Baker Curb Racing

Baker Curb Racing is a racing team that competed in the NASCAR Winston Cup Series and the NASCAR Nationwide Series. Based in Nashville, Tennessee, it is owned by Gary Baker, former owner of Bristol Motor Speedway and Nashville Superspeedway, and record executive Mike Curb. Previously, it fielded the #27 Kleenex Ford driven by Brad Coleman.

The team was owned from 1996 until 2007 by Clarence Brewer, his wife Tammy, and Todd Wilkerson, running under the name Brewco Motorsports. Baker and Curb became owners of the team late in the 2007 season.

Curb also had numerous business partners affiliated with his NASCAR operations, including Gary Baker, Cary Agajanian, John Andretti, and Donald Laird. The team fielded cars for several notable NASCAR drivers, including Richard Petty, Dale Jarrett, Jimmie Johnson, and Greg Biffle.

The team was active in the Cup Series from 1984–1988, in the Busch/Nationwide Series from 1996–2011, and fielded entries in the Truck Series in 2004.

Car No. 42 history
In 1985, Curb fielded a second car at the Atlanta Motor Speedway. Tom Sneva drove an unsponsored No. 42 Pontiac, finishing 32nd after an engine failure. It was the only time Curb would field two cars in a Cup Series race.

Car No. 43 history
The team was founded as Curb Racing 1984, running Pontiacs in NASCAR's premier series, the Winston Cup Series. Seven-time Cup champion Richard Petty drove the car, with Petty bringing his STP sponsorship and the No. 43 with him from Petty Enterprises. Buddy Parrott was the crew chief. In his first season with Curb, Petty scored two wins, including the Firecracker 400 for his 200th and final career win. Petty finished tenth in the final championship standings.

Petty returned in 1985, with new crew chief Mike Beam. Petty posted 13 top-10 finishes, but had only one top-5 and posted 12 DNFs.

In 1986, Petty and STP left Curb to rejoin Petty Enterprises. Petty took the No. 43 with him, thus Curb switched to No. 98.

Car No. 98 history
In 1986, the No. 43 Pontiac switched to No. 98 and reduced to part-time, and Ron Bouchard became Curb's new driver. Valvoline replaced STP as the sponsor, and Beam remained crew chief. The No. 98 ran 18 races, Bouchard ran 17 and had top-ten finishes at the Daytona 500 and Winston 500, but struggled with engine problems during the second half of the season. Bouchard also ran a Buick at Rockingham Speedway. Dale Jarrett drove the No. 98 at Bristol Motor Speedway, bringing Busch sponsorship, starting 28th and finishing 29th.

In 1987, the team lost Valvoline as a sponsor and Bouchard left the team. The team switched to Buick, and Ed Pimm entered four races; missing the Daytona 500 in an unsponsored ride, but making the three remaining attempts: at Talladega in an unsponsored entry, Daytona in July with sponsor CP-1 Oil Boosters, and the season finale at Atlanta with Sonoco, which also signed on to be the car's sponsor the following year. Pimm did not finish any of those races, and only managed a best finish of 27th. Brad Noffsinger attempted the fall race at Riverside, but failed to qualify.

In 1988, the No. 98 Buick returned to full time as Sunoco became the team's new sponsor. Pimm qualified for two out of the first three races of the season but was replaced by rookie Brad Noffsinger. Noffsinger finished 14th at his series debut in Atlanta in the spring, however, it would be his best finish of the season. Noffsinger failed to qualify for 8 races, while the No. 98 failed to finish 7 additional times. The team did not enter the road course race at Riverside. Noffsinger finished 38th in points, Sunoco left the team, and the team shut down.

Following the sale of his Busch/Nationwide Series operation in 2011, Curb partnered with Richard Childress Racing, with Curb sponsoring and being listed as the owner for Austin Dillon's No. 98 RCR-prepared Chevrolet. Curb used the space to promote the Ronald Reagan Centennial Celebration. Curb would spin this into a full-time Cup team, enlisting Michael McDowell for the 2012 season. This team was a start-and-park operation for nearly the whole season, only finishing three races out of the 36 race schedule. From these races, they would have their best finish of 23rd. 2013 would see McDowell return, and finish 9th in the Daytona 500. This was the first time Curb Racing had finished top 10 in a Cup race since 1986, 27 years earlier. This year they would bump their races finished from three to six. Besides these races, they would continue to start and park the majority of the schedule. 2014 would see a new driver, as McDowell had left for greener pastures in the form of Leavine Family Racing. Josh Wise would be his replacement, and with him the team would change as well. Still running full-time, they would stop start-and-parking in favor of running full races. They would not manage to finish top 20 the entire season, fail to qualify one race, and finish 36th in the points standings. The team would run one more full-time season, with Josh Wise returning. After one top 10, a tenth at the spring Talladega race which would turn out to be the last top 10 for Curb Racing, Josh Wise would either leave or be fired from the No. 98 after the halfway point in the season. The rest of the races would be run by Timmy Hill, Reed Sorenson, future series regular Ryan Preece, and a one-race deal for T.J. Bell. They would not finish better than 32nd and the team would shut down at the end of the season, with the No. 98 going to Jay Robinson Racing

Car No. 27 History
BCR debuted at the Kroger 200 at Indianapolis Raceway Park in 1995. Mark Green finished 18th in the #41 car. After a twenty-eighth place finish the next month at Richmond, the team gained sponsorship from Timber Wolf and ran ten races with Green in 1996 as the #37, posting a top-ten finish at Myrtle Beach Speedway. The team finally went full-time in 1997, with Green chalking up five top-ten finishes and finishing just 79 points shy of a top-ten finish in points. After the 1998 season yielded four top-ten's, Green left for the Dr. Pepper team, and was replaced by up-and-comer Kevin Grubb. Grubb's failed to qualify four times, yet finished fifth at Richmond and was seventeenth in points at season's end. Grubb improved four spots the next season thanks to six top tens, and in 2001, he totaled up seven finishes of ninth or better. After that season, Grubb departed for Carroll Racing, and was replaced by Jeff Purvis. Purvis started off by winning at Texas Motor Speedway, but almost died later in the year from a crash at Nazareth Speedway. Kevin Lepage took his place, and won two poles before Elton Sawyer finished out the years.

In 2001, Mark Green's brother David took over the driving chores and won three races and was runner-up in the championship standings in his debut season in the ride. After a winless 2004, Brewco switched to Ford from their combined Chevrolet and Pontiac team, with the number of Green's car switching to #27 (although Green's car wasn't the one that changed numbers technically- the #27 Kleenex sponsored machine was already in the stable and had been driven by Johnny Sauter prior to Green; Greg Biffle and Aaron Fike took over Green's old 37 and had it changed to 66). He collected one win and finished eighth in the points. In late 2006, Casey Atwood replaced David Green.

In 2007, Ward Burton and Jason Keller were announced as the driver of the #27 Ford Fusion, with Burton driving 20 races, and Keller racing five times. Bobby East was named the driver for the rest of the season. After Keller and Burton's contracts expired, Casey Atwood, Brad Baker, and Robby Gordon split the schedule in the 27 car. Brad Coleman will drive the car full-time in 2008.

Car No. 37 history
The #37 car debuted at Myrtle Beach Speedway in 1998, as #27 receiving Timber Wolf sponsorship. Casey Atwood finished 28th in that race. Scot Walters drove next at California Speedway, finishing 43rd after handling problems plagued the car. It went full-time in 1999, with Atwood driving the Castrol-sponsored ride. Despite being the age of 19, Atwood won twice at The Milwaukee Mile and Dover International Speedway, and finished 13th in points. After 2000, he signed onto Evernham Motorsports' Winston Cup program and was replaced by rookie Jamie McMurray and was sponsored by Williams Travel Centers. After three top ten finishes in 2001, McMurray won three times the next year and wound up sixth in points before moving on. Rookies Chase Montgomery and Joey Clanton shared the ride the next season. In 2004, Johnny Sauter came aboard with Kleenex sponsoring. Sauter posted eight top tens and had an eighteenth place finish in points. For 2005, the car switched to #66 with Duraflame sponsoring. Greg Biffle and Aaron Fike have shared the driving duties, with Biffle winning once and garnering sixteen top ten finishes in twenty-one starts, while Fike had one top ten in eleven starts. In 2006, Biffle, Ken Schrader, and Scott Wimmer shared the ride. Bobby Labonte also drove in some races

The team switched back to the #37 in 2007, as Rusty Wallace took back #66, the original number RWI debuted with. Greg Biffle and Jamie McMurray began the season sharing driving duties with sponsorship from Cub Cadet and Yard-Man. John Graham was named the driver for ten races in 2007, with Fun Energy Foods sponsoring. Casey Atwood also drove part-time in the 37. Brad Baker drove early in the season, before he was replaced by Burney Lamar.

Car No. 43 History
The 43 car began running when Curb began fielding NASCAR entries in 1984. He hired seven-time champion Richard Petty to drive the #43 STP Pontiac. Petty won his final two Cup races with the team and finished tenth in the final championship standings. He returned in 1985, but fell four spots in the standings after posting only top-ten. During the season, Tom Sneva drove the 42 car as a second entry to Curb at Atlanta Motor Speedway, finishing 32nd after an engine failure.

In 1986, Petty and STP left to rejoin Petty Enterprises, and Ron Bouchard became Curb's new driver, switching to the #98 with Valvoline sponsorship. They ran a limited schedule and had top-ten finishes at the Daytona 500 and Winston 500, but struggled with engine problems during the second half of the season. Dale Jarrett drove the 98 at Bristol Motor Speedway, bringing Busch sponsorship, starting 28th and finishing 29th. The following year, they began running Buicks and qualified for three races with Ed Pimm. Pimm did not finish any of those races, and only managed a best finish of 27th.

Sunoco became the team's new sponsor in 1988. Pimm qualified for two out of the first three races of the season, but was replaced by rookie Brad Noffsinger. His best finish was 14th at his series debut in Atlanta. Curb Racing folded at the end of 1988.

Curb Agajanian returned to NASCAR in 1998 with the Busch Series at the GM Goodwrench Service Plus 200, as the #96 Big A Auto Parts Pontiac Grand Prix driven by Mike Stefanik. Stefanik qualified 43rd and finished 35th, one lap down. He ran the next race for the team at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, where he finished 32nd. After missing the next four races, Stefanik was released, and Kyle Petty took over at the Coca-Cola 300, where he finished 12th. Brad Loney was the last driver to run with them that season, finishing 36th at Talladega Superspeedway.

In 1999, the team purchased Stegall Motorsports, switched to #43, got sponsorship from Central Tractor, and hired Shane Hall as their driver. Hall had a fourth-place finish at Myrtle Beach Speedway, and finished 24th in points. Rookie Jay Sauter replaced Hall in 2000, nailing eight top-tens and finishing seventeenth in points. He returned in 2001, and grabbed a pole at Kentucky Speedway, and finished nineteenth in points. Ron Hornaday climbed aboard to relieve Sauter in two races during the season

In 2002, the team lost sponsorship and cut back to a limited schedule, running three races late in the season with Hermie Sadler driving. The team continued to run part-time with Sauter's brother Johnny in 2003 with sponsorship from Channellock. They picked up their first win as a team at the Funai 250, and finished 30th in owner's points.

For 2004, the team switched to Dodge and signed Aaron Fike as the driver. Fike ran thirteen races, his best finish a seventeenth at Dover. In 2005, Fike switched between the 43 and Brewco Motorsports, with his younger brother A. J. filling in. He was not able to crack the top 20, and was released at the end of the season. Aaron returned to the ride full-time. In 2006, Fike qualified for most of the races, but soon departed for Kevin Harvick Incorporated. A permanaent replacement was not named, although P. J. Jones and Chris Cook ran a handful of races apiece, with Erin Crocker and Kertus Davis running one race deals as the team went part time. Due to a lack of sponsorship, CAPG was mostly inactive in the 2007 season, before attempting the Sam's Town 250 with Bobby East driving with sponsorship from Kick Butt Energy Ballz. The 43 car may run a part-time schedule in 2008 following the merger between Brewco and Curb Racing.

In 2009, Curb fielded the No. 43 at the spring Texas race with Josh Wise driving a car sponsored by Scott Products and county singer Star de Alzan, however Wise failed to qualify. At the fall Charlotte race, Curb leased the number 43 to Richard Petty Motorsports for driver Kasey Kahne.

In 2010, the season began with the No. 27 running Roush Fords split between Greg Biffle and Scott Wimmer with sponsorship from Red Man Tobacco (whose parent company Swedish Match had sponsored Brewco Motorsports with their Red Man and Timber Wolf brands from 1996-2004). Johnny Sauter drove the car at Nashville Superspeedway. After 14 races, the Red Man deal ended with new FDA regulations preventing tobacco advertising in sporting events. The Roush partnership dissolved after Kentucky, with the end of the Red Man deal. The team was forced to run only one car at Road America, leasing the No. 43 points to Rick Ware, although Owen Kelly drove the No. 27 sponsored by K1 Speed to a top-5 finish. Justin Lofton drove at Loudon with WeekendWarriors.tv sponsoring. The following week at Daytona was the first Nationwide Series race using the Car of Tomorrow platform. Initially for COT races, the No. 27 team would partner with Jennifer Jo Cobb, who brought sponsorship from Driver Boutique. Cobb would provide the COT and in return she would drive and provided the crew chief. However, the deal fell apart after Cobb destroyed the car in a crash during her first race with Baker-Curb at Daytona, an accident that also took out Baker-Curb's other entry, the No. 43 driven by Johnny Chapman. For the next seven races, seven different drivers ran the No. 27 Ford as part of one-race deals; the drivers were Lofton, Sauter, Kelly Bires, Nelson Piquet, Jr., Drew Herring, Josh Wise, and Danny O'Quinn, Jr.. Andrew Ranger then ran the No. 27 as a Dodge for one race, running a car out of his own race shop (Dodge Dealers of Quebec was his sponsor, thus requiring him to drive Dodge equipment). Brad Baker drove an unsponsored entry at Atlanta, finishing 26th. After this, the No. 43 shut down and the No. 27 Ford became the only entry for Baker-Curb. The remainder of the season was split between Baker, Herring, Alex Kennedy and Hermie Sadler. The team had little sponsorship for the final stretch, with Baker being forced to start and park at Fontana. Chase Mattioli ran the season finale at Homestead in the No. 27 Ford with CollegeComplete.com sponsoring, finishing 33rd. The best finish for the No. 27 in 2010 was 2nd with Biffle in a Ford, at Fontana and Richmond in the spring.