A small-budget NASCAR team built from a 2004 part-time entry, with superspeedway wins, a Daytona 500 victory, a 2022 Truck Series title and a settled antitrust case.
Front Row Motorsports is an American NASCAR team competing in the Cup Series and Craftsman Truck Series. It began part-time in 2004 as Means-Jenkins Motorsports, became fully owned by Bob Jenkins in 2005, and has fielded three Cup cars and two trucks in 2026.
Front Row Motorsports is an American stock car team that has spent its life as a small-budget operation in NASCAR. Founded as a part-time Cup entrant in 2004, it now fields cars in two national series and has built a reputation for racing well on superspeedways. Its biggest moments include a 2013 Talladega win, a Daytona 500 victory in 2021 and a 2022 Truck Series title.
What is Front Row Motorsports?
FRM is a small-budget team with around 60 employees, racing in the NASCAR Cup Series and Craftsman Truck Series. Its cars are Ford entries that come with support from allied teams, and it spends far less than the biggest operations. Its reputation rests on superspeedway performance, where its drivers have won races.
Money is the constant theme. The team runs on a fraction of the budget of larger teams, so it depends on partners and on equipment that often comes second-hand from allied Ford teams. That pressure shapes how the organisation plans each season, and it is why its technical relationships matter so much to its results.
A small-budget team that won superspeedway races, a Daytona 500 and a Truck Series title.
How did the team start in 2004?
The team began in 2004 as Means-Jenkins Motorsports, a part-time Cup operation built on a partnership between Jimmy Means and restaurant entrepreneur Bob Jenkins. Jenkins became the full owner in 2005, and the team has been run under his ownership since then.
Jenkins became full team owner in 2005, and the partnership he formed with Jimmy Means in 2004 is the origin of the organisation that races today. Every season since has been run under that ownership structure.
Who owns Front Row Motorsports?
Bob Jenkins owns the team. He lives in Dandridge, Tennessee, and his businesses include more than 250 franchises, among them KFC, Taco Bell, Long John Silver's and A&W outlets. He also owns Morristown Driver's Services, a logistics provider, which shows how his business interests stretch beyond restaurants.
The team shop is in Mooresville, North Carolina, while the owner lives in Dandridge, Tennessee. That split means the racing operation runs from a North Carolina base while its owner remains in Tennessee.
How does the team stay competitive on a small budget?
The organisation has around 60 employees and works with far less money than the largest teams. Cars and parts frequently come from allied Ford teams, and the organisation has leaned on those relationships for most of its existence. That arrangement lets it stay in races where money alone would leave it far behind.
Ford began providing technical support in 2016, and the team had received equipment from RFK Racing since 2010. The technical alliance with RFK Racing ran from 2016 to 2023, and the Team Penske alliance began in 2024. Its technical partners have changed several times, which shapes how it prepares cars each year.
How did the team take over the BK Racing assets?
The team gained the BK Racing assets on August 21, 2018, after the operation was offered for bidding by its former owner, Ron Devine, and a Union First Bank trustee. The winning bid was $2.8 million, and the team received the No. 23 charter and most of the equipment.
J. J. Yeley drove the No. 23 car late in 2018, the first season after the purchase. The No. 23 team became the No. 36 team in 2019, continuing under a new number rather than closing down.
Who drives the Cup cars in 2026?
Three Ford Mustang Dark Horse teams run full-time in the Cup Series. Noah Gragson drives the No. 4, Todd Gilliland the No. 34 and Zane Smith the No. 38. Gragson and Gilliland have both signed contract extensions to stay for 2027, Gragson on August 14, 2026 and Gilliland on July 17, 2026.
Noah Gragson began 2025 with a 28th-place finish at the Daytona 500 and later finished fourth at Talladega in the spring. His 2026 Daytona 500 ended in 11th place, and he signed for 2027 in August.
Gilliland won his first career stage at Pocono in 2026, and on July 26, 2026 he won the NASCAR In-Season Challenge. Before that, he had finished 22nd in the 2024 standings.
Zane Smith earned his first Cup pole at Talladega in spring 2025. Later that year, his car overturned at Kansas Speedway in the fall. Smith started the 2026 season with a sixth-place finish at the Daytona 500, and Noah Gragson took 11th there.
How did the team win its first Cup races?
The team's first Cup win came at Talladega Superspeedway in 2013, when David Ragan won the Aaron's 499. Ragan had joined the team in 2012, and David Gilliland helped produce a one-two finish that day. It was the team's first Cup victory, and Gilliland's push helped Ragan reach the checked flag first.
Chris Buescher won the fog-shortened 2016 Pennsylvania 400 at Pocono. That result was the team's second Cup Series victory. Buescher then left for JTG Daugherty Racing after the 2016 season.
Which Cup wins stand out most?
Michael McDowell's 2021 Daytona 500 stands out as one of the team's biggest Cup results. McDowell was a 100-1 underdog for the race, and it was his 358th Cup start. He added the 2023 Verizon 200 at Indianapolis, a race in which the team led the most laps for the first time.
McDowell's Indianapolis win was a breakthrough for the organisation, because it was the first time the team had led the most laps in a race. Winning on a road course also added variety to a record built largely on superspeedways. It was also McDowell's second career Cup win, following his 2021 Daytona 500 victory.
McDowell left after 2024 for Spire Motorsports, and Todd Gilliland moved into the No. 34 car in 2025. That change handed the No. 34 seat to a new driver.
What was the lawsuit against NASCAR about?
The team and 23XI Racing sued NASCAR on October 2, 2024, challenging the updated charter agreement. A preliminary injunction on December 18 let both teams race as chartered entries in 2025, and the case was settled on December 11, 2025, after eight days in court.
The team bought a third charter from Stewart-Haas on December 31. An appeals court overturned the injunction on June 5, 2025, and on August 25 NASCAR agreed to issue one charter to a redacted entity.
How did the Nationwide years go?
The team focused on the Nationwide Series in 2008, with Eric McClure driving the No. 24 Hefty Chevrolet. McClure finished 21st in points. The highlight came in 2009, when Tony Raines finished fourth at Talladega, the team's first top-five in either series.
Raines also finished 12th in the 2009 drivers standings. The team leased its Nationwide operation to TriStar Motorsports for 2010, and TriStar later bought the remaining Nationwide assets, which ended the team's involvement in that series.
How has the truck operation performed?
The truck operation has produced the team's biggest title. Zane Smith won the 2022 Truck Series championship at Phoenix, clinching it on November 4, and it was the first title for the team in any NASCAR division. Smith also won at Daytona in 2022 and 2023.
Smith also won at Circuit of the Americas in 2023, and he left after that season for a Cup deal with Spire Motorsports. Todd Gilliland had won at Circuit of the Americas in 2021, a truck win that was his first for the team.
Brett Moffitt won at Talladega in 2023. Layne Riggs won at Milwaukee and Bristol in 2024, and he finished 2025 with three wins and sixteen top-ten finishes. In 2026 he won the inaugural street race at St. Petersburg, adding another milestone to the truck program.
Chandler Smith won at Bristol and North Wilkesboro in 2025, then won at Daytona and North Wilkesboro again in 2026. He announced on July 28 that he would leave after 2026, and Jake Garcia will drive the No. 38 truck in 2027.
What are the team's key results at a glance?
| Year | Series | Driver | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | Nationwide | Tony Raines | Fourth at Talladega, the team's first top-five in either series |
| 2013 | Cup | David Ragan | First Cup win, the Aaron's 499 at Talladega |
| 2016 | Cup | Chris Buescher | Fog-shortened Pennsylvania 400 at Pocono, second Cup win |
| 2021 | Cup | Michael McDowell | Daytona 500 win as a 100-1 underdog |
| 2022 | Truck | Zane Smith | Series championship at Phoenix, the first NASCAR title for the team |
| 2023 | Cup | Michael McDowell | Verizon 200 at Indianapolis, the first time the team led the most laps |
| 2023 | Truck | Brett Moffitt | Win at Talladega |
| 2025 | Cup | Zane Smith | First Cup pole, at Talladega in spring |
| 2025 | Truck | Layne Riggs | Three wins and sixteen top-ten finishes |
| 2026 | Truck | Chandler Smith | Wins at Daytona and North Wilkesboro |
Why does Front Row Motorsports matter?
Front Row Motorsports matters because it shows how a small-budget team can win in NASCAR's Cup and Truck divisions. Its record includes a Daytona 500 victory, superspeedway wins, a Truck Series championship and an antitrust case with 23XI Racing that was settled in 2025.
The team's story runs from a part-time entry in 2004 to a two-series operation with around 60 employees. Its owner has been in place since 2005, its technical partners have changed, and its drivers have won at Talladega, Pocono, Daytona and Indianapolis.
Its 2022 Truck Series title was the first NASCAR championship the organisation had won, which is why that season remains its defining result. Its record also shows persistence. The team ran in the Nationwide Series in 2008 and 2009, leased that operation out for 2010, and went to court over the charter agreement before settling.
