NASCAR Las Vegas Entry List Excludes Key Team In Shock Move

MBM Motorsports will not compete in the upcoming NASCAR Cup Series race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. This development comes at a time when MBM Motorsports is struggling with inconsistency in their race entries throughout the 2024 season.

Previously intending to field their No. 66 Ford, the team, led by co-founder Carl Long, is notably absent from the entry list for the Las Vegas event.

Founded in 2014 and based in Statesville, North Carolina, MBM Motorsports has seen its share of ups and downs. Carl Long, with a history of 174 starts across NASCAR’s national series, including 26 in the Cup Series, hoped to steer the team to a more consistent participation throughout the 2024 season.

Unfortunately, the team’s return to competition after missing the entire 2023 season has been erratic. Though they managed to enter ten points races with aspirational plans, MBM Motorsports’s continued struggle with stability in race attendance and driver lineup has become a recurring theme.

This season, the No. 66 Ford has seen a rotation of six different drivers. Josh Bilicki made three starts, while Timmy Hill and B.J. McLeod made two each. Chad Finchum, David Starr, and Parker Retzlaff contributed with one start per driver. The inconsistency extended to sponsorships as well. Brands such as Green Light Performance Products, Aires Tech, and AES Restaurant Group (an Arby’s Franchisee) have backed the team, enabling partial participation. Yet, the sporadic support may have influenced their irregular presence on the track.

Despite their absence in Las Vegas, MBM Motorsports has plans to return to the track at Homestead-Miami Speedway the following weekend, with Chad Finchum driving under Aires Tech sponsorship. Finchum, stepping back into a competitive role at Nashville Superspeedway in June 2024, is poised to carry forward the team’s commitment to the sport despite past setbacks.

The upcoming South Point 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, part of the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs, will broadcast live on NBC on October 20th at 2:30 p.m. ET.

NASCAR Cup Series: Current Standings

1. Kyle Larson – 4052 points
2. Christopher Bell – 4032 points
3. Tyler Reddick – 4029 points
4. William Byron – 4023 points
5. Ryan Blaney – 4019 points
6. Denny Hamlin – 4015 points
7. Chase Elliott – 4014 points
8. Joey Logano – 4012 points
9. Alex Bowman – 2195 points
10. Austin Cindric – 2174 points
11. Ty Gibbs – 2150 points
12. Martin Truex Jr – 2146 points
13. Daniel Suárez – 2127 points
14. Brad Keselowski – 2120 points
15. Chase Briscoe – 2110 points
16. Harrison Burton – 2065 points
17. Chris Buescher – 830 points
18. Bubba Wallace – 824 points
19. Ross Chastain – 821 points
20. Kyle Busch – 711 points
21. Carson Hocevar – 604 points
22. Todd Gilliland – 579 points
23. Michael McDowell – 574 points
24. Ricky Stenhouse Jr – 543 points
25. Noah Gragson – 522 points
26. Ryan Preece – 507 points
27. Josh Berry – 506 points
28. Austin Dillon – 483 points
29. Zane Smith – 460 points
30. Justin Haley – 459 points
31. Corey LaJoie – 457 points
32. Erik Jones – 456 points
33. Daniel Hemric – 455 points
34. John H. Nemechek – 395 points
35. Kaz Grala – 188 points
36. Cody Ware – 130 points
37. Joey Hand – 43 points
38. Jimmie Johnson – 40 points
39. Derek Kraus – 32 points
40. David Ragan – 17 points
41. Kamui Kobayashi – 8 points
42. Will Brown – 6 points
43. Juan Pablo Montoya – 5 points
44. Cam Waters – 2 points