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Casey Mears waves to the crowed after being introduced for one of his previous 491 NASCAR Cup Series starts
It looks like Casey Mears will reach his goal to make 600 career NASCAR starts. This campaign is also part of his quest to reach 500 NASCAR Cup Series starts, to date he has 491 to his credit.
Garage 66 announced this week they signed a three-race deal with Mears to help reach the coveted milestones. He will drive the team’s No. 66 Ford in the final three NASCAR Cup Series races at Talladega Superspeedway, Martinsville Speedway and the finale at Phoenix Raceway.
Currently, the Bakersfield, CA native of Mears has the 491 Cup and 107 Xfinity Series starts give him 598 overall. S.I. Yachts and Acrisure will serve as the primary and associate sponsors for this endeavor. Only 47 other NCS drivers have reached the 500-start milestone.
What this Means for Mears
Mears, 47, already drove the No. 66 entry twice this year, doing so at Martinsville Speedway in March and then Daytona International Speedway in August. He started 37th and finished 35th, then 39th and 29th, respectively.
It was the first time since 2019 Mears had competed in a NASCAR event. He is also making the return with his former team owner, Bob Germain, who now owns S.I. Yachts.
“I’m excited we were able to put these three races together, and I appreciate the ongoing support from Bob Germain, S.I. Yachts, and Acrisure,” Mears said. “Given our close friendship, it’s touching that Bob is willing to invest in me after all these years; it shows his character and who he is as a person.
“It also means a lot that Acrisure continues to support us, they stepped up first this year at Martinsville and helped get this program started. Thanks to Carl Long and Garage 66 for all of their hard work because they’ve worked hard to ramp up and make it happen.”
Germain Thankful for Mears in Early Days
Germain Racing has a storied career in the NASCAR ranks competing in all three top level series. From 2004 to 2020, Germain entries made 425 Cup starts, 113 in the Xfinity Series and 357 for the Craftsman Truck Series.
In 2006 and 2010, they won NCTS championships with Todd Bodine as their driver with 22 victories overall.
“We achieved significant success in NASCAR with two Truck Series Championships, and Casey played a key role in the development of our Cup Series program,” Germain said. “I’m proud that the years he spent driving our No. 13 car accounted for many of his Cup starts, and I’m happy we’re partnering in his pursuit of hitting No. 500.
“Casey and I have remained close over the years, and he was always one of our biggest supporters. He’s a great guy and he’s always been genuine in how he lives his life, which is what I appreciate most.”
Mears drove the No. 13 Germain Racing entry full time for six seasons.
Mears Made Marks En Route to Milestone
Throughout his 491 NCS starts, Mears accumulated 13 top five and 51 top 10 finishes. His lone NCS victory took place at Charlotte Motor Speedway in 2007 Coca Cola 600 when driving the No. 25 Chevrolet for Hendrick Motorsports.
Mears has one victory in the 107 NXS starts, doing so at Chicagoland Speedway driving the No. 42 Dodge for Chip Ganassi Racing in 2006.
Carl Long, team owner of Garage 66 has been part of the NASCAR landscape as a driver and owner. He formed MBM Motorsports in 2014.
“This has been a great opportunity for Garage 66, it’s been an honor to have Casey in our car and to work with S.I. Yachts and Acrisure,” he said. “Casey is a top-tier driver who brings attention to detail and focus to everything he does from the preparation of the equipment to the way the interior is adjusted.
“We appreciate S.I. Yachts and Acrisure’s trust in our team, and we’re committed to finishing the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series season strong.”
Tim Packman Tim Packman is a journalist for Heavy.com covering NASCAR. He grew up around the short tracks of Western New York watching his dad, stepdad and step brother race. His uncle was the head starter at many area tracks and member of the FOAR Score Hall of Fame.
Tim’s passion for racing took him to the announcer’s tower and writing program stories for multiple tracks in the area, namely Lancaster National Speedway. In 2000, he moved to Mooresville, NC to become an award-winning journalist for NASCAR.com. He took a job with Dale Earnhardt, Inc. as the team’s Communications Director and was part of two Daytona 500 wins and two NASCAR Championships.
The announcing experience led to becoming a Pit Reporter and News Director for MRN Radio. A return to the team side at Richard Childress Racing as the Director of Corporate Communications took place, which also included another Championship.
From 2015 to 2018, Tim returned to where his career began in 1994 – Lancaster National Speedway & Dragway – as the Track President. He earned Short Track Promoter of the Year awards in 2016 and 2017.
Upon returning to NC, he joined The Garage Shop as Communications Director and host of it’s Podcast and MAV-TV docuseries “Legacy of Speed” talking about Land Speed Racing at Bonneville, and other places.
Tim has hosted two other Podcasts, namely “Pub Table Racers,” and wrote three books. One was with NASCAR Hall of Famer Bobby Allison titled, “Bobby Allison, a Racer’s Racer” and two Children’s books, “Funny Dan the Race Car Man” and “Petey the Pace Car.”
He also served in the US Navy. More about Tim Packman
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