Gaunt Brothers Racing and D.J. Kennington will compete in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series on a part-time basis in 2017, fielding the #96 Lordco Auto Parts Camry. The team announced their intentions to run the four restrictor plate races in a press release on Wednesday.
The team, owned by Triad Racing Technologies president Marty Gaunt, formerly ran races in the NASCAR Canadian Tire (now Pinty’s) Series. Prior to that, Gaunt was an executive for teams like Team Penske, Red Horse Racing and Red Bull Racing Team. Triad currently provides engines for BK Racing in the Cup Series and various Xfinity and Camping World Truck Series teams, including multi-time Truck champions ThorSport Racing and Kyle Busch Motorsports.
“With the recent unveiling of the 2018 Toyota Camry, we feel that now is the right time to return to the racetrack,” Gaunt stated. “We’re going to provide a concentrated effort this season at tracks on which we can immediately adapt and compete.”
The team will field Toyotas in conjunction with RAB Racing; RAB last competed in NASCAR in 2015, fielding a part-time Cup Series team for Justin Marks and Reed Sorenson, along with an Xfinity Series team for Marks and Kenny Wallace. In eight Cup attempts, RAB failed to qualify for each.
“There are a lot of great things happening with the sport right now and we feel fortunate to continue our relationship with Marty, Triad and Toyota, starting with this attempt at the Daytona 500,” RAB owner Robby Benton said. “Our aspirations will be no small task, but we know what we need to do to position ourselves to make this a successful effort. We’ll transition over to the Daytona 500 after competing in the Rolex 24 Hours at Daytona with our sports car program later this month.”
Kennington currently competes in the Pinty’s Series, winning the championship in 2010 and 2012. Although he has not won a race since 2013, he finished in the top-10 in all but one race in 2016 and recorded a 6th-place points finish. He made his Cup Series debut in 2016 at the Phoenix fall race for Premium Motorsports, where he finished 35th. Kennington has made four starts at plate tracks – all in the Nationwide (now Xfinity) Series – in 2008 and 2009, with a best finish of 17th at Daytona in 2009.
The 2017 Daytona 500 will be held on February 26. The other three plate races will be held on the following dates: May 7 (GEICO 500 at Talladega), July 1 (Coke Zero 400 at Daytona) and October 15 (Alabama 500 at Talladega).
Featured image courtesy of @GauntBrosRacing
