Despite being based outside the stock car racing center of Charlotte, North Carolina, JD Motorsports has fielded cars from its facility outside Gaffney, South Carolina for decades and has been a reliable mainstay in the Xfinity Series for a quarter-century.
The JDM facility near the South Carolina-North Carolina state line remains functional as team owner Johnny Davis, whose long tenure in NASCAR predates his move into team ownership, works toward reorganizing the team’s finances and direction after filing for bankruptcy protection.
“We’re here working toward racing,” Davis said. “Racing has been a part of my life since I heard the first race engine. It’s what we want to do, and we want to do it well. We want strong cars and a strong program we can sustain.”
A former NASCAR Cup Series mechanic and pit crew member, Davis has been a full-time Xfinity team owner since 2002 and has contributed to the careers of such drivers as Ross Chastain, Ryan Preece, Landon Cassill and Jeremy Clements. Chastain, a four-time winner and championship challenger in the Cup Series, is JD Motorsports’ most noteworthy “graduate,” having sprinted to stardom in NASCAR’s top series after years of seasoning with the Davis team. Typically, the team has entered two Chevrolets in every Xfinity race, its bright red cars easily spotted on track.
“It has been a particular point of pride in our shop that drivers have started here and gone on to do very well,” Davis said. “We give people a launching pad.”
Davis said lagging purses and rising expenses have made it increasingly difficult to compete in the Xfinity Series, particularly for teams that sometimes struggle to keep up with the sport’s more monied operations.
“What we are able to gather in sponsorship and the small winnings from purses can’t keep us doing what and how we want to do,” he said. “It’s simply a matter of math.”
During the reorganization period, Davis is continuing to build race cars and focus on what’s happening in the sport and how his reorganized team can fit in. “Some of the biggest companies in the country have reorganized through bankruptcy,” Davis said. “We’re pushing forward.”
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