Trackhouse Racing may be expanding. But that expansion won’t include NASCAR, for now.
The team, co-owned by former driver Justin Marks and Grammy award winning artist Pitbull, has been linked to a MotoGP team in need of new ownership.
According to several reports Trackhouse, which fields two cars in NASCAR’s Cup series, is negotiating for ownership of the RNF Racing team after the team’s principal, Razlan Razali, announced his departure. It comes only days away from the series conducting testing in Valencia, Spain.
“It has been an amazing run, a once in a lifetime opportunity to manage and own a MotoGP team in the world championship,” Razali said in a statement on social media. “We know what it’s like to win and especially in losing. Worked with the most amazing team members from all over the world.”
Razali sold a primary stake in the team to CryptoData at the end of the 2022 season and the new co-owner has been searching for more funding. It appears that might come from Trackhouse.
Marks formed Trackhouse in 2020 as a one car team with driver Daniel Suarez. After acquiring the support of Pitbull and the assets of Chip Ganassi Racing in 2021 the team added driver Ross Chastain to its lineup. The team added its Project91 initiative in 2022 as a way to bring racers from other motorsports into NASCAR. Drivers have included former F1 champion Kimi Raikkonen and most recently Australian Supercars champion Shane van Gisbergen who won the inaugural NASCAR street race in Chicago earlier this year.
MotoGP is the top tier of motorcycle racing that started in 1949. RNF Racing, based in Malaysia, began competing in the series in 2022. It is a satellite team to the CryptoData RNF MotoGP team. CryptoData released a statement of its own indicating that they had prior knowledge of the departure of Razali.
“The decision for Razlan Razali not to be part of the RNF Team management was not only from yesterday, but was taken more than 1 month ago, due the pressure made by the shareholders following poor performance and financial decisions.”
The departure of Razali, and the trouble finding funding for the RNF MotoGP team, might provide the perfect opportunity for Trackhouse, with co-owner Pitbull whose nickname is “Mr. Worldwide” to step up to a global stage.
Greg is the author of "The Nuts and Bolts of NASCAR: The Definitive Viewers' Guide to Big-Time Stock Car Auto Racing" and has been published in major publications across the country including the Los Angeles Times, the Cleveland Plain Dealer and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. He was also a contributor to Chicken Soup for the NASCAR Soul, published in 2010, and the Christmas edition in 2016. He wrote as the NASCAR, Formula 1, Auto Reviews and National Veterans Affairs Examiner for Examiner.com and has appeared on Fox News. He holds a BS degree in communications, a Masters degree in psychology and is currently a PhD candidate majoring in psychology. He is currently the weekend Motorsports Editor for Autoweek.