Beard Motorsports Overview
Beard Motorsports is an American professional stock car racing team that competes part-time in the NASCAR Cup Series with the No. 62 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE. Founded in 1982 by Mark Beard for competition in the NASCAR Busch Series, the team is based in Mooresville, North Carolina, and is owned by Linda Beard, Mark Beard Jr., and Annie Beard. The organization has used a variety of car numbers over its history, including 62, 75, 00, 16, 38, 42, and 45, and has built its identity around restrictor-plate superspeedway events and selective part-time entries. Although the team has not recorded a race victory or a drivers’ championship, Beard Motorsports has earned several respectable finishes, including a top-five result in a NASCAR Cup Series race in 2022.
The team has long relied on technical alliances with established organizations, most notably Richard Childress Racing, and it sources engines from ECR Engines. Through the Beard Oil business, the family has sustained the operation across decades of changing NASCAR competition formats, remaining a recognizable independent presence in the Cup garage.
Founding and Organizational Origins
Beard Motorsports was created in 1982 by Mark Beard, an owner-driver who first fielded the No. 16 Pontiac at the Goody’s 300 at Daytona, finishing 18th. From the start, the team functioned as an extension of the Beard Oil business, and Mark Beard personally raced his own equipment in the NASCAR Busch Series during the early 1980s. In 1986, the operation fielded a No. 38 Pontiac at Charlotte, marking an early step in building a multi-car identity for the fledgling team.
Throughout the 1990s, the team broadened its presence by fielding the No. 00 car for a wide range of drivers, including Gary Neice, Dana Patten, Bobby Dotter, L. D. Ottinger, Richard Lasater, Butch Miller, and Jim Brinkley Jr. This rotation of seat fillers helped the Beard family build operational experience, supplier relationships, and a working race shop. The organization remained a small, family-run operation tied closely to the Beard Oil brand.
Growth Into NASCAR Cup Series Competition
In 2009, Mark Beard revived Beard Motorsports and entered the ARCA Racing Series at Michigan with Clay Rogers behind the No. 42 Chevrolet. To launch this new chapter, Beard acquired equipment from Hendrick Motorsports, an early example of the team’s reliance on alliances with leading NASCAR organizations. From 2011 to 2012, the team fielded the No. 45 and scored a best finish of fourth at Iowa Speedway with Clay Rogers, signaling steady development.
The team moved into the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in 2014, when Mark Beard founded the Cup operation using engines built from old Hendrick Motorsports parts and conducted tests at east coast tracks including New Hampshire Motor Speedway. Although the team entered the No. 75 Beard Oil Chevrolet at Loudon, Richmond, and Phoenix with Clay Rogers, it failed to qualify for each race. After two dormant seasons in 2015 and 2016, Beard Motorsports returned part-time in 2017 and has since concentrated its Cup Series program around restrictor-plate superspeedway events.
Beard Motorsports Competitive Journey
Across NASCAR’s top three national touring series, Beard Motorsports has logged 52 race entries, including 34 in the Cup Series, 11 in the Busch Series, and 7 in the ARCA Racing Series. The team has not posted a pole position or a race victory at any national level, and its championship tally remains at zero. Its competitive story is one of selective, family-funded part-time entries anchored by technical partnerships and a focus on superspeedway racing.
Early Seasons and Development (1982–2013)
From its founding in 1982 through the 1990s, Beard Motorsports operated as a modest Busch Series and short-track effort centered on the No. 16, No. 38, and No. 00 entries. The team built a foundation on owner-driver participation, with Mark Beard competing in his own equipment and a deep rotation of guest pilots. These campaigns established the race shop routines, transport logistics, and sponsor relationships that would later support national-series entries.
The 2009 revival brought Beard back into national competition through the ARCA Racing Series, where Clay Rogers piloted the No. 42 Chevrolet. Follow-up seasons in the No. 45 produced a fourth-place finish at Iowa Speedway, the team’s strongest result in its developmental period and a clear sign that the operation could compete on intermediate tracks.
Breakthrough in NASCAR Cup Series (2014–2020)
The team’s first Cup Series attempts came in 2014 with the No. 75 Beard Oil Chevrolet, but Clay Rogers failed to qualify at Richmond and Phoenix. Beard Motorsports then sat out the 2015 and 2016 seasons before announcing a return to the Daytona 500 in 2017 with Brendan Gaughan. Operating without a NASCAR charter, the team purchased a car from Leavine Family Racing, used a Childress engine, and relied on Gaughan’s Richard Childress Racing Xfinity Series pit crew. As one of the two fastest non-charter cars in qualifying, Gaughan locked into the field and delivered an 11th-place finish, the team’s first start in the Cup Series.
The team expanded its 2017 restrictor-plate slate, returning at Talladega with a 27th-place result, then posting a seventh-place finish in the Coke Zero 400 at Daytona despite contact with the wall. The 2018 and 2019 seasons followed the same superspeedway-focused model, using cars from Richard Childress Racing, engines from ECR Engines, and technical support from the Childress crew. In 2020, Gaughan’s final driving season, the team made the Daytona 500 field by posting the second fastest qualifying speed among non-charter teams at 188.945 mph, finishing 33rd overall.
Modern Program and Current Direction (2021–Present)
Beard Motorsports announced Noah Gragson for the 2021 Daytona 500, but on January 31, 2021, just fourteen days before the race, team founder Mark Beard died at age 72. The organization continued under family ownership and returned for the 2022 season, entering the No. 62 in all four superspeedway races with Gragson. After a DNF in the Daytona 500, Gragson earned a top-twenty finish at Talladega with sponsorship from Wendy’s, then delivered the team’s first top-five Cup Series result with a fifth-place finish in the August Daytona race.
The team attempted the 2023 Daytona 500 with Austin Hill but failed to qualify after a late crash in Duel 2. In 2024, Beard Motorsports signed Anthony Alfredo to drive the No. 62 full-time at the superspeedways. Alfredo finished 27th at the Daytona 500 and scored a career-best sixth at Talladega, while Parker Retzlaff added a seventh-place run at the Coke Zero Sugar 400. For 2025, Alfredo returned in the No. 62 for multiple races, and Jesse Love was announced to drive the entry at Texas Motor Speedway and Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Philosophy and Competitive Strengths
Beard Motorsports operates as a family-owned independent built around restrictor-plate superspeedway racing, where drafting and strategy can offset the limits of a part-time budget. Its core identity rests on tight alliances with Richard Childress Racing and ECR Engines, careful car preparation, and aggressive race-day calls led by drivers comfortable in pack racing.
Key Milestones and Major Moments
The team’s signature moments include its first Cup Series start with an 11th-place finish in the 2017 Daytona 500, the 2017 Coke Zero 400 seventh-place run, Gragson’s fifth-place finish at Daytona in 2022, Alfredo’s sixth-place run at Talladega in 2024, and Retzlaff’s seventh-place finish at the Coke Zero Sugar 400. The death of founder Mark Beard in January 2021 and the team’s continued part-time competitiveness under family ownership mark defining organizational milestones.
Beard Motorsports Achievements and Results
Beard Motorsports has compiled 52 race entries across NASCAR’s top three national series without recording a pole position, a race victory, or a drivers’ championship. The team’s accolades come in the form of competitive Cup Series finishes, strong qualifying speeds as a non-charter operation, and consistent restrictor-plate appearances.
Cup Series Achievements
The team has made 34 Cup Series starts and recorded several notable results, including the 11th-place Daytona 500 finish in 2017, the seventh-place Coke Zero 400 result that same year, Gragson’s fifth-place run at Daytona in 2022, Alfredo’s sixth-place Talladega finish in 2024, and Retzlaff’s seventh-place Coke Zero Sugar 400 run. These efforts reflect steady improvement as a restrictor-plate specialist.
Series Achievements
Across the Busch Series and ARCA Racing Series, Beard Motorsports has logged 11 Busch Series starts and 7 ARCA starts. The team’s signature pre-Cup result was Clay Rogers’ fourth-place ARCA finish at Iowa Speedway in the No. 45 program, which helped establish the organization as a credible development platform before its modern Cup focus.