American racing driver
NASCAR driver
Robert William Pressley
(born April 8, 1959) is an American former
NASCAR
driver who previously served as the promoter at Kingsport Speedway in
Kingsport, Tennessee
. Pressley currently owns the restaurant Celebrity's Hotdogs in
Asheville, North Carolina
Pressley was also a County Commissioner in
Buncombe County, North Carolina
, a seat he lost in 2022.
Beginnings
[
edit
]
Because his father, Bob, was a short track racer in Asheville, the younger Pressley naturally followed his father into the sport. In fact, his brother
Charley
, has been a long-time crew chief in the NASCAR level. Pressley began running at
New Asheville Speedway
and
Greenville-Pickens Speedway
and won championships at both tracks. He also put together 150 wins in various Late Model Series in the Southeast. In 1984, Pressley made his NASCAR debut in the
Busch Series
at
Charlotte Motor Speedway
, finishing 26th. Five years later, Pressley ran a limited schedule in the Busch Series, and won in just his twelfth series start at
Orange County Speedway
. He ran full seasons from 1991?1994, his best year coming in 1992 when he won races and finished fifth in points. In
1994
, he ran three races in the
Winston Cup
Series in a car sponsored by
Manheim Auctions
, his best finish being a 31st at Charlotte.
In 1990 Pressley was involved in
Michael Waltrip
's horrific Bristol crash in which he tapped Waltrip from behind, sending Waltrip's #30 Kool-Aid car into a fence, disintegrating the car on impact.
Winston Cup
[
edit
]
In
1995
, Pressley took over for the retired
Harry Gant
in the #33 car owned by
Leo Jackson Motorsports
in Cup. He posted one top-ten finish and was runner-up to
Ricky Craven
for
Rookie of the Year
. The following year, he put together two top-five finishes. Unfortunately, Jackson was retiring and sold his operation to crew chief
Andy Petree
. After Pressley ran just one race for his new owner, he was released, but able to hook onto a ride with
Diamond Ridge Motorsports
. Pressley ran just ten races for Diamond Ridge in
1997
, including the
Daytona 500
, in which his car flipped on its nose acrobatically in the first few laps.
[1]
Pressley posted a season-best finish of 14th, when he was suddenly fired from the ride. While he waited for a Cup ride to appear, Pressley returned to the Busch ranks, running the No. 47 Chevrolet for
ST Motorsports
, and finished out the year with three top tens. Over in Cup, he joined the No. 77
Jasper Motorsports
team, which became one of the more popular tandems in the Cup circuit among fans.
Following his abbreviated Cup run in 1997, Pressley returned full-time in
1998
with the Jasper team, where he posted a then career-best third-place finish at
Texas Motor Speedway
. Despite being replaced temporarily by
Hut Stricklin
due to injuries, Pressley finished 32nd in points that year.
1999
was a struggle however, as Pressley and company failed to qualify six times that season, and often had trouble finishing races. Following the addition of
Ryan Pemberton
in
2000
, Pressley was able to increase his position in points to 25th. In
2001
, he had five top-tens, nearly won the inaugural
Tropicana 400
before finishing in second, and finished 25th in points handing the driving duties to the car for the road course events to
Boris Said
. Robert Pressley, although competitive in some races, struggled with consistency, and would part ways with Jasper at the conclusion of the 2001 season.
[2]
In 2002 he had a one race deal with
Melling Racing
for the Daytona 500 and locked himself in by qualifying speed on Pole Day, Qualifying 5th overall with the same car they had qualified 3rd or better on the 2001 restrictor plate tracks. After receiving sponsorship from
Brand Source
he had an engine problem at the end of the race. When he blew up, his car was nearly destroyed on pit road as an accident happened on the tri-oval and
Michael Waltrip
's car came across onto pit road, also nearly hitting the pace car as well.
Recent years
[
edit
]
At the end of 2001, Pressley was released from Jasper, and he tackled a new venture, the Craftsman Truck Series. He signed with
Bobby Hamilton Racing
and won his Truck Series debut at
Daytona International Speedway
. He also ran the season opening
Daytona 500
in Cup for what was the last race for
Melling Racing
, finishing 22nd. In 2003, Pressley moved to HT Motorsports in the Trucks, finishing 12th in points. He returned to the Busch Series to drive the 47 again for ST Motorsports, finishing in the top-ten twice, before moving back to the trucks with HT in
2005
, finishing 20th in the standings.
His son
Coleman Pressley
won the 2010
UARA-Stars
championship and raced sporadically in NASCAR.
[3]
He currently serves as
Joey Logano's
spotter.
[4]
His nephew
Caleb Pressley
is a blogger and podcaster for
Barstool Sports
.
[5]
Pressley served as promoter at the Kingsport (TN) Speedway from 2011-2014, moving the track to
NASCAR Whelen All-American Series
-sanctioned status beginning with his first season.
[6]
Pressley also owns a restaurant in the
Asheville
,
North Carolina
area called Celebrity's Hot Dogs.
[7]
In 2016, Pressley was elected as a county commissioner in
Buncombe County
,
North Carolina
. A seat he lost in 2022.
[8]
Motorsports career results
[
edit
]
NASCAR
[
edit
]
(
key
) (
Bold
? Pole position awarded by qualifying time.
Italics
? Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * ? Most laps led.
)
Winston Cup Series
[
edit
]
Daytona 500
[
edit
]
Busch Series
[
edit
]
Craftsman Truck Series
[
edit
]
ARCA Permatex SuperCar Series
[
edit
]
(
key
) (
Bold
? Pole position awarded by qualifying time.
Italics
? Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * ? Most laps led.
)
References
[
edit
]
- ^
"Race notes from the Roanoke Times regarding notable crashes and injuries from the 1997 Daytona 500"
.
Roanoke Times
. February 19, 1997
. Retrieved
April 3,
2022
.
- ^
"Blaney replaces Pressley at Jasper"
.
Crash.net
. October 18, 2001
. Retrieved
February 7,
2020
.
- ^
Hembree, Mike.
"Father's experience helping Coleman Pressley navigate move into NASCAR"
. Scene Daily
. Retrieved
8 June
2010
.
- ^
Taranto, Steven (August 18, 2021).
"Brad Keselowski and Joey Logano to switch spotters starting at Michigan, per report"
.
CBS Sports
. Retrieved
September 29,
2021
.
- ^
"Caleb Pressley - Football"
.
University of North Carolina Athletics
.
- ^
"Buncombe County - County Commissioners"
.
- ^
"Robert Pressley to run for District 3 commissioner"
.
- ^
"UPDATED: Voters across WNC pick local government leaders"
. 9 November 2016.
- ^
"Robert Pressley ? 1994 NASCAR Winston Cup Results"
.
Racing-Reference
. Retrieved
March 10,
2015
.
- ^
"Robert Pressley ? 1995 NASCAR Winston Cup Results"
.
Racing-Reference
. Retrieved
March 10,
2015
.
- ^
"Robert Pressley ? 1996 NASCAR Winston Cup Results"
.
Racing-Reference
. Retrieved
March 10,
2015
.
- ^
"Robert Pressley ? 1997 NASCAR Winston Cup Results"
.
Racing-Reference
. Retrieved
March 10,
2015
.
- ^
"Robert Pressley ? 1998 NASCAR Winston Cup Results"
.
Racing-Reference
. Retrieved
March 9,
2015
.
- ^
"Robert Pressley ? 1999 NASCAR Winston Cup Results"
.
Racing-Reference
. Retrieved
March 9,
2015
.
- ^
"Robert Pressley ? 2000 NASCAR Winston Cup Results"
.
Racing-Reference
. Retrieved
March 9,
2015
.
- ^
"Robert Pressley ? 2001 NASCAR Winston Cup Results"
.
Racing-Reference
. Retrieved
March 9,
2015
.
- ^
"Robert Pressley ? 2002 NASCAR Winston Cup Results"
.
Racing-Reference
. Retrieved
March 9,
2015
.
- ^
"Robert Pressley ? 2003 NASCAR Winston Cup Results"
.
Racing-Reference
. Retrieved
March 9,
2015
.
- ^
"Robert Pressley ? 1984 NASCAR Busch Grand National Series Results"
.
Racing-Reference
. Retrieved
March 9,
2015
.
- ^
"Robert Pressley ? 1989 NASCAR Busch Grand National Series Results"
.
Racing-Reference
. Retrieved
March 9,
2015
.
- ^
"Robert Pressley ? 1990 NASCAR Busch Grand National Series Results"
.
Racing-Reference
. Retrieved
March 9,
2015
.
- ^
"Robert Pressley ? 1991 NASCAR Busch Grand National Series Results"
.
Racing-Reference
. Retrieved
March 9,
2015
.
- ^
"Robert Pressley ? 1992 NASCAR Busch Grand National Series Results"
.
Racing-Reference
. Retrieved
March 9,
2015
.
- ^
"Robert Pressley ? 1993 NASCAR Busch Grand National Series Results"
.
Racing-Reference
. Retrieved
March 9,
2015
.
- ^
"Robert Pressley ? 1994 NASCAR Busch Grand National Series Results"
.
Racing-Reference
. Retrieved
March 9,
2015
.
- ^
"Robert Pressley ? 1996 NASCAR Busch Grand National Series Results"
.
Racing-Reference
. Retrieved
March 9,
2015
.
- ^
"Robert Pressley ? 1997 NASCAR Busch Grand National Series Results"
.
Racing-Reference
. Retrieved
March 9,
2015
.
- ^
"Robert Pressley ? 1998 NASCAR Busch Grand National Series Results"
.
Racing-Reference
. Retrieved
March 9,
2015
.
- ^
"Robert Pressley ? 1999 NASCAR Busch Grand National Series Results"
.
Racing-Reference
. Retrieved
March 9,
2015
.
- ^
"Robert Pressley ? 2004 NASCAR Busch Series Results"
.
Racing-Reference
. Retrieved
March 9,
2015
.
- ^
"Robert Pressley ? 2005 NASCAR Busch Series Results"
.
Racing-Reference
. Retrieved
March 9,
2015
.
- ^
"Robert Pressley ? 2008 Kroger On Track For The Cure 250 qualifying results"
.
Racing-Reference
. Retrieved
March 29,
2015
.
- ^
"Robert Pressley ? 2002 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Results"
.
Racing-Reference
. Retrieved
March 7,
2015
.
- ^
"Robert Pressley ? 2003 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Results"
.
Racing-Reference
. Retrieved
March 7,
2015
.
- ^
"Robert Pressley ? 2005 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Results"
.
Racing-Reference
. Retrieved
March 7,
2015
.
- ^
"Robert Pressley ? 1989 ARCA Permatex SuperCar Series Results"
.
Racing-Reference
. Retrieved
July 23,
2015
.
- ^
"Robert Pressley ? 1990 ARCA Permatex SuperCar Series Results"
.
Racing-Reference
. Retrieved
July 23,
2015
.
External links
[
edit
]
|
---|
Years active
| 1971?2006
|
---|
Personnel
| |
---|
Former drivers
| |
---|
NASCAR Hall of Fame
| |
---|
Predecessor teams
|
- Ulrich Racing
- U.S. Racing
|
---|
Partnerships and affiliations
| |
---|
Buyouts and mergers
| |
---|
|
---|
Years active
|
- 1985-1989 (Jackson Bros. Motorsports)
- 1989-1996 (Leo Jackson Motorsports)
- 1996-2004 (Andy Petree Racing)
|
---|
Personnel
| Jackson Bros. Motorsports
Leo Jackson Motorsports
|
- Leo Jackson
- Richard Jackson
|
---|
Andy Petree Racing
| |
---|
|
---|
NASCAR Hall of Fame
| |
---|
Former drivers
| Jackson Bros. Motorsports
Leo Jackson Motorsports
| |
---|
Andy Petree Racing
| |
---|
|
---|
Southern 500
wins
| |
---|
Winston 500
wins
| |
---|
Partnerships and affiliations
| |
---|
Buyouts and mergers
| |
---|