David Gilliland
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| Born: | April 1, 1976 | |
| Birthplace: | Riverside, California | |
| Awards: | 1999 Perris Speedway Track Champion
2004 NASCAR Grand National Division, West Series Rookie of the Year |
|
| NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Statistics | ||
| Car #, Team | 38 - Robert Yates Racing | |
| First Race: | 2006 Dodge/Save Mart 350 (Infineon) | |
| Wins | Top Tens | Poles |
| 0 | 0 | 1 |
| NASCAR Busch Series Statistics | ||
| Car #, Team | 25 - Team Rensi Motorsports | |
| 2005 NBS Position: | 127th | |
| Best NBS Position: | 127th - 2005 (Busch Series) | |
| First Race: | 2005 Basha's Supermarkets 200 (Phoenix) | |
| First Win: | 2006 Meijer 300 (Kentucky) | |
| Wins | Top Tens | Poles |
| 1 | 1 | 0 |
| All stats current as of November 25, 2006. | ||
David Gilliland (born on April 1, 1976 in Riverside, California) is a NASCAR driver. He currently drives the #38 M&Ms Ford for Robert Yates Racing in Nextel Cup Series. He drove the #72 CJM Racing Dodge in the Nextel Cup Series race at Infineon Raceway in June 2006. He is the son of former Cup and West Coast driver Butch Gilliland. He is mentored by former Nextel Cup race winner Jerry Nadeau.
[edit] NASCAR Regional Career
In 1996, he began working on his father's AutoZone West Series team. By 1999, Gilliland won the track championship at Perris Speedway (a dirt track). Then, the following year he began a limited season in the NASCAR AutoZone West Series.
In 2003, Gilliland won five races in the NASCAR AutoZone Elite Division, Southwest Series in the #11 Centrifugal Technologies Ford. He finished the season with five top-fives and eight top-tens and a 6th place finish in points.
In 2004, Gilliland announced plans to run the full schedule in the NASCAR AutoZone Elite Division, Southwest Series in the No. 88 Chevrolet for MRG Motorsports and all non-conflicting NASCAR Grand National Division, West Series (now AutoZone West) races. He won his first AutoZone West win at Mesa Marin Raceway, in his home city. He was then NASCAR Grand National Division, West Series Rookie-of-the-Year. He also had two victories in NASCAR AutoZone Elite Division, Southwest Series.
[edit] NASCAR National Career
Gilliland made his first attempt at a major NASCAR race in 2003, at the Las Vegas 350 in the Craftsman Truck Series, but failed to qualify. He announced that Clay Andrews Racing would form in mid-2005. Gilliland made his Busch Series debut at Phoenix, qualifying 28th. However, he was involved with an early crash and finished 43rd. Gilliland made the other Phoenix race later in the year, but had the same result. He was 43rd after ignition troubles. Also, he ran the #15 Billy Ballew Motorsports Chevy at Vegas in the Craftsman Truck Series with a 22nd place finish.
Meanwhile, Gilliland raced in the Grand National Division in 2005 and won the Toyota All-Star Showdown in 2005 when apparent winner Mike Olson was disqualified for light wheels wider than regulation. The win was his biggest of date because it allowed him to be noticed by Busch and Cup owners.
Gilliland began running the #84 Clay Andrews Chevy part-time in 2006, where he drew praise from many veterans, including announcer Darrell Waltrip. Gilliland, however, struggled to finish races, only earning a best of 29th in his first four starts of the year. However, in his next outing, Gilliland scored his first career Busch Series win at Kentucky on June 17. Gilliland drove the 84 Hype Manufacturing Chevrolet to victory, becoming the first driver of 2006 to win a Busch race who was not also running a full-time Nextel Cup schedule. FX television announcer Hermie Sadler called the victory "the biggest upset in Busch Series history". It was also big, because Gilliland made up ground late in the race, recovering from a series of bad pit stops to take the lead in dramatic fashion.
Gilliland made his first attempt to make a Cup race at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, CA, in the #72 CJM Racing Chevrolet. He qualified for the team's first race, qualifying 31st, and finishing 32nd. In August 2006, Gilliland replaced Elliott Sadler as the driver of the M&M's Ford in the NEXTEL Cup Series. On October 7, he qualified on the pole for the UAW-Ford 500 at Talladega Superspeedway, the first pole of his career. He has signed to drive for Yates through 2008.
Gilliand officially became a Raybestos Rookie candidate for the 2006 season as he ran enough races to qualify as a 2006 rookie. He will drive part-time in the Busch Series for Team Rensi Motorsports with sponsorship from FreeCrediReport.com. He will split the driving duties at Rensi with rookie Richard Johns.
[edit] External links
| Robert Yates Racing | |
| Nextel Cup drivers | Ricky Rudd (#28) | David Gilliland (#38) |
| Busch Series drivers | Stephen Leicht (#90) |
| Notable former drivers | Davey Allison | Ernie Irvan | Dale Jarrett |
| Partnerships and affiliations | Roush Racing |
| Other | Robert Yates |
