to drive the #4 full-time with sponsorshipSquare D . He picked up two wins and finished sixth in points. The following season, he won an additional four races (including one at his "home track",Nashville Superspeedway ) and was named the Craftsman Truck Series champion.Hamilton moved to the #04 team in 2005.Casey Atwood signed to drive the #4 Baileys truck for three races, finishing 11th atAtlanta Motor Speedway . Development driverTimothy Peters took over and drove for seventeen races, finishing in the top-ten twice and was runner-up toTodd Kluever for Rookie of the Year.Chris Fontaine ,Erin Crocker , andJohn Mickel in other races towards the end of the season. Peters was named the team's full-time driver in 2006 and competed in sixteen races in the truck (driving the #04 at Michigan whenBobby Labonte drove the #4) with a sixth-place finish atThe Milwaukee Mile . When he signed a contract withRichard Childress Racing , Peters was removed from the ride and replaced with Dodge driver Chase Miller. He had a best finish of tenth but was released before the 2007Quaker Steak and Lube 200 . 2002 Truck Series ChampionMike Bliss drove the #4 in 11 out of the final 14 races of the 2007 season, with Kevin Hamlin supplementing the rest of the schedule. Ruttman raced the 4 at Texas, finishing 27th after a crash. New co-owner Stacy Compton will drive the #4 full-time in2008 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series with sponsorship from various Dodge dealerships across America. After the fall Bristol race, the #4 team closed due to a lack of funding.Truck #8 history
The #8 truck debuted in 2001 with
Willy T. Ribbs as the driver. In his rookie season, Ribbs drove in 23 races and had three top-twenty finishes, finishing 16th in points, but was replaced byBill Lester in 2002. He finished seventeenth in points and ended the season with three consecutive top-ten qualifying runs. The following season, Lester won his first career pole atLowe's Motor Speedway and scored his first top-ten finish atKansas Speedway . Lester left forBill Davis Racing at the end of the year.Chase Montgomery was hired to drive the #8 in 2004, which now ran under the moniker BHR2 as Montgomery's father Ray had purchased an ownership stake in the team. Montgomery failed to finish in the top-ten that season and finished 21st in points. He was moved to the #18 truck andDeborah Renshaw took his place, bringing sponsorship fromEasy Care . She had a best finish of twelfth and earned a 24th place points finish. A lack of sponsorship would cost her the ride. Montgomery returned to run the 8 at Daytona, and finished 19th. The team was then sold toJulius Curry , and attempted the spring race at Atlanta with Montgomery, but failed to qualify. The team has not attempted a race since, and Montgomery has departed the operation.Truck #18 history
The 18 truck became the team's first full-time entry into the Truck series. In 1999, Butch Miller was hired to drive the entry full-time with sponsorship from the
Dana Corporation . Miller had posted four top-tens when he was hired to drive in the Busch Series. Joe Ruttman took over and had nine top-tens in the remaining sixteen races of the season. He opened the 2000 season with three straight poles and a win, and finished sixth in points. In 2001, he won an additional two races and ended the season sixth in points.Ruttman left with Dana at the end of 2001, and
Robert Pressley took over and won in his debut at Daytona. He followed it up with another win at Michigan and a seventh-place points finish. He left forHT Motorsports , and was replaced byChad Chaffin . WithDickies sponsorship, Chaffin won two poles and finished tenth in points. He followed that up in 2004 with wins atDover International Speedway andIndianapolis Raceway Park and another tenth-place points finish. Chase Montgomery took over the #18 in 2005, but did not post a top-ten and fell to 23rd in the standings. For 2006, Fastenal became the team's primary sponsor and Hamilton was slated to drive it. After three races, Hamilton was diagnosed with neck cancer and was forced to exit the ride. His sonBobby Hamilton, Jr. took over for him. Hamilton Jr. won the pole at Martinsville in his first start in the truck and had a total of five top-ten finishes, finishing sixteenth in points. Ken Schrader was announced as the driver of the truck for the 2007 season, and has posted two top-five finishes. Ruttman drove the 18 in one race while filling in for Schrader, before Dennis Setzer took over the truck late in the season. He will continue driving the 18 throughout 2008, withTahoe Smokeless sponsoring in the latter portion of the season.References
External links
* [http://www.bobbyhamiltonracing.com/ Official site]
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