Blake Koch

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Blake Koch
2014 position
67th
Best finish67th (2014)
First race2013 Bank of America 500 (Charlotte)
Last race2014 Ford EcoBoost 400 (Homestead)
Wins Top tens Poles
0 0 0
Ford EcoBoost 300 (Homestead
)
Wins Top tens Poles
0 10 1
WinStar World Casino & Resort 350 (Texas
)
Wins Top tens Poles
0 0 0
Statistics current as of November 18, 2017.

Blake Koch (born August 7, 1985) is an semi-retired American professional stock car racing driver and businessman. He last competed in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driving the No. 11 Chevrolet Camaro for Kaulig Racing. He is also the founder of FilterTime, a residential air filter company that delivers the filters to consumer's homes on a regular basis.[1]

Racing career

Koch racing at Road America in 2011

Koch began his racing career at the age of 22 after he graduated from college with an associate degree in Marketing and Business Degree at

NASCAR Camping World West Series. He finished 8th in the final point standings and finished runner up in the Rookie of the Year standings.[2] In 2011, he made his 1st Nationwide Series race at Phoenix and finished 17th and on the lead lap. He earned 4 top 20 finishes in 2011 and finished 18th in the final point standings.[3]

Koch planned to compete for Rick Ware Racing in the 2012 Nationwide Series driving the No. 41.[4] Partway through the season Koch was switched to the No. 15 when Timmy Hill returned to Nationwide competition, and soon afterwards was forced to switch to a limited schedule due to a lack of sponsorship.[5] Koch lost the sponsor after the accompanying ESPN ad campaign was denied for "political and religious overtones".[6]

For 2013, Koch could not find a full-time ride, and was forced to

Sprint Cup Series, driving for Leavine Family Racing at Charlotte Motor Speedway.[8]

Later in 2013, Koch finally caught a break, landing a ride with

Homestead-Miami Speedway
, where he started on the outside pole.

However, again unable to find a full-time ride, Koch moved to

Koch's 2015 Xfinity Series car at Road America

In 2015, Koch was finally given a full-time ride by TriStar Motorsports for the full

Xfinity Series (formerly Nationwide Series) in the No. 8 Toyota with LeafFilter Gutter Protection as a primary sponsor.[12]
Koch was leading with 6 laps to go in Road America when the battery died, resulting in a 20th-place finish. After the race Koch described the race as the closest he had come to winning in his entire career.

Koch at Texas Motor Speedway in 2016.

In 2016, LeafFilter owner Matt Kaulig left TriStar to start his own team, Kaulig Racing, with an alliance with Richard Childress Racing. Koch came over as well, running the full season in the No. 11 LeafFilter Gutter Protection Chevrolet.[13] Koch finished 9th at the season opener at Daytona, his first top-ten of his career. Koch went on to have the best season of his career, scoring five top-10s and qualifying for the inaugural Xfinity Series playoffs. Koch would finish 7th in points, by far his best career NASCAR performance.

In 2017, Koch returned to Kaulig Racing for another full-time Xfinity season with LeafFilter.

On January 9, 2018, it was announced that Ryan Truex would take over Koch's No. 11 ride.[14] Koch knew in the later stages of December that LeafFilter would not return in a large role and that he needed to find sponsorship to stay with the team. Kaulig has stated that he would like to retain Koch in a second car dependent on sponsorship.[15] Koch has stated that he has been contacted by teams in all three of NASCAR's national series and that he would be content with a full or part-time ride in any of those series.[16] He instead served as a driver coach for Matt Tifft and as an analyst for the "Blake's Take" segment of NASCAR Race Hub.[17]

After not driving at all in 2018, on December 4, Koch announced he would be joining JD Motorsports in their No. 4 entry in the Xfinity Series in 2019, left vacant by Ross Chastain. Koch's company FilterTime was announced as a sponsor of the team.[18] On January 31, 2019, Koch stepped down from the ride to focus on his FilterTime business after it was announced that Chastain was returning to the team.[19] Koch continued his driver coaching in 2019, working with Harrison Burton.[17]

Personal life

Born in West Palm Beach, Florida, Koch currently resides in Huntersville, North Carolina with his wife Shannon and their son, Carter and daughter, Bailey.[5]

Koch is a Christian. Koch has spoken about his faith saying, "[God has] given me this platform that people listen to me and I feel like I have a great opportunity to tell people about Jesus through that."[20]

Koch appeared in a commercial for the voting awareness organization Rise Up and Register; however, it was rejected by ESPN due to "religious and political overtones";[21] despite there being no religious messages in the commercial.[22] ESPN later issued a statement saying, "Koch’s personal religious beliefs played no role in our evaluation."[23]

Koch is the founder and owner of FilterTime, a residential air filter delivery service. The business was founded in 2017 after losing his ride with Kaulig Racing, formed for the purpose of funding his racing career. Dale Earnhardt Jr. became a partner in the company in April 2019.

Motorsports career results

NASCAR

(key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. Italics – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)

Sprint Cup Series

NASCAR Sprint Cup Series
results
Year Team No. Make 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 NSCC Pts Ref
2013 Leavine Family Racing 95 Ford DAY PHO LVS BRI CAL MAR TEX KAN RCH TAL DAR CLT DOV POC MCH SON KEN DAY NHA IND POC GLN MCH BRI ATL RCH CHI NHA DOV KAN CLT
38
TAL MAR TEX PHO HOM 74th 01 [24]
2014 Front Row Motorsports 35 Ford DAY PHO
37
LVS
DNQ
BRI CAL MAR TEX DAR RCH TAL KAN 67th 01 [25]
Go FAS Racing
32 Ford CLT
35
DOV
30
POC MCH SON KEN DAY NHA IND POC GLN MCH BRI ATL RCH CHI NHA DOV KAN CLT
39
TAL MAR TEX PHO HOM
38

Xfinity Series

NASCAR Xfinity Series results
Year Team No. Make 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 NXSC Pts Ref
2009 MacDonald Motorsports 81 Dodge
DAY
CAL
LVS
BRI
TEX
NSH
PHO
TAL
RCH
DAR
CLT
DOV
NSH
KEN
MLW
NHA
DAY
CHI
GTY
IRP IOW
GLN
MCH
BRI
CGV
ATL
RCH
DOV
KAN
CAL
CLT
MEM
17
TEX
HOM

24
102nd 173 [26]
Day Enterprises 05 Chevy
PHO

DNQ
2010
DAY
CAL
LVS
BRI
NSH
PHO
TEX
TAL
RCH
DAR
DOV
CLT
NSH
KEN
ROA
NHA
DAY
CHI
GTY
IRP IOW
22
GLN
MCH
BRI
CGV
ATL
RCH
DOV
KAN
CAL
CLT
GTY
TEX
PHO
HOM
115th 97 [27]
2011 MacDonald Motorsports 81 Dodge
DAY
PHO

27
LVS
BRI

30
CAL

33
TEX

25
NSH

25
RCH

27
DAR

18
IOW

21
CLT

34
CHI

27
MCH

25
ROA

14
DAY

28
KEN

22
NHA

18
NSH
27
IRP
20
IOW
28
GLN

29
BRI

23
ATL

23
RCH

27
DOV

21
KAN
25
PHO

14
18th 610 [28]
82
TAL

16
DOV

43
70 CGV
38
52
CHI

27
81 Chevy
CLT

18
TEX

22
HOM

23
2012 Rick Ware Racing 41 Ford
DAY

17
PHO

31
LVS

18
BRI

38
31st 230 [29]
Chevy
CAL

25
15
TEX

36
DAR

34
IOW

40
CLT
DOV

41
MCH

36
ROA
KEN

41
75
RCH

39
TAL

DNQ
MacDonald Motorsports 82 Dodge
DAY

19
NHA
The Motorsports Group 42 Chevy
CHI

36
IND
IOW
GLN
CGV
41
SR² Motorsports 00 Chevy
BRI

DNQ
ATL

36
RCH

37
Toyota
CHI

36
KEN
KAN
36
TEX

38
PHO

39
HOM

39
24
DOV

22
CLT
2013 DAY
38
PHO

16
LVS

21
BRI

25
CAL

32
TEX

24
RCH
25
MCH

22
ROA
CHI

27
IND
BRI

31
25th 349 [30]
00
TAL

33
DAR

22
CLT
DOV

40
IOW

36
KEN

34
DAY

DNQ
NHA

37
IOW
38
GLN

36
MOH

40
ATL

40
RCH
CHI

38
KEN

39
DOV

30
KAN
37
CLT

38
TEX

36
PHO

38
RAB Racing 99 Toyota
HOM

11
2014 TriStar Motorsports 44 Toyota
DAY

22
LVS

20
RCH
21
MCH

24
ROA
KEN

19
ATL

28
KEN
25
DOV

23
PHO

18
HOM

22
24th 317 [31]
10
PHO

39
BRI

40
CAL

39
TEX

40
DAR

40
TAL

40
IOW
CLT
DOV

40
DAY

DNQ
NHA

39
CHI

39
IND

40
IOW
38
GLN

38
MOH

35
CHI

40
KAN
36
CLT
TEX

39
Rick Ware Racing 23 Chevy BRI
35
TriStar Motorsports 91 Toyota
RCH

38
2015 8
DAY

20
ATL

22
LVS

35
PHO

25
CAL

19
TEX

32
BRI

22
RCH
24
TAL

23
IOW

22
CLT

23
DOV

30
MCH

36
CHI
22
DAY

18
KEN

22
NHA

20
IND

37
IOW
24
GLN

18
MOH

24
BRI
21
ROA
21
DAR

27
RCH

19
CHI

21
KEN
40
DOV

23
CLT

33
KAN
25
TEX

21
PHO

20
HOM

18
17th 646 [32]
2016 Kaulig Racing 11 Chevy
DAY

9
ATL

20
LVS

26
PHO

16
CAL

12
TEX

34
BRI

37
RCH
8
TAL

24
DOV

12
CLT

14
POC

15
MCH

13
IOW

13
DAY

22
KEN

14
NHA

32
IND

15
IOW
13
GLN

35
MOH

12
BRI
8
ROA
18
DAR

19
RCH

15
CHI

15
KEN
11
DOV

14
CLT

12
KAN
9
TEX

14
PHO

8
HOM

20
7th 2200 [33]
2017
DAY

15
ATL

40
LVS

12
PHO

13
CAL

12
TEX

16
BRI

9
RCH
11
TAL

31
CLT

19
DOV

32
POC

27
MCH

17
IOW

25
DAY

38
KEN

23
NHA

13
IND

17
IOW
8
GLN

22
MOH

11
BRI
14
ROA

7
DAR

11
RCH

11
CHI

9
KEN
17
DOV

19
CLT

25
KAN
23
TEX

13
PHO

6
HOM

16
11th 2138 [34]

Camping World Truck Series

NASCAR Camping World Truck Series
results
Year Team No. Make 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 NCWTC Pts Ref
2012
Alger Motorsports
86 Ram
DAY
MAR
CAR
KAN
CLT
DOV
TEX
KEN
IOW
CHI

32
POC
MCH
BRI
QL
100th 01 [35]
JJC Racing
0 Ford
ATL

35
IOW
KEN
36
LVS
TAL
MAR

Wth
TEX

DNQ
PHO

36
HOM

36
2013 FDNY Racing 28 Chevy
DAY
MAR
CAR
KAN
CLT
19
DOV
TEX
KEN
IOW
ELD
POC
MCH
BRI MSP IOW
CHI
LVS
TAL
MAR
TEX
PHO
HOM
101st 01 [36]
2014 SS-Green Light Racing 07 Chevy
DAY
MAR
KAN
CLT
30
109th 01 [37]
MB Motorsports 36 Ram
DOV

35
TEX
GTW
KEN
IOW
ELD
POC
MCH
BRI
35
MSP
CHI
NHA
LVS
TAL
MAR
Chevy
TEX

32
PHO
HOM
- Qualified for Clay Greenfield

K&N Pro Series West

NASCAR K&N Pro Series West
results
Year Team No. Make 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 NKNPSWC Pts Ref
2008 Jim Offenbach 31 Chevy AAS
PHO
CTS IOW CNS SON IRW DCS EVG
MMP
IRW
AMP
AAS
22
68th 97 [38]
2009 21 CTS
11
AAS
5
PHO

7
MAD
13
IOW
9
DCS
7
SON
11
IRW
8
PIR
12
MMP

9
CNS
14
IOW
20
AAS
14
8th 1726 [39]
2010 AAS
9
PHO

28
IOW
5
DCS
3
SON
29
IRW
2
PIR
6
MRP
7
CNS
10
MMP
AAS
PHO
13th 1223 [40]

ARCA Racing Series

(key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. Italics – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)

ARCA Racing Series
results
Year Team No. Make 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 ARSC Pts Ref
2010
Eddie Sharp Racing
6 Toyota
DAY
PBE
3
SLM
TEX
TAL
TOL
POC
MCH
IOW
MFD
POC
BLN
NJE
ISF
CHI
DSF
TOL
SLM
KAN
CAR 81st 220 [41]

* Season still in progress
1 Ineligible for series points

References

  1. ^ "Our Story | FilterTime | Blake Koch NASCAR driver starts air filter subscription service". Filter Time. Retrieved 2018-06-15.
  2. ^ "About No. 81 « Daystar Racing". Daystarracing.com. Archived from the original on 2011-07-11. Retrieved 2011-11-20.
  3. ^ Blake Koch. "Blake Koch - NASCAR - Yahoo! Sports". Sports.yahoo.com. Retrieved 2011-11-20.
  4. ^ Adamcyzk, Jay (January 20, 2012). "Koch joins Rick Ware Racing". Jayski.com. ESPN. Archived from the original on January 15, 2012. Retrieved 2012-01-20.
  5. ^ a b Moring, Mark (August 7, 2012). "NASCAR Driver Blake Koch Takes a Stand for Jesus". Christianity Today. Retrieved 2012-08-20.
  6. ^ "Faith Costs NASCAR Driver Sponsorship". Billy Graham Evangelistic Association. Retrieved 2018-01-14.
  7. ^ "Blake Koch Returning With SR² Motorsports". SPEED Channel. Fox Sports. February 7, 2013. Archived from the original on 2013-02-14. Retrieved 2013-02-08.
  8. ^ "Major Travis Kvapil and more news". Yardbarker. Fox Sports. October 10, 2013. Retrieved 2013-10-10.
  9. ^ Estrada, Chris (January 10, 2014). "NNS: Jeffrey Earnhardt, Blake Koch land full-time rides". NBC Sports. Retrieved 2014-01-10.
  10. ^ DiZinno, Tony (February 17, 2014). "Blake Koch gets Front Row Motorsports nod for Phoenix, Las Vegas". NBC Sports. Archived from the original on 2014-02-21. Retrieved 2014-02-17.
  11. ^ Knight, Chris (May 13, 2014). "Blake Koch Joins Go FAS Racing For Three Races; Return Set For Travis Kvapil". Catchfence.com. Retrieved May 19, 2014.
  12. ^ Staff Report (2015-05-02). "NNS: Koch Picks Up Primary Sponsor". NASCAR. Retrieved 2015-02-17.
  13. ^ "KAULIG RACING™ INC. TO JOIN NASCAR XFINITY SERIES IN 2016". Kaulig Racing. January 20, 2016. Archived from the original on October 12, 2016. Retrieved January 20, 2016.
  14. ^ "Ryan Truex replaces Blake Koch at Kaulig Racing". ESPN.com. Retrieved 2018-01-14.
  15. ^ "NXS: Blake Koch Out at Kaulig Racing, Remaining Positive for the Future – Rubbings Racing". rubbingsracing.com. Retrieved 2018-01-14.
  16. ^ "10 things we know about what Blake Koch is about to do every now and then". www.theoverseascharlottean.com. Archived from the original on 2018-01-14. Retrieved 2018-01-14.
  17. ^ a b Gluck, Jeff (22 February 2019). "The Driven Life: Blake Koch on the power of positivity and passion". JeffGluck.com. Retrieved 9 April 2019.
  18. ^ Albino, Dustin (4 December 2018). "Blake Koch Moving To JD Motorsports in 2019". Frontstretch. Retrieved 7 December 2018.
  19. ^ McFadin, Daniel (January 31, 2019). "Ross Chastain joins Kaulig Racing for three-race Xfinity deal; returns to JD Motorsports". Yahoo! Sports. Archived from the original on February 1, 2019. Retrieved January 31, 2019.
  20. ^ "God, Grace, and the Roar of Thunder".
  21. ^ Diamond Joe's Media Rantz. "ESPN Blocks The Vote, Rejects NASCAR Driver's Ad Allegedly Due To "Religious Overtones"". Sportsrantz.com. Archived from the original on 2012-08-17. Retrieved 2012-03-31.
  22. ^ Gluck, Jeff (March 29, 2012). "ESPN Declines To Air NASCAR Sponsor Commercial Due To 'Advocacy'". SBNation. Vox Media. Retrieved 2013-10-11.
  23. Sporting News
    . Retrieved 2013-10-11.
  24. ^ "Blake Koch – 2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved April 3, 2023.
  25. ^ "Blake Koch – 2014 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved April 3, 2023.
  26. ^ "Blake Koch – 2009 NASCAR Nationwide Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved April 3, 2023.
  27. ^ "Blake Koch – 2010 NASCAR Nationwide Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved April 3, 2023.
  28. ^ "Blake Koch – 2011 NASCAR Nationwide Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved April 3, 2023.
  29. ^ "Blake Koch – 2012 NASCAR Nationwide Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved April 3, 2023.
  30. ^ "Blake Koch – 2013 NASCAR Nationwide Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved April 3, 2023.
  31. ^ "Blake Koch – 2014 NASCAR Nationwide Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved April 3, 2023.
  32. ^ "Blake Koch – 2015 NASCAR Xfinity Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved April 3, 2023.
  33. ^ "Blake Koch – 2016 NASCAR Xfinity Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved April 3, 2023.
  34. ^ "Blake Koch – 2017 NASCAR Xfinity Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved April 3, 2023.
  35. ^ "Blake Koch – 2012 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved April 3, 2023.
  36. ^ "Blake Koch – 2013 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved April 3, 2023.
  37. ^ "Blake Koch – 2014 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved April 3, 2023.
  38. ^ "Blake Koch – 2008 Camping World West Series Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved March 5, 2019.
  39. ^ "Blake Koch – 2009 Camping World West Series Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved March 5, 2019.
  40. ^ "Blake Koch – 2010 K&N Pro Series West Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved March 5, 2019.
  41. ^ "Blake Koch – 2010 ARCA Racing Series Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved January 17, 2019.

External links