STATESVILLE N.C. – GMS Racing officials have announced the team will not field a NASCAR Xfinity Series team next season.
According to a statement by GMS Racing President Mike Beam, the team will instead focus on their NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series and ARCA Menards Series programs next season.
GMS Racing has fielded a NASCAR Xfinity Series team since 2016, when Spencer Gallagher competed in six events for the team.
The 2017 season GMS Racing expand to a full Xfinity Series schedule with Gallagher, while Ben Kennedy and Brett Moffitt raced a second car in select events.
The 2018 season saw Gallagher score the team’s only Xfinity Series victory at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway, though Gallagher was later suspended for failing a NASCAR drug test.
GMS Racing continued to field its Xfinity program through the remainder of 2018 with a number of drivers sharing the car, including NASCAR Hall of Famer Bill Elliott and his son, Chase Elliott, A.J. Allmendinger, Alex Bowman, Justin Haley, Casey Roderick and Johnny Sauter.
This year the team signed John Hunter Nemechek to drive the team’s Xfinity Series car, who put together the team’s best season with six top-five and 19 top-10 finishes that led to a seventh-place championship finish.
“GMS Racing will not field a NASCAR Xfinity Series entry next season,” Beam said. “We have decided that in the best interest of the organization we will put our complete focus on our Gander Trucks and ARCA Racing Series programs in 2020. We can’t thank John Hunter (Nemechek) and everyone that has been involved in our Xfinity effort over the past four years enough for their hard work and dedication to the organization. We wish John Hunter (Nemechek) the best in his future endeavors.”
It is unknown what Nemechek’s future holds, though he did make his Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series debut at the tail end of the season in Front Row Motorsports’ No. 36 Ford after rookie Matt Tifft suffered a seizure and couldn’t complete the season.