Ultra Motorsports
| Owner(s) | Jim and Marlene Smith |
|---|---|
| Base | Charlotte, North Carolina |
| Series |
Winston Cup Series Craftsman Truck Series |
| Car numbers | 1, 2, 7, 07 |
| Race drivers | Ted Musgrave, Kasey Kahne, Mike Bliss, Mike Wallace, Scott Riggs, Jimmy Spencer, Michael Waltrip |
| Sponsors | Mopar, Sirius Satellite Radio, Team ASE Racing, NationsRent |
| Manufacturer | Ford, Dodge, Chevrolet |
| Opened | 1995 |
| Closed | 2005 |
| Career | |
| Drivers' Championships | 1 |
| Race victories | 31 (Craftsman Truck Series) |
Ultra Motorsports was a NASCAR Winston Cup and Craftsman Truck Series racing team. Jim Smith helped start the team and the Craftsman Truck Series. It ran full-time in the Craftsman Truck Series from 1995 to 2005, earning 31 series wins and a championship in 2005 with Ted Musgrave. Early in 2006, Ultra announced that they would close up shop after a fallout with Ford.
Ultra Motorsports began running Winston Cup in 1994, when P. J. Jones drove the No. 06 Ford Thunderbird at Phoenix, finishing 29th, nine laps down. The next season, Butch Gilliland ran the No. 38 Ford at Infineon, but finished 42nd after an early engine failure. Ultra returned to Cup in 1999 with the No. 32. Mike Wallace qualified at Richmond International Raceway, finishing 24th.
Midway through 2000, Mattei Motorsports sold partial interest in the team to Ultra and Smith, who bought out Mattei one month later. The team inherited the No. 7 Chevrolet Monte Carlo and its driver Michael Waltrip, and kept the team's sponsorship with construction equipment rental service NationsRent. Waltrip left the team after a 29th-place points finish.
In 2001, Ultra went back to fielding Fords and signed Mike Wallace to replace Waltrip. Wallace struggled and with the season entering its first road race at Sears Point, Ultra decided to go with a more experienced road course driver and hired Robby Gordon, who had been hired to replace Bobby Hamilton in the No. 4 Kodak car for Morgan-McClure Motorsports but was himself fired and replaced by Kevin Lepage early in the season, to drive the No. 7 on the road course. Gordon contended for the win most of the day, finally placing second and giving Ultra its best ever finish. Wallace returned to the car afterward, but left the team to replace the fired Jeremy Mayfield at Penske Racing in October and Lepage replaced him after leaving the No. 4 team.
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