Spears Motorsports
| Owner(s) | Wayne Spears, Connie Spears |
|---|---|
| Base | Agua Dulce, California |
| Series | Craftsman Truck Series, Sprint Cup |
| Car numbers | 75 |
| Race drivers | Aric Almirola , Bobby Gill, Kevin Harvick, Dennis Setzer, David Starr, Clay Rogers, Bill Sedgwick |
| Sponsors | Spears Manufacturing |
| Manufacturer | Chevrolet |
| Opened | 1987 |
| Closed | 2007 |
| Career | |
| Drivers' Championships | 0 |
| Race victories | 4 (Craftsman Truck) |
Spears Motorsports was a NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series team owned by Wayne and Connie Spears of Agua Dulce, California. The team is most notable for its longevity in the Truck Series, running all but two races before their closure, their commitment to running with Chevrolet and for always running their white and blue No. 75.
Wayne Spears is a 2009 inductee of the .
Spears Motorsports debuted in 1987 at Riverside with road racer Tommy Kendall driving the No. 76 Spears Manufacturing Buick. However, they would last only 26 laps before being hit with oil troubles. Kendall and Spears returned to Riverside in '88, and improved their results to 18th, leading one lap. Kendall would be released in favor of Bill Sedgwick, debuting at Phoenix but finishing 36th with ignition troubles. Sedgwick and Spears would only make 8 starts between 1989 NASCAR Winston Cup Series and 1992 NASCAR Winston Cup Series due to Sedgwick also running in the Winston West (now Camping World West) Series. Ron Hornaday would make his Cup debut with Spears in 1993, also at Phoenix finishing 22nd. Sedgwick returned to the team the following year without much success. Taking a leap at the newly formed SuperTruck Series, the Spears' sold off their Cup equipment at season's end.
In 1995, Bill France, Jr. announced the official formation of the NASCAR SuperTruck Series by Craftsman. With Hornaday already signed to drive Dale Earnhardt Incorporated's No. 16 truck, the Spears family turned back to Bill Sedgwick, who would debut their white No. 75 Spears Manufacturing Chevrolet at PIR for the Copper World Classic. Sedgwick would finish 12th in the first ever truck race. Spears proved its competitiveness by winning the pole at Mesa Marin Speedway. Spears Motorsports's first season in the trucks netted them 1 pole, 6 top 5s, and 13 top 10s for a seventh-place points finish. Sedgwick left for Darrell Waltrip Motorsports in 1996, and Spears brought on driver Bobby Gill, who was a consistent top 20 finisher but released after Louisville despite gaining four top tens. Gill was replaced by Busch Series driver Nathan Buttke, who had 7 top 10 starts, but only 3 top 10 finishes and 7 DNF's. Buttke was released for Dan Press who also struggled and had 4 DNF's. Press was soon replaced by another West Series driver, Kevin Harvick, who had made two previous starts in the No. 79 Chevrolet at Tucson and Louisville, finishing in the top 20. Harvick would struggle with only an average season of mid pack finishes but garnered two 8th-place finishes. Harvick ran the full 1998 season except for Nashville, where Lonnie Rush Jr. drove the No. 75 truck but crashed. Despite three consecutive DNF's at the beginning of the year, Harvick and team rallied back to finish 17th in points, with 3 top 5s and 5 top 10s. Harvick would leave Spears for Jim Herrick's team in 1999, and was replaced by Rush, who struggled and was replaced by Marty Houston, who gave the team a top 10 at Nazareth. Houston returned in 2000, scoring 1 top 5 and 10 top 10s to finish 12th in points. His success raised the eyebrows of Armando Fitz, who got him into his Busch Series car for 2001. Another future USAR driver, Billy Bigley, took the reins of the No. 75, resulting in 1 top 5 and 8 top 10s for a 13th-place points finish.
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