JR Motorsports began in 1998 as the marketing division of Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s race team, operating out of a shed on the property of Dale Earnhardt, Inc. with just one employee. In 2002, Earnhardt Jr. turned the business into a race team, fielding an entry for T. J. Majors in the street stock division at Concord Speedway in North Carolina. Following Earnhardt Jr.'s signing with Hendrick Motorsports, the Hendrick and JR Motorsports Nationwide Series teams were merged.
The team's first win came at Motor Mile Speedway in Radford, Virginia, in 2004. JR Motorsports in its current form, competing in the NASCAR O'Reilly Auto Parts Series, started in 2006 when sponsorship from the United States Navy funded the team and accelerated operations that were originally planned for 2007.
During a press conference at Lowe's Motor Speedway on May 16, 2008, Earnhardt Jr. discussed potentially moving JR Motorsports to the Sprint Cup Series as early as 2009 "if the right opportunity comes along with the right sponsorship and driver." The team ultimately remained in the Xfinity Series, in part because Rick Hendrick's ownership stake in JR Motorsports — combined with Hendrick Motorsports already fielding the maximum of four Cup cars — would prevent a JRM Cup entry without Hendrick releasing his interest. On April 11, 2021, Earnhardt Jr. again hinted at a possible Cup move, citing savings expected from the debut of the Next Gen car in 2022; challenges cited were acquiring a charter and securing sponsorship.
On January 15, 2025, JR Motorsports announced an intention to compete in the 2025 Daytona 500 with the No. 40 car driven by Justin Allgaier, in collaboration with Chris Stapleton. The number 40 reflected the "Blend No. 40" designation on Stapleton's Traveller Whiskey bottles, which served as the primary sponsor. Allgaier qualified as the top open car in his duel and finished ninth after starting nineteenth. On November 14, 2025, JR Motorsports announced it would enter the 2026 Daytona 500 with Allgaier and Traveller Whiskey in the No. 40 car for a second consecutive year.
Elliott Sadler drove the No. 1 car from 2016 to 2018, scoring three wins in 2016 and finishing second in the overall standings. In 2017, Sadler again finished second in points, behind teammate William Byron. Michael Annett drove the car from 2019 to 2021, winning at Daytona International Speedway in 2019 and qualifying for the playoffs in 2020. Sam Mayer drove the No. 1 full-time from 2022 to 2024. In 2023 he won at Road America and Watkins Glen. In 2024 he won at Texas (beating Ryan Sieg by 0.002 seconds), Iowa, and the Charlotte Roval; he was disqualified at Talladega after his car failed the post-race ride height requirement. Mayer announced his departure to Haas Factory Team for 2025. Carson Kvapil drove the No. 1 full-time in 2025. For 2026, Carson Kvapil and Connor Zilisch share the No. 1 car with Rodney Childers as crew chief; Zilisch won at Bristol.
The No. 5 joined in 2008 as part of the merger with Hendrick Motorsports' Nationwide teams. It was driven by multiple drivers including Jimmie Johnson, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Martin Truex Jr., and Mark Martin, winning two races in 2008. Michael Annett drove the car full-time in 2017 with Pilot Flying J sponsorship, finishing ninth in points. The No. 5 was shut down after the 2018 season, with its owner points transferred to the No. 1.
Justin Allgaier has driven the No. 7 full-time since 2016. He won five races in 2018 at Dover, Iowa, Road America, Mid-Ohio, and Indianapolis, clinching the regular-season championship. In 2020 he won three races at Dover and swept the Richmond races, finishing second in points to Austin Cindric. In 2022 he ended a 34-race winless streak at Darlington, also winning at Nashville and New Hampshire, finishing third in points. In 2023 he won at Charlotte and Bristol to reach the Championship 4, finishing second in the standings. In 2024 he won at Darlington, Michigan, and reached the Championship 4 again, finishing second in points and claiming the 2024 Xfinity Series championship. In 2025 he scored back-to-back wins at Las Vegas and Homestead.
The No. 8 became a JRM number in 2019 after being acquired from B. J. McLeod Motorsports. Josh Berry drove the car full-time from 2022 to 2023, winning at Dover and Charlotte in 2022 and at Las Vegas during the playoffs. Sammy Smith took over the No. 8 in 2024, winning at Talladega during the playoffs. In 2025 the No. 8 was reverted to the former Dale Earnhardt Incorporated font design; Smith won his first race of the season at Rockingham after Jesse Love was disqualified following a post-race inspection failure.
Chase Elliott drove the No. 9 car in 2014 and 2015, winning the 2014 NASCAR O'Reilly Auto Parts Series championship — the first rookie to win a NASCAR national series championship. William Byron drove the No. 9 in 2017, winning the championship and Rookie of the Year honours with four victories at Iowa, Daytona, Indianapolis, and Phoenix. Tyler Reddick drove the No. 9 in 2018, winning the Daytona opener by 0.0004 seconds over teammate Elliott Sadler — the closest finish in NASCAR history — and winning the championship and Rookie of the Year. Noah Gragson drove the car from 2019 to 2022. In 2022 Gragson won four consecutive races at Kansas, Bristol, and Texas, becoming the first driver since Sam Ard in 1983 to win four straight Xfinity Series races. Brandon Jones drove the No. 9 from 2023 to 2024. In 2025 the No. 9 ran part-time; Shane van Gisbergen won at the Chicago street course and Daniel Suárez won at Mexico.
The No. 88 debuted in 2005 and was driven by multiple drivers until Brad Keselowski was hired in 2007. Keselowski won his first race at Nashville Superspeedway and a second at Bristol Motor Speedway in 2008, finishing third in points; he won four races and again finished third in 2009 before departing for Penske Racing. Aric Almirola drove the No. 88 full-time in 2011, finishing fourth in points. Cole Whitt drove the car full-time in 2012, finishing seventh in points. In 2016 Dale Earnhardt Jr. piloted the No. 88 to victory at Richmond International Raceway, his first Xfinity win in six years. In 2025, Connor Zilisch drove the No. 88 full-time; he suffered a spinal injury at Talladega after hitting the inside wall head-on, with Kyle Larson filling in at Texas and winning in double overtime. Zilisch recovered to post back-to-back second-place finishes at Charlotte and Nashville, and later won at Pocono with Dale Earnhardt Jr. serving as substitute crew chief. For 2026, Rajah Caruth will drive the No. 88 part-time, with William Byron, Kyle Larson, Alex Bowman, and Chase Elliott each making scheduled appearances.
JR Motorsports entered the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series in 2015 with the No. 00, fielding Cole Custer in ten races using trucks acquired from Turner Scott Motorsports. The No. 00 ran fifteen races in 2015, winning twice: with Kasey Kahne at Charlotte in May, and with Custer at Gateway in June. In 2016 Custer ran the No. 00 full-time. A No. 49 truck was also fielded in 2016 for Nick Drake in collaboration with Premium Motorsports, powered by Haas Automation sponsorship. In January 2017, JRM announced the end of its participation in truck racing to focus fully on Xfinity Series entries.
In early 2019, JR Motorsports formed a driver development programme with GMS Racing called Drivers Edge Development to train young drivers. The inaugural class included Noah Gragson, John Hunter Nemechek, Zane Smith, Sheldon Creed, Sam Mayer, and Adam Lemke. The programme concluded in 2023 when GMS Racing closed.
JR Motorsports has fielded a regional late model programme since 2002. Josh Berry captured the 2012 Motor Mile Speedway championship in the NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series, JRM's first championship at any level. Berry scored a second track championship at Hickory Motor Speedway in 2014. Carson Kvapil won back-to-back CARS Tour championships in 2022 and 2023.
JRM competed in six ARCA Racing Series events. Cole Custer won once, at the Pocono race in 2015, the team's only ARCA victory.
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