MB Motorsports

MB Motorsports is a NASCAR Camping World Truck Series team based in Foristell, Missouri owned by Mike Mittler. The team is one of few to field entries every year since the Series' inception in 1995. Several drivers who went on to Nationwide Series and Sprint Cup careers got their first NASCAR ride in an MB Motorsports Truck.

History

MB Motorsports debuted at the 1995 Sears Auto Center 125 at The Milwaukee Mile. Tony Roper drove the #26 Mittler Brothers Machine & Tool F-150 to a 22nd place finish. He made another start weeks later at Martinsville Speedway, but finished twenty-seventh after suffering rear end problems. Mike Wallace drove the next race at North Wilkesboro Speedway, but finished 29th after an engine failure. The team only made two starts in 1996. Kenny Irwin, Jr. drove the first race, and started and finished 32nd. The next race came at Flemington Speedway, where Michael Dokken exited the race after seven laps due to electrical problems.

In 1997, the team made a total of three races, with the first one coming at I-70 Speedway with Rick Beebe qualifying ninth but finishing twenty-fourth. Jerry Robertson made an additional two starts with Mainstream Technology/Lucas Oil sponsorship, his best finish being 26th. Doug George began the 1998 season with MB, but a failure to finish higher than 30th and three consecutive DNQs forced him out of the ride. The team switched to a part-time schedule for the rest of the season, with Randy MacDonald, Beebe, and Bryan Reffner driving. Randy Nelson ran the 1999 season-opener, but only completed fifteen laps. Robertson returned to run three races in the MB truck, but only finished one race. Jamie McMurray ran five races for the team, and had a best finish of eleventh at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

McMurray was selected to make a full-time run for Rookie of the Year in 2000, but left midway through the season for TKO Motorsports. Tony Roper returned to the team and drove the rest of the season. During the O'Reilly 400K at Texas Motor Speedway on October 13, Roper crashed heavily on lap 33, and suffered a neck injury that would prove fatal the next day. Roper was one of four NASCAR drivers, including Adam Petty, former MB Motorsports driver Kenny Irwin, and seven-time Cup Series Champion Dale Earnhardt to be killed on track in less than nine months.

MB returned to the track in 2001, switching to the #63. Rookie Larry Gunselman joined the team, bringing sponsorship from Waterloo Tool Storage, and occasionally running Chevrolets. He ran seventeen races and had a best finish of sixteenth at Kansas Speedway. Mike Harmon also drove one race at Dover International Speedway, but finished thirty-fifth after an early ignition failure. Gunselman drove three early races for MB in 2002, but the team stopped running for a few races until Carl Edwards was hired to run seven races. He recorded the first top-ten finish in team history at Kansas. Regan Smith drove two races late in the season, but failed to finish a race. In 2003, Ronnie Hornaday drove two races with Summer Bay Resort sponsoring, but suffered engine failures in both races. David Stover drove the rest of the team's schedule and had two top-twenty finishes.

In 2004, rookie driver Chris Wimmer drove ten races with Porter Truck Sales sponsorshing, and had a best finish of eighteenth. Justin Allgaier competed in four races the following season, but only had a best finish of 26th, and failed to qualify for five races. After several DNQs in 2006 with J. R. Patton, Allgaier returned the next season for three races, with a best finish of twenty-first. Cameron Dodson then took over for four races and had a best finish of 24th. Scott Lynch drove one race, and Brad Keselowski drove in two races under a partnership with K Automotive Racing. Jason White drove the season-opening race in 2007 with Gunbroker.com sponsoring, but the race ended in a crash. For the rest of the season, Scott Lynch and Jack Smith shared the ride with Cooper Bussman sponsoring. The team also fielded a second truck in the first time in its history at Gateway International Raceway. Smith drove but qualified and finished last, failing to complete a lap.

In 2008, Diversified Partners sponsored the season-opening race with P. J. Jones driving, but he wrecked early. Jones and Smith drove two races a piece, with Allgaier returning with a 24th-place finish at Kentucky Speedway. The team also fielded a second truck, the #36 at Texas Motor Speedway. J.C. Stout finished 34th after an early vibration put him out of contention.

In 2009, Mittler fielded the #63 again, this time for Tim Andrews at Chicago and Texas, where he finished 25th both times, and for Ben Stancil at Kansas, Kentucky, and Charlotte, with a best finish of 19th.

For 2010, young driver Nick Hoffman made his Truck Series debut at IRP finishing 23rd. Jack Smith ran at Kansas, Texas, and Gateway, impressing with all top-25 finishes. Hoffman and Smith would return to MB the following year, with Hoffman running at Nashville and Kansas but only scored a best finish of 25th. Smith's return to MB brought sponsorship from Seal Wrap, as well as consulting from Paul Andrews. Making six starts that season, Smith would get a career best finish of 11th at Atlanta. However, Smith was suspended by NASCAR for failing a drug test. Young driver Tyler Tanner, who brought sponsorship from EF-65, made his debut at Martinsville.

2015 marks a turning point for MB Motorsports and Mike Mittler as 16 year old Jake Griffin from Quincy, Illinois becomes one of the youngest drivers to go toe to toe with the best drivers in the Nascar Truck Series. Griffin is a decorated and very successful dirt track and asphalt track racer at the ripe age of 16. He is becoming a very well known name among drivers and teams in the garages. Jake will be driving the #63 PADD/Johnson's Logistics Chevy Silverado as the NCWTS invades the famed Martinsville Speedway on Saturday March 28, 2015. Griffin at the age of 14 became the youngest driver ever to win a Nascar sanctioned event and looks to capitalize on that history to make history at Martinsville Speedway.

External links

• MB Motorsports
• Mike Mittler Owner Statistics