NY Racing Team Overview
NY Racing Team is an American professional stock car racing organization that competes part-time in the NASCAR Cup Series. Based in Statesville, North Carolina, the team fields the No. 44 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 and is owned by John Cohen, an African-American entrepreneur recognized as one of the few African-American owners in a major NASCAR touring series. The team relies on car bodies supplied by Richard Childress Racing and engines built by Hendrick Motorsports, two of the most respected technical partners in the sport. Since opening its doors in 2009, NY Racing Team has become known for persistence in the face of limited sponsorship, qualifying challenges, and the logistical obstacles that often accompany small, independent operations in Cup competition.
Founding and Organizational Origins
NY Racing Team traces its roots to the spring of 2009, when Johnathan “John” Cohen, born in 1975, launched a racing operation originally known as Xxxtreme Motorsport. Cohen, a New Jersey native, had previously built his career through nightclub and tavern business interests before channeling his entrepreneurial energy into motorsports. The team entered the NASCAR Nationwide Series part-time during its debut season, running the Nos. 07 and 58 with sponsorship from Macy’s and Cavi Clothing and sharing owner points with SKI Motorsports. Early drivers included Mike Harmon, Josh Wise, and Chase Austin, giving the new organization a foundation of experienced part-time talent. When Macy’s and Cavi departed at the end of 2009, the team temporarily shut down after being unable to secure funding for a 2010 campaign.
Cohen reactivated his racing effort and re-emerged in the Cup Series in November 2012 under the Xxxtreme Motorsport banner before adopting the NY Racing Team and Team Xtreme Racing identities in subsequent seasons. After a stretch of instability, the team purchased the owner points and assets of the recently closed No. 30 from Swan Racing in 2014, including the race shop in Statesville, North Carolina that still serves as the team’s home base. This acquisition gave NY Racing a stable operational footprint and a charter-friendly foundation from which to continue competing at the national level.
Growth Into NASCAR Cup Series Competition
The team’s first Cup Series appearance came at the 2012 AdvoCare 500 at Phoenix International Raceway, where David Reutimann drove the No. 44 with sponsorship from No Label Watches. The following year, Scott Riggs was hired as a full-time driver and the team switched manufacturers from Chevrolet to Ford, attempting most races in the first half of the season before shutting down mid-year due to sponsorship shortfalls and repeated start-and-park results. In 2014, J. J. Yeley joined the team, and the organization cycled through multiple engine failures and missed races before posting its first completed event at Pocono and later returning under the Team Xtreme Racing name with Timmy Hill at Dover.
Reed Sorenson was signed to drive the 2015 Daytona 500 with Golden Corral sponsorship, where he delivered the team’s first lead-lap finish, crossing the line in 32nd place despite a last-lap crash. The team’s momentum was halted when a race car, truck, and hauler were stolen from a hotel parking lot ahead of Atlanta, an incident that led to a guilty plea by Jason Terry in August of that year. The organization later ran partnerships with Premium Motorsports and BK Racing, and after BK Racing was absorbed into Front Row Motorsports, NY Racing spent several years on the sidelines before re-entering Cup in 2022 with Chevrolet power and sponsorship from historically black colleges.
NY Racing Team Competitive Journey
Across more than a decade and a half of competition, NY Racing Team has logged 51 total NASCAR national-series starts, including 44 in the Cup Series and 7 in the then-Nationwide Series, all without a victory, pole position, or drivers’ championship. The team’s journey has been defined by part-time scheduling, manufacturer changes between Chevrolet and Ford, and a reliance on technical alliances with Richard Childress Racing and Hendrick Motorsports to keep the No. 44 on the track.
Early Seasons and Development (2009–2014)
The team’s formative years began with part-time Nationwide Series entries in 2009, sharing owner points with SKI Motorsports and rotating drivers including Harmon, Wise, and Austin. After a one-year shutdown, the operation returned to the Cup Series in late 2012 with Reutimann at Phoenix, followed by a full 2013 campaign with Riggs under the Ford banner. The 2014 season was defined by frequent mechanical attrition, including engine failures at Texas, Dover, and earlier venues, and the team completed its first full-length race at Pocono that summer.
The early years also brought structural change, with the purchase of the Swan Racing No. 30 assets in 2014 providing a Statesville race shop and a more stable operational base. Yeley’s arrival and the late-season hire of Hill laid the groundwork for the No. 44 program that remains the team’s identity today. Golden Corral joined as a major sponsor in 2015, marking the team’s first significant brand partnership and the campaign that produced its first lead-lap finish at Daytona.
Breakthrough in Cup Series (2015–2022)
The 2015 season represented NY Racing’s most ambitious Cup campaign to that point, beginning with Sorenson’s lead-lap Daytona 500 result and Travis Kvapil’s planned Atlanta run before the well-documented theft of the team’s car and hauler. A civil arrest warrant tied to Cohen’s unrelated legal matters forced the team to withdraw from Martinsville, and the organization did not return to Cup competition for several years. Between 2018 and 2021, the team ran part-time alliances with Premium Motorsports and BK Racing, at one point fielding the No. 7 Steakhouse Elite car with Yeley, before lapsing into inactivity following BK Racing’s absorption into Front Row Motorsports.
The team’s Cup resurgence came in 2022 with the high-profile return of Greg Biffle at the Daytona 500, his first Cup start in six years and the team’s first race in four years. With Chevrolet power restored and sponsorship from historically black colleges, the No. 44 finished 36th at Daytona, 34th at Las Vegas, and posted a breakthrough 20th-place result at Atlanta, the organization’s first top-twenty finish in Cup competition. The campaign demonstrated that NY Racing could still produce competitive runs when its technical alliances were aligned and sponsorship was secured.
Modern Program and Current Direction (2024–Present)
After sitting out the 2023 season, NY Racing Team attempted the 2024 Daytona 500 with Yeley but failed to qualify after finishing 16th in his Duel. Biffle’s name appeared on the team’s hauler ahead of that race, though he later announced he would not return due to “unfulfilled contract obligations.” Yeley went on to race at Las Vegas, Charlotte, and Pocono, posting a best finish of 34th at Las Vegas and improving to 23rd in the summer Atlanta race. Joey Gase was then hired to drive the No. 44 at the 2024 Coke Zero Sugar 400, where he finished 20th and matched the team’s best Cup result from Atlanta in 2022.
For the 2025 season, the No. 44 continues to run part-time with Yeley, Derek Kraus, and Brennan Poole sharing driving duties. Steakhouse Elite remains the primary sponsor, and the team’s late-season schedule is expected to include the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series Championship Race at Phoenix. Looking ahead, NY Racing Team is preparing a return to competitive Cup Series racing in 2025, focused on qualifying for marquee events, building long-term sponsor relationships, and expanding its Chevrolet technical alliance with Richard Childress Racing and Hendrick Motorsports.
Philosophy and Competitive Strengths
NY Racing Team’s identity is built on resilience, technical alliances, and the ability to compete at the Cup level with limited resources. The team leans on Hendrick Motorsports engines and Richard Childress Racing car bodies to remain competitive, while Steakhouse Elite sponsorship and historically black college partnerships provide marketing identity. Its strengths lie in superspeedway and intermediate-track survival rather than weekly front-running pace, and its part-time model allows the organization to target high-profile races where return on investment is strongest.
Key Milestones and Major Moments
Highlights in NY Racing Team history include the 2009 Nationwide Series debut at Daytona, the 2012 Cup Series arrival at Phoenix, the first lead-lap finish at the 2015 Daytona 500 with Sorenson, and the 20th-place result at Atlanta in 2022 that stood as the team’s best Cup finish for two seasons. The 2015 theft of the team’s car and hauler, the 2022 return with Biffle at Daytona, and the 2024 tie of that best-finish mark with Gase at the Coke Zero Sugar 400 all stand as defining moments in the organization’s modern era.
NY Racing Team Achievements and Results
NY Racing Team has accumulated 51 starts across NASCAR’s top two national series without a race victory, pole position, or drivers’ championship. Its competitive ledger is defined instead by persistence, the development of part-time driver talent, and high-profile entries in marquee Cup events such as the Daytona 500 and the Coke Zero Sugar 400.
Cup Series Achievements
In the Cup Series, NY Racing Team has made 44 starts since its 2012 debut, recording zero wins and zero pole positions. The organization has achieved one lead-lap finish at the 2015 Daytona 500 with Sorenson and a best result of 20th, recorded twice, first at Atlanta in 2022 and matched at the 2024 Coke Zero Sugar 400 with Gase. Although the team has frequently struggled to qualify, its 2022 return with Chevrolet power signaled a renewed competitive direction.
Series Achievements
Across the broader NASCAR national-series landscape, NY Racing Team has combined its Cup efforts with 7 starts in the former Nationwide Series, running Nos. 07 and 58 during the 2009 season with drivers including Harmon, Wise, and Austin. The team’s Nationwide program established the operational template that the Cup program would later follow, sharing owner points with SKI Motorsports and building early sponsorship experience with Macy’s and Cavi Clothing.