Kevin Buckler
Encyclopedia
Kevin Buckler is an American
racecar driver and entrepreuener. He founded Adobe Road Winery and currently owns The Racer's Group
, a professional sports car racing team, and a NASCAR
Sprint Cup Series team, TRG Motorsports. Kevin's 2005 Adobe Road Cabernet Sauvignon won a 93 in Wine Spectator
, as well as winning over 80 prizes both worldwide and locally.
Kevin Buckler began in the late 1980s participating in local driving events, autocrosses, and Porsche Club of America functions. In 1990, he attended his first high speed event in Road America, and from then on began his career in racing. In 1992, he officially started The Racer's Group. The company began in the Garage of Kevin and his wife, Debra. He would race using parts that he would develop and sell. He built a 1972 911 race car with his performance parts and used it at many events and races.
He entered his first professional race, the 1995 IMSA California Grand Prix after many years in leading the amateur ranks. He won that race, and the professional The Racer's Group team was born. During that time, he still stayed involved in many club racing programs and his parts business. In late 1995, The Racer's Group moved location from Kevin's garage in Monterey to Sears Point (Infineon Raceway) in Sonoma, CA. From 1995 to 1999, The Racer's Group developed as one of the best teams in the country, especially when Kevin entered in the Rolex 24 in 1996. Around this time, Kevin opened up his arrive and drive business, and the company expanded to two additional shops at the race track. In 2000, The Racer's Group purchased the very first customer GT3-R ever produced for the North American Market. In 2002, Kevin, longtime friend Michael Schrom, and Porsche Factory Drivers Timo Bernhard and Jorg Bergmeister won the GT class in the 2002 Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona. Later that year, they also raced in the 24 Hours of Le Mans for the first time, and won the race by only a little bit more than a minute over another Porsche Factory team. That year, they finished top in multiple races, including wins at the Grand Prix of Mosport, Grand Prix of Mid-Ohio and Grand-Am 400 at California Speedway. The Racer's Group made it on the podium 14 times in 2002. Kevin was awarded that year with his friend and teammate Michael Schrom with a 1-2 finish in the Porsche World Cup standings. The award, which goes to the top independent Porsche Drivers in the world, was given to Kevin at the Porsche factory in Weissach, Germany in December, 2002. Kevin and Schrom were the first and only teammates to finish 1-2 in the Porsche Cup.The next year in 2003, The Racer's Group came back to Daytona for the 24 your race and had an outstanding performance. In the 8th hour, the team took the overall lead, which is unheard of for a GT car because of the competition of the faster Daytona Prototype cars. The #66 car never gave up the lead for the rest of the race, and at 1:00 p.m. on February 2, 2003, The Racer's Group became the first GT-class team to win the 24 hours of Daytona overall since 1977. It was a truly historic race in the history of the team and of Porsche. In the rest of the 2003 season, The Racer's Group competed in the American Le Mans Series as well as other races. and to this date became the only team that was successfully able to run a 3 car effort for the entire ALMS season. In 2004, Kevin joined forces with Tracy Krohn and became one of the most successful and feared first year teams ever in the DP ranks. That year Krohn Racing/TRG was formed, and that year had a competitive lineup of drivers including Christian Fittipaldi, Nic Jonsson, Jorg Bergmeister, Tracy Krohn, and NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver Max Papis. In the 2004 24 Hours of Daytona they were joined by NASCAR Sprint Cup Driver Boris Said and Indy 500 winner Buddy Rice. That year, they won multiple podiums and even capped off a 1-2 DP finish at the 6 hours of Watkins Glen. In 2005, Pontiac made its debut in the Grand American Rolex Series with TRG and Kevin Buckler. That year, TRG ran Pontiac GT0.Rs in the Grand-Am Rolex series. That year TRG raced with GM factory drivers Paul Edwards and Jan Magnussen in the #64, while TRG put Mark Bunting, R.J. Valentine, and Andy Lally in the #65 car. After 2005, the team finished on the podium at every single race in the 2005 and 2006 season, and set a Grand American record for the longest podium streak ever, 23 in a row. That year, Kevin won the Grand American Rolex GT Championship. 2006 proved to be a historic year for Kevin. The Racer's Group won the Grand-Am Triple Crown (Drivers, Team, and Manufacturers Championships). In 2007, Kevin made his debut in NASCAR in the Camping World Truck Series with TRG Motorsports, even wining a race with Donny Lia in Mansfield, Ohio. In 2009, Kevin made his owner's debut in the NASCAR Sprint Cup series with the Daytona 500, narrowly missing qualifying with Mike Wallace. Next week, though, Kevin signed with David Gilliland and preceded to qualify for every race the rest of the season with the exception of Watkins Glen, where Andy Lally made his debut in the Sprint Cup and raced for TRG Motorsports. In the 2010 season, Championship-winning driver Bobby Labonte and TRG Motorsports are working together for the whole season with TaxSlayer.com currently on board with only partial sponsorship for the season. In January 2010, Kevin put on a 5-car team made up of professional, amateur, and Porsche Factory drivers, with around 5 drivers per team in the 2010 24 Hours of Daytona. The Racer's Group came in second and third in the GT class, even leading the GT race for hours. While Kevin's career in NASCAR is just beginning, he possesses the history of wins and experience that will see him far in the years to come.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
racecar driver and entrepreuener. He founded Adobe Road Winery and currently owns The Racer's Group
The Racer's Group
The Racer's Group, or TRG, is a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Camping World Truck Series and Rolex Sports Car Series racing team located in Petaluma, California owned by Kevin Buckler and his wife Debra. In addition to stock car racing, TRG has competed professionally in road racing since 1995...
, a professional sports car racing team, and a NASCAR
NASCAR
The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing is a family-owned and -operated business venture that sanctions and governs multiple auto racing sports events. It was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1947–48. As of 2009, the CEO for the company is Brian France, grandson of the late Bill France Sr...
Sprint Cup Series team, TRG Motorsports. Kevin's 2005 Adobe Road Cabernet Sauvignon won a 93 in Wine Spectator
Wine Spectator
Wine Spectator is a lifestyle magazine that focuses on wine and wine culture. It publishes 15 issues per year with content that includes news, articles, profiles, and general entertainment pieces...
, as well as winning over 80 prizes both worldwide and locally.
Racing History
Kevin Buckler is the founder and CEO of TRG (The Racer's Group) and TRG Motorsports, and is a professional race car driver and team owner. He has more than 100 professional starts with numerous pole positions and podium finishes. He has many notable finishes to his belt, including wins at the Rolex 24 Hours at Daytona in 2002 in the GT class and a historic overall win in 2003, which had not been done in over 25 years. He also won the 2002 24 Hours of Le Mans in the GT class. He was also a recipient of the famous Porsche World Cup. In 2005 and 2006, Kevin led TRG to back-to-back Grand American Rolex GT Championships, including the 2006 Triple Crown (Drivers, Team and Manufacturers Championships). In 2009, The Racer's Group finished 1-2 in the Rolex 24 in 2009. In 2010, the team won second and third. After much success at the head of The Racer's Group, Kevin founded TRG Motorsports, a NASCAR team currently in the 29th position in Owners and Driver's Points in the Sprint Cup series.Kevin Buckler began in the late 1980s participating in local driving events, autocrosses, and Porsche Club of America functions. In 1990, he attended his first high speed event in Road America, and from then on began his career in racing. In 1992, he officially started The Racer's Group. The company began in the Garage of Kevin and his wife, Debra. He would race using parts that he would develop and sell. He built a 1972 911 race car with his performance parts and used it at many events and races.
He entered his first professional race, the 1995 IMSA California Grand Prix after many years in leading the amateur ranks. He won that race, and the professional The Racer's Group team was born. During that time, he still stayed involved in many club racing programs and his parts business. In late 1995, The Racer's Group moved location from Kevin's garage in Monterey to Sears Point (Infineon Raceway) in Sonoma, CA. From 1995 to 1999, The Racer's Group developed as one of the best teams in the country, especially when Kevin entered in the Rolex 24 in 1996. Around this time, Kevin opened up his arrive and drive business, and the company expanded to two additional shops at the race track. In 2000, The Racer's Group purchased the very first customer GT3-R ever produced for the North American Market. In 2002, Kevin, longtime friend Michael Schrom, and Porsche Factory Drivers Timo Bernhard and Jorg Bergmeister won the GT class in the 2002 Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona. Later that year, they also raced in the 24 Hours of Le Mans for the first time, and won the race by only a little bit more than a minute over another Porsche Factory team. That year, they finished top in multiple races, including wins at the Grand Prix of Mosport, Grand Prix of Mid-Ohio and Grand-Am 400 at California Speedway. The Racer's Group made it on the podium 14 times in 2002. Kevin was awarded that year with his friend and teammate Michael Schrom with a 1-2 finish in the Porsche World Cup standings. The award, which goes to the top independent Porsche Drivers in the world, was given to Kevin at the Porsche factory in Weissach, Germany in December, 2002. Kevin and Schrom were the first and only teammates to finish 1-2 in the Porsche Cup.The next year in 2003, The Racer's Group came back to Daytona for the 24 your race and had an outstanding performance. In the 8th hour, the team took the overall lead, which is unheard of for a GT car because of the competition of the faster Daytona Prototype cars. The #66 car never gave up the lead for the rest of the race, and at 1:00 p.m. on February 2, 2003, The Racer's Group became the first GT-class team to win the 24 hours of Daytona overall since 1977. It was a truly historic race in the history of the team and of Porsche. In the rest of the 2003 season, The Racer's Group competed in the American Le Mans Series as well as other races. and to this date became the only team that was successfully able to run a 3 car effort for the entire ALMS season. In 2004, Kevin joined forces with Tracy Krohn and became one of the most successful and feared first year teams ever in the DP ranks. That year Krohn Racing/TRG was formed, and that year had a competitive lineup of drivers including Christian Fittipaldi, Nic Jonsson, Jorg Bergmeister, Tracy Krohn, and NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver Max Papis. In the 2004 24 Hours of Daytona they were joined by NASCAR Sprint Cup Driver Boris Said and Indy 500 winner Buddy Rice. That year, they won multiple podiums and even capped off a 1-2 DP finish at the 6 hours of Watkins Glen. In 2005, Pontiac made its debut in the Grand American Rolex Series with TRG and Kevin Buckler. That year, TRG ran Pontiac GT0.Rs in the Grand-Am Rolex series. That year TRG raced with GM factory drivers Paul Edwards and Jan Magnussen in the #64, while TRG put Mark Bunting, R.J. Valentine, and Andy Lally in the #65 car. After 2005, the team finished on the podium at every single race in the 2005 and 2006 season, and set a Grand American record for the longest podium streak ever, 23 in a row. That year, Kevin won the Grand American Rolex GT Championship. 2006 proved to be a historic year for Kevin. The Racer's Group won the Grand-Am Triple Crown (Drivers, Team, and Manufacturers Championships). In 2007, Kevin made his debut in NASCAR in the Camping World Truck Series with TRG Motorsports, even wining a race with Donny Lia in Mansfield, Ohio. In 2009, Kevin made his owner's debut in the NASCAR Sprint Cup series with the Daytona 500, narrowly missing qualifying with Mike Wallace. Next week, though, Kevin signed with David Gilliland and preceded to qualify for every race the rest of the season with the exception of Watkins Glen, where Andy Lally made his debut in the Sprint Cup and raced for TRG Motorsports. In the 2010 season, Championship-winning driver Bobby Labonte and TRG Motorsports are working together for the whole season with TaxSlayer.com currently on board with only partial sponsorship for the season. In January 2010, Kevin put on a 5-car team made up of professional, amateur, and Porsche Factory drivers, with around 5 drivers per team in the 2010 24 Hours of Daytona. The Racer's Group came in second and third in the GT class, even leading the GT race for hours. While Kevin's career in NASCAR is just beginning, he possesses the history of wins and experience that will see him far in the years to come.