Jeff Green (racing driver)

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Jeff Green (racing driver) bigraphy, stories - American stock car racing driver

Jeff Green (racing driver) : biography

September 6, 1962 –

Jeffery Green (born September 6, 1962 in Owensboro, Kentucky)NASCAR.com (2006). . Retrieved June 17, 2006. is an American stock car racing driver. He currently drives the No. 10 Toyota Camry in the NASCAR Nationwide Series for Tri-Star Motorsports.

Green’s 1990 Nashville Speedway USA championship led to his first foray in NASCAR. For several years, he raced part-time in the Nationwide Series before thriving as a full-time driver in 1995 and 1996. He then went through a two-year Sprint Cup stint with Diamond Ridge Motorsports and Felix Sabates.

Green returned to the Busch Series in 1999. In three seasons, he won the 2000 championship by 616 points, a series record which stood until 2006, and finished second twice. Green participated in IROC’s 25th season in 2001, and has raced with four different Sprint Cup teams since 2002.

Personal and early life

Green was born in Owensboro, Kentucky on September 6, 1962, as the youngest of three brothers; Mark and David Green would also become NASCAR drivers. He currently resides in Davidson, North Carolina with his wife Michelle.Best Buy Racing (2006). . Retrieved June 18, 2006. In 2002, he and Mark founded The Green Foundation, a non-profit charity assisting people with severe injuries and life-threatening illnesses.

Career

Early years

Green dominated the field to win the 1990 track championship at Nashville Speedway USA. In 22 races, he won 15 times and had only one finish below third. After the season, John Boatman approached Green about competing in the Autolite Platinum 200, a NASCAR Busch Series event taking place at Richmond International Raceway. Green would start 23rd and finish 22nd in the event, exceeding the team’s goal of simply qualifying for the race.Motorsport.com (2000). . Retrieved March 2, 2006.

Green ran a limited schedule from 1991-1994, sporadically appearing in Busch Series races and making Cup starts for Sadler Brothers and Junior Johnson in 1994. He became a full-time driver in the Busch Series in 1995 for Dale Earnhardt, Inc., and after consecutive top-five finishes in the points standings, he made a pair of Cup races for DEI in 1996. At the end of the season, he signed to drive the unsponsored No. 8 Chevy for Diamond Ridge Motorsports, and won his first career race at Las Vegas. He later made 20 Winston Cup series starts in 1997 for the No. 29 Cartoon Network Chevrolet Monte Carlo, owned by Diamond Ridge, finishing just behind his brother David for Rookie of the Year honors. Green planned to race full-time for the team in 1998, but only raced in the No. 29 for three of the first six races. He was later released by Diamond Ridge, who suspended operations for the Winston Cup team in an effort to focus on the Busch Series.Jayski’s Silly Season Site (1998). . Retrieved June 17, 2006. Green substituted a race for Derrike Cope, and later signed a contract to drive the No. 46 First Union/The Money Store Chevrolet, owned by Felix Sabates, for the rest of the year. Overall, he would race in 22 of 33 season events and finished 40th in points.

Nationwide Series

Green turned his focus back to the Busch Series afterwards, finishing in the top-two in points for the next three years. He finished in second place, 280 points behind Dale Earnhardt Jr., in 1999 driving the No. 32 Kleenex Chevy for Progressive Motorsports. It was his first full-time Busch series season since 1996.

As his team became the No. 10 Nesquick/Nestlé Chevy and was rebranded ppc Racing in 2000, Green became the heavy favorite to win the championship after Earnhardt and Matt Kenseth departed for the Winston Cup.Kiser, Bill (2000). . SCENE Daily. Retrieved June 17, 2006. After dueling with Todd Bodine for the points lead early in the season, Green pulled away with 14 consecutive top-five finishes, a streak which included five wins.racing-reference.info. . Retrieved June 18, 2006. At the end of the year, Green had won the Busch Series championship by 616 points over ppc Racing teammate Jason Keller. This final victory margin was the largest in series history until 2006. Green set a series record for most top-fives in a season (25), and with David Green, the 1994 Busch Series champion, became the first brothers to both win NASCAR championships.David-Green.com (2006). . Retrieved June 18, 2006.