Press Release | BEARD MOTORSPORTS, BENNETT FAMILY OF COMPANIES
T. PLEASANT, Mich. (Feb. 2, 2023) – Bennett Family of Companies has joined Beard Motorsports and driver Austin Hill as its primary partner for the Daytona 500 NASCAR Cup Series race Feb. 19 at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway. Hill will pilot the No. 62 Bennett Transportation and Logistics Chevrolet in the ‘Great American Race.’
“We are very excited to partner with Beard Motorsports and have the opportunity to be a part of an event as iconic as the Daytona 500,” said Lynette Mathis, Vice President of the Bennett Family of Companies. “We have quickly learned that the Beards and their family of businesses share many of our core values. It’s a thrilling prospect to partner with like-minded people that are committed to excellence.”
Headquartered in McDonough, Georgia, Bennett Family of Companies provides innovative logistics and transportation services for companies across America. Bennett offers a suite of trucking and specialized logistic services, from flatbed and step deck trucking and manufactured housing transport to RV delivery, customs brokerage, and warehousing. With over 46 years of experience in the industry, Bennett’s network provides the safest and best possible service to all their business partners.
“Our customers, agents and drivers are central to our company’s success,” said Lee Gentry, Executive Vice President of the Bennett Family of Companies. “Their partnership is valuable, and we hope to continue to build strong relationships with them. This is just one way we plan to show our appreciation and thanking them for everything that they do for Bennett.”
Beard Motorsports, founded by the late Mark Beard Sr., and now run by his wife, Linda Beard and children, Amie and Mark, is a generational race team that made its NASCAR Cup Series debut during the 2017 Daytona 500 with former driver-turned vice president of competition in Brendan Gaughan. Crew chief Darren Shaw is back to lead the team during its 2023 campaign and will do so with support from ECR Engines.
Historically, the No. 62 Beard Chevrolet has only run the races at Daytona and its sister track, Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway. This season however, Beard will expand that schedule with appearances at the Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway Road Course in October as well as the August race at Michigan International Speedway, which will serve as a homecoming for the Michigan-based Beard family and Beard Oil Distributing Company.
“Honoring my dad’s legacy and his passion for the sport of auto racing is the driving force behind Beard Motorsports,” said Amie Beard, executive vice president, Beard Motorsports. “I’ve said it before but he was very much a ‘Go big or go home’ kind of person. I know he would be so proud to see how we have carried on the tradition that he started and increasing our presence in the NASCAR garage with the races in Michigan this summer and at the Charlotte road course this fall.”
“We are thrilled to be part of the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series season and are honored to have the Bennett Family of Companies join us for the biggest race in our sport,” Beard added. “Our team values family and hard work. We’re just very appreciative of the opportunity to once again be part of the tradition of the Daytona 500.”
The upcoming Daytona 500 will mark just the second start in the NASCAR Cup Series for Hill and his first attempt at the Great American Race. The Winston, Georgia native is taking nothing for granted.
“The opportunity to compete in the Daytona 500 is a dream come true,” said the 28-year-old Hill. “It’s an honor to race for the Beard family and I’m very excited to have Bennett Transportation and Logistics on board our No. 62 Camaro. Bennett has not only supported my career in the Xfinity Series, but also my first Cup start last season. I’m proud to represent them and the truckers that drive for the Bennett Family of Companies. Daytona will be an exciting week and I can’t wait to get to Florida.”
Hill is a two-time winner and the defending Rookie of the Year in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, the stepping-stone division to the elite NASCAR Cup Series. Both of his victories – in the season kickoff event at Daytona and his hometown race at Atlanta (Ga.) Motor Speedway – came last season in Hill’s rookie campaign in the Xfinity Series.
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