| J. J. Yeley | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Yeley atLas Vegas Motor Speedway in 2025 | |||||||
| Born | Christopher Beltram Hernandez Yeley (1976-10-05)October 5, 1976 (age 49) Phoenix, Arizona, U.S. | ||||||
| Achievements | 2003USAC Triple Crown Champion 2002, 2003USAC Silver Crown Series Champion 2001, 2003USAC National Sprint Car Championship Champion 2003USAC National Midget Championship Champion 2003Hoosier Hundred Winner 2001, 20084-Crown Nationals Midget Winner 2000, 20014-Crown Nationals Silver Crown Winner 2004, 2005Copper World Classic Midget Winner | ||||||
| Awards | 1997USAC National Sprint Car Championship Rookie of the Year 2002, 2003National Sprint Car Hall of Fame Non-Winged Driver of the Year | ||||||
| NASCARCup Series career | |||||||
| 395 races run over 20 years | |||||||
| 2025 position | 57th | ||||||
| Best finish | 21st (2007) | ||||||
| First race | 2004Pop Secret 500 (California) | ||||||
| Last race | 2025NASCAR Cup Series Championship Race (Phoenix) | ||||||
| |||||||
| NASCARO'Reilly Auto Parts Series career | |||||||
| 393 races run over 20 years | |||||||
| 2025 position | 68th | ||||||
| Best finish | 5th (2006) | ||||||
| First race | 2004Sam's Town 300 (Las Vegas) | ||||||
| Last race | 2025BetMGM 300 (Charlotte) | ||||||
| |||||||
| NASCARCraftsman Truck Series career | |||||||
| 37 races run over 12 years | |||||||
| 2025 position | 94th | ||||||
| Best finish | 42nd (2009) | ||||||
| First race | 2004Line-X 200 (Michigan) | ||||||
| Last race | 2025Love's RV Stop 225 (Talladega) | ||||||
| |||||||
| ARCA Menards Series career | |||||||
| 1 race run over 1 year | |||||||
| Best finish | 103rd (2005) | ||||||
| First race | 2005Advance Discount Auto Parts 200 (Daytona) | ||||||
| |||||||
| IndyCar Series career | |||||||
| 8 races run over 2 years | |||||||
| Best finish | 28th (2000) | ||||||
| First race | 1998Dura Lube 200 (Phoenix) | ||||||
| Last race | 2000Excite 500 (Texas) | ||||||
| |||||||
| Statistics up to date as of November 6, 2025. | |||||||
Christopher Beltram Hernandez "J. J."Yeley (born October 5, 1976) is an American professionalstock car racing driver. He last competed part-time in theNASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 44Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 forNY Racing Team and part-time in theNASCAR Xfinity Series, driving the No. 29Ford Mustang Dark Horse forRSS Racing and the No. 53Chevrolet Camaro SS forJoey Gase Motorsports with Scott Osteen, and part-time in theNASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, driving the No. 7Chevrolet Silverado RST forSpire Motorsports. He has previously competed in which is now theARCA Menards Series, theNASCAR Whelen Modified Tour, as well as theIndyCar Series.
Yeley is one of only seven drivers ever to win theUSAC Triple Crown which includes the likes ofPancho Carter,Tony Stewart,Dave Darland,Jerry Coons Jr.,Tracy Hines, andLogan Seavey. He is nicknamed "J. J." (Jimmy Jack) after his father and a close family friend.[1]
Yeley holds the record for the most starts across all three of the top divisions of NASCAR without winning a race.[2]
Yeley won the 1997 edition of Indiana Sprintweek and captured the Rookie of the Year Award in theUSAC NationalSprint Car Series despite starting relatively few races.[3] In 1998, Yeley competed in fourIndy Racing League (IRL) races, including theIndianapolis 500. His one top-ten finish in these four races was at Indianapolis, where he finished 9th despite a spin on the first turn of the first lap, which nearly collected eventual race winnerEddie Cheever Jr.[4]
Yeley also raced in the IRL in 2000 in an underfunded effort withMcCormack Motorsports, but ultimately returned to USAC racing, picking up where he had left off by winning 2001 and 2003National Sprint, 2002 and 2003Silver Crown, and 2003National Midget Series titles.[5]
Yeley's championships in all three of USAC's top divisions in 2003 made him only the second driver, afterTony Stewart in 1995, to achieve the "Triple Crown" in a single season. Stewart was the owner of the Sprint and Silver Crown cars in Yeley's 2003 season; the Midget, which Yeley drove in 2003,Steve Lewis' No. 9, had been driven by Stewart in 1995. Yeley scored 24 USAC wins in his 2003 season, breaking the previous record of nineteen set byA. J. Foyt in 1961 and later tied bySleepy Tripp (1988) andJay Drake (2000).
As had Stewart, Yeley signed withJoe Gibbs Racing, starting seventeen of 34 races in the 2004NASCAR Busch Series and achieving four top-ten finishes. He also competed in twoNextel Cup Series races in the No. 11 car and theIROC series. Yeley drove the full season in 2005 in the NASCAR Busch Series for Gibbs' No. 18 car, posting twelve top-ten finishes and ending the season eleventh in points. After the departure ofJason Leffler, who drove the No. 11 car in the Nextel Cup series, Yeley, Busch Series teammateDenny Hamlin, andTerry Labonte split the remaining races. Yeley drove four races, and Labonte and Hamlin drove the final seven. Hamlin was named to drive the No. 11FedEx-sponsored car for the 2006 season.Bobby Labonte made his announcement in November that he was leavingJoe Gibbs Racing. On November 12, atPhoenix International Raceway, Yeley was announced as the new driver for the No. 18Interstate Batteries-sponsoredChevrolet.[6]
Yeley ran full seasons with Joe Gibbs Racing in both the Nextel Cup and Busch Series in 2006. He drove the No. 18 Chevy in the Nextel Cup Series, and the No. 18 Vigoro/Home Depot-sponsored Chevrolet in the Busch Series. Yeley's best Nextel Cup finishes of 2006 came atCalifornia Speedway andLoudon, where he finished eighth; his best Busch Series finish came on June 17 atKentucky Speedway. Yeley finished his 2006 season fifth in the Busch Series points standings with three poles, nine top-fives, and 22 top-tens. In the 2006 Bank of America 500, Yeley was running at the top of the track when he decided to cut down the track to try to go to pit road. He ran right into Chase contenderMark Martin and turned Mark head-on into the wall in a devastating crash. Martin's crew chief,Pat Tryson, had to be restrained by NASCAR officials as he showed his displeasure to Yeley, who also wrecked. The crash ended Mark Martin's championship hopes, as he was second in points before the incident. Despite racing for one of the best teams in the sport, Yeley would finish a dismal 29th in the points standings.
His 2007 season was filled with rumors about being released from Joe Gibbs Racing. At the2007 Coca-Cola 600, Yeley scored a career-high second-place finish on a fuel gamble, withCasey Mears scoring the victory. Exactly three weeks later, atMichigan, Yeley took his first career pole at the Nextel Cup level, beatingJimmie Johnson by one-thousandth of a second (.001). During the middle of the 2007 season,Joe Gibbs announced that his team would be switching toToyota in 2008. Gibbs also announced that Yeley would not return for 2008. Gibbs ended up signingKyle Busch to drive the No. 18.
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Yeley moved toHall of Fame Racing, an affiliate of JGR, replacingTony Raines in the No. 96 DLP-sponsored Toyota.[7] His struggles continued, as the team fell from being in the top-35 every week with Raines behind the wheel to struggling to make races weekly (the team's first DNQ came with Yeley behind the wheel).
On July 5, he performed an in-race switch into the No. 20 car for an illTony Stewart. He ran strongly for most of the race but was collected in two crashes within the last five laps and ended with a twentieth-place finish. On August 6, 2008, Yeley was released from his contract to drive forHall of Fame Racing, first by being replaced byP. J. Jones atWatkins Glen,Nationwide Series driver and Hall of Fame Racing test driverBrad Coleman atMichigan, andKen Schrader for the remaining races. Yeley later stated that although there was an alliance with JGR, they were never truly involved in Hall-of-Fame's operations, and he was disappointed in not being allowed to improve the situation with the team. Yeley spent the rest of the season out of a ride. In 2009, he moved to theCamping World Truck Series, driving the No. 73Chevrolet Silverado forTagsby Racing. He was also named to take over theMayfield Motorsports No. 41 Sprint Cup Series entry effective immediately following the indefinite suspension of owner/driverJeremy Mayfield due to a substance abuse violation on May 9, 2009.[8]
Later in 2009, Yeley broke three cervical vertebrae during a crash in aUSAC race. Yeley drove at Daytona in 2010 forDaisy Ramirez Motorsports in theCamping World Truck Series. This was the team's debut, and he finished a career-best 10th after starting 36th. Yeley was announced as the driver for theWhitney Motorsports No. 46 Sprint Cup Series car on May 4, 2010. On May 7, he qualified the No. 46 into theShowtime Southern 500 atDarlington. Yeley qualified for nine of the fourteen races he attempted. At the Coke Zero 400, he finished a team-best nineteenth. Yeley also raced forLatitude 43 Motorsports in Phoenix andTommy Baldwin Racing, plus drove forRichard Petty Motorsports in a relief role at Charlotte, replacing a sickKasey Kahne.
Yeley raced his way into the2011 Daytona 500 in the Gatorade Duels for Whitney Motorsports, a team that failed to qualify for the 2010 event. He finished 43rd in the event after a blown engine eleven laps into the race. At Loudon, Yeley drove the No. 38Front Row Motorsports entry in place of Travis Kvapil, who was unable to make the race due to his Truck Series commitments. He ran the remainder of the season in a fourth Front Row entry, the No. 55, with occasional races in the No. 38.
For 2012, Yeley signed withRobinson-Blakeney Racing to drive the No. 49 Toyota in the Sprint Cup Series.[9] He also drove the team's No. 28 Nationwide Series car in that series' season-opening race at Daytona.[10] Halfway through the season, Yeley moved toMax Q Motorsports to drive the No. 37 in a partnership withTommy Baldwin Racing.[11] Both the No. 49 and the No. 37 were mostlystart and park efforts.
In 2013, Yeley moved toTommy Baldwin Racing to drive the No. 36 Chevrolet, with a sponsorship fromGolden Corral at races onsuperspeedways.[12] United Mining, Accell Construction, and several other companies also served as primary sponsor throughout the season. Yeley finished tenth in his TBR debut in theDaytona 500, his first top-ten since 2008.[13] Yeley ran his first full season (in a non-start and park ride) for the first time since 2008, and finished 32nd in points. He was replaced byReed Sorenson in 2014.
On February 13, it was announced that Yeley would drive the No. 44 withXxxtreme Motorsport starting at Phoenix.[14] In late-April, the team purchased the No. 30 team fromSwan Racing, with Yeley shifting to drive the new car number.[15] Yeley replacedRyan Truex in the No. 83BK Racing Toyota at thePure Michigan 400 after Truex suffered a concussion during a practice session.[16] He later drove the team's start and park No. 93 at Richmond, and ran the last seven races in the 83 following Truex's dismissal from the team.
In 2015, Yeley moved to BK Racing full-time, replacingAlex Bowman in the No. 23 Toyota. He also ran full-time in the Xfinity Series for No. 28 Toyota forJGL Racing, whom he had joined partway through the 2014 season. Before Darlington, Yeley and BK Racing teammateJeb Burton switched rides with Burton moving to the No. 23, while Yeley moved to the No. 26.
In 2016, Yeley had no rides for the Daytona weekend. However, on February 24, 2016, it was announced that Yeley would drive the No. 14Toyota Camry forTriStar Motorsports in the Xfinity Series, starting in Atlanta. Yeley replacedDavid Starr in the No. 44 at Richmond due to Starr being sidelined with an illness;[17] Yeley eventually took over the ride full-time.[18]
For the2017 O'Reilly Auto Parts 500 at Texas, Yeley made his return to the Cup Series, driving the No. 7Chevrolet SS forTommy Baldwin Racing, a team he last drove for in 2013.[19] After starting 27th, he finished in the same position, four laps down.[20]
In 2017, Yeley returned to the No. 14 of TriStar for the full season and a part-time schedule in the No. 7 forTommy Baldwin Racing. On July 22, TriStar owner Mark Smith died, and the next week, Yeley finished a season-best sixth atIowa Speedway.
In March 2018, Yeley drove the No. 55 car forPremium Motorsports in theSTP 500 in the Cup Series, where he finished 31st.[21] Two months later, Yeley joinedNY Racing Team (formerly Xxxtreme Motorsport) for theCoca-Cola 600, driving the No. 7.[22] In the 600, Yeley qualified 40th and finished 38th after retiring from the event on lap 191 with a fuel pump issue.[23]
In the summer of 2018, Yeley made his return to theNo. 23 car, which was previously owned by his former team, BK Racing. NY Racing, for several races, fielded the No. 23 in coordination with BK, sharing the No. 23 charter and the Steakhouse Elite sponsorship. After BK's bankruptcy auction,Front Row Motorsports was awarded BK's assets, and NY Racing continued their collaboration with Front Row to the season's end before both teams parted ways.
For 2019, NY Racing planned to field the No. 7 Steakhouse Elite-sponsored Ford Mustang with Yeley as the driver for an undetermined number of races. Before the team formally entered any races, Yeley and Steakhouse Elite partnered withRick Ware Racing for thePocono 400 in June.[24] In August, he debuted Ware's No. 54 car at Bristol.[25] On November 14, RWR announced Yeley would race full-time for the team in the2020 NASCAR Cup Series season.[26]
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Yeley failed to qualify for the2020 Daytona 500 after finishing 21st in Duel 2 of the2020 Bluegreen Vacations Duels.[27] In August, he switched to Truck points in order to run the DoverTriple Truck Challenge race withReaume Brothers Racing.[28][29]
Just as was the case in 2016 and 2019, Yeley was without a ride in any of the three series for the season-opening races at Daytona in 2021. His first start of the season did not come until two weeks later at Homestead, where he returned to Rick Ware Racing in their No. 17 Xfinity Series car, now fielded in a partnership with SS-Green Light Racing, the same partnership the SSGLR No. 07 had in 2020 when he and other RWR drivers drove it. On March 4, 2021, it was announced that Yeley would be driving the No. 66 Cup Series car forMBM Motorsports in select races throughout the season with new sponsorship from Diamondback Land Surveying, which he brought to the team. However, Yeley confirmed in a tweet the following day that (despite helping the team land that sponsor), he would not be driving the car or for the team in any races.[30] Despite this announcement, he would drive at the2021 South Point 400 in the No. 66 with sponsorship from FatBoy Ice Cream.
In 2022, Yeley attempted to race the2022 Daytona 500 driving the No. 55 forMBM Motorsports with sponsorship from HEX.com but failed to qualify.[31] Instead, he would attempt the entire 2022 Xfinity Series season driving the No. 66 full-time forMBM. He managed to qualify the No. 55 forMBM at Talladega. He had also made numerous starts for the No. 15 forRick Ware Racing. He achieved his first Top 10 finish forMBM, finishing eighth at Portland. He ran the No. 13 at Nashville and DNQed the No. 66 at Road America and IRC. AtMichigan, Yeley triggered a massive pileup on lap 25 that tookAustin Cindric andKyle Busch out of contention.[32] Yeley drove the Rick Ware Racing No. 51 at theCharlotte Roval race as a substitute forCody Ware, who broke his ankle in a crash atTexas.[33] On April 23, 2023, filling in for the suspended Ware, Yeley finished eleventh atTalladega Superspeedway, his best finish since the2013 Daytona 500. Later in the season atAtlanta, Yeley finished seventh in the rain-shortenedQuaker State 400, recording his first top-ten finish since the aforementioned 2013 Daytona 500.
In January 2024, Yeley announced that he would not be returning to RWR for 2024 and instead intended to find a full-time ride in the Xfinity Series, although nothing came to fruition.[34] He did however receive a late call to attempt to qualify the No. 44Chevrolet forNY Racing Team in the2024 Daytona 500 afterGreg Biffle, who was rumored to drive the car, announced he would not run the No. 44 due to "unfulfilled contract obligations" from 2022.[35] Yeley ultimately failed to make the race after finishing sixteenth in Duel 1 of the2024 Bluegreen Vacations Duels.[36] Yeley would return to the team atLas Vegas, finishing 34th, and atCharlotte, finishing last in the 40 car field after having steering issues. At theSummer Atlanta race, Yeley would put up a solid race and finish on the lead lap with a season-best 23rd-place run.
(key)
| IndyCar Series results | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | Rank | Points | Ref | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1998 | Sinden Racing Services | WDW | PHX 25 | INDY 9 | TXS 19 | NHM 23 | DOV | CLT | PPIR | ATL 25 | TX2 | LVS | 32nd | 50 | [37] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2000 | Byrd-McCormack Racing | WDW | PHX | LVS | INDY | TXS | PPI | ATL 17 | KTY 15 | TX2 25 | 28th | 33 | [38] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Year | Chassis | Engine | Start | Finish | Team |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | Dallara | Oldsmobile | 13 | 9 | Sinden Racing Services |
(key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time.Italics – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)
| Year | Team | Manufacturer | Start | Finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | Joe Gibbs Racing | Chevrolet | 36 | 41 |
| 2007 | 12 | 12 | ||
| 2008 | Hall of Fame Racing | Toyota | 37 | 25 |
| 2011 | Whitney Motorsports | Chevrolet | 33 | 43 |
| 2012 | Robinson-Blakeney Racing | Toyota | DNQ | |
| 2013 | Tommy Baldwin Racing | Chevrolet | 41 | 10 |
| 2015 | BK Racing | Toyota | 25 | 40 |
| 2020 | Rick Ware Racing | Ford | DNQ | |
| 2022 | MBM Motorsports | Ford | DNQ | |
| 2024 | NY Racing Team | Chevrolet | DNQ | |
| 2025 | DNQ | |||
* Season still in progress
1 Ineligible for series points
2 Yeley switched to Nationwide Series points before the race at Auto Club Speedway
3 Yeley switched to Truck Series points before the race at Dover International Speedway
(key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time.Italics – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)
| ARCA Re/Max Series results | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Team | No. | Make | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | ARMC | Pts | Ref |
| 2005 | Joe Gibbs Racing | 2 | Chevy | DAY 3 | NSH | SLM | KEN | TOL | LAN | MIL | POC | MCH | KAN | KEN | BLN | POC | GTW | LER | NSH | MCH | ISF | TOL | DSF | CHI | SLM | TAL | 103rd | 215 | [94] |
| NASCAR Featherlite Modified Tour results | ||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Car owner | No. | Make | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | NFMTC | Pts | Ref |
| 2007 | Kevin Manion | 7 | Chevy | TMP | STA | WTO | STA | TMP | NHA | TSA | RIV | STA | TMP | MAN | MAR | NHA 27 | TMP | STA | TMP | 63rd | 82 | [95] |
(key) (Bold – Pole position. * – Most laps led.)
| International Race of Champions results | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Make | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Pos. | Points | Ref |
| 2004 | Pontiac | DAY 11 | TEX 10 | RCH 7 | ATL 12 | 12th | 22 | [96] |
