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Ram roars in Nascar, and he hit Kaulig Racing to help get there.
RAM officially confirmed on Saturday that Kaulig Racing, the young aggressive team belonging to the Ohio -based entrepreneur, Matt Kaulig, will become the anchor factory team for the return of the truck manufacturer in Nascar, starting with the craftsman series in 2026.
Kaulig Racing is expected to overcome up to five RAM 1500 trucks in the series of trucks from February 13, 2026, when the season starts at Daytona International Speedway.
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Side view of New Kaulig Raming Ram 1500 Truck because the two companies announce the partnership for the 2026 truck series.
“This partnership represents much more than a new chapter in the history of Kaulig Racing, it is a union of shared values,” Kaulig told PK Press Club Digital. “In the past decade, our team has built an inheritance rooted in performance, integrity and giving it back to the community. To unite their forces as an anchoring team for Ram’s return to Nascar is both an honor and responsibility. Together, we are ready to establish a new standard on the day of the race and in the impact we make the track.”
The Dodge brand was one of the founding manufacturers of the truck series before 1995, and it finally led to Ram standing as its own brand by 2010. However, it closed in 2013 and has been sleeping since.
This changed on June 8 at Michigan International Speedway, where Ram announced that he would return to the Nascar Craftsman Truck series. But while excitement has filled the air, a big question immediately entered the minds of each race team: who is equipped with RAM?
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“By walking around the garage, you can even say nothing,” said Kaulig, knowing that they would be the partners of the emblematic American manufacturer. “And everyone tries to guess like:” Who is the team? Are you guys? “We say to ourselves:” No, is it you? “So, just to be able to take it out in the open air and ride, it was the greatest thing.”
As Tim Kuniskis said, CEO of RAM, “we needed a partner who really aligned himself with the RAM brand and adopts our unconventional NASCAR approach.”
Ty Norris, Kaulig Racing’s business director, who brings more than three decades of expertise Nascar, knew that the non -traditional and aggressive approach of his team made sense for this opportunity.
“When we met Tim and Nate [Buelow] In Auburn Hills, Michigan, they told us that not everyone wanted to market like us and assume this responsibility, “Norris told PK Press Club Digital.” As they watched several teams, Kaulig Racing became the team that corresponded to all the parts. It had a lot to do with Matt, who, in relevant terms, is young. He clearly has the means and he has a passion for sport. It is not traditional, so I think it has really excited Tim because they will do non -traditional things in their marketing approach.
(LR) Matt Kaulig, owner of Kaulig Racing, and the president of the Chris Rice Smile team during the national anthem on the racetrack. (Kaulig Racing)
“When they looked at the overall image of Kaulig Racing, they said that it checks all the boxes.”
Non -traditional is something that Kaulig Racing carries like an honorary badge. It was a young team that made its debut in 2016 in the Xfinity series – less than 10 years ago. As Kaulig said, his team did not even have a race store at the start.
But the motivation for a new challenge fuels the 52 -year -old entrepreneur, who has built his gutter protection company, Leaffilter, in a several million dollar company in his garage. His love for the race has only increased since Leaffilter sponsored a vehicle – to the point where Kaulig Racing began. The team now has 27 Xfinity wins and two serial victories.
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“I don’t know how many teams in Nascar’s history have won in the three series,” Kaulig said. “So, this is a very big goal for me and our organization. It’s like” OK, we have shown that we can compete even at the level of the cut. We show that we can win some regular season championships in Xfinity. “We will win again and will also succeed in these series, but to do it in the series of trucks now with RAM and bring all the excitement and the drama that goes hand in hand, it’s fun.
What makes this perfect synergy with Kaulig Racing and Ram? Kaulig said it frankly.
“It’s American Bada–“, he said, smiling.
The aggressive approach of Kaulig Racing on the commercial side attracted RAM, but on the performance side, the president of the Chris Rice team, who has experience in the teams of the truck series, feels the same.
It is the “Kaulig way”, and it means doing things differently from other garage teams. Rice said it perfectly while he was referring to the Kaulig motto on the business scale.
Matt Kaulig, owner of Kaulig Racing, and the president of the Chris Rice team speak to Pit during the Nascar race. (Kaulig Racing)
“If you don’t grow up, you die,” Rice told PK Press Club Digital. “It is in a way the motto we are talking about. Just to be able to be in the series of trucks on Friday or Thursday when they run, it is good. To bring out our name, Kaulig Racing, it’s great for our business and for what Matt does. This is what he believes, being an entrepreneurial. They tell us that we cannot do it?
Having up to five trucks to work with can be a massive challenge, especially for a team like Kaulig Racing entering the new series. But, once again, the challenge is something that this group takes from the front, and Rice knows the main factor to ensure that this operation is going well.
“It comes down to people, and the way we do it in Kaulig Racing is our family,” he said. “Everyone works on everything. You are not in a cup team, you are not in the Xfinity team. With that, you are not only in the truck team, you are in the Kaulig race team.
“The Kaulig way is difficult because we are aggressive. You have to believe it, you have to eat it, you have to breathe it, you have to sleep it.”
Rice was up to these words, working long hours and collaborating with Kaulig, Norris and everyone to put the right people in place to be ready to compete by February 2026. The reason for long hours, however, is to understand what it means to make Kaulig Racing associate with RAM.
There is a weight of responsibility – one that they do not hold for granted.
“We must present ourselves correctly and there is a lot of responsibilities to wear this brand with us,” said Norris. “… When a company of this size, a large American company in this blue collar approach of everything, it is responsible for taking this brand and reintroducing it at the base of Nascar fans.”
First looks on the new Kaulig Raming Ram 1500 truck, which will be used in the Craftsman Truck 2026 series. (Kaulig Racing)
Kaulig added: “It is more fun, for me, that it is responsibility. We are full of responsibilities and lots of responsible people, so I do not worry about this part. It’s just the pleasure of creating a business.”
The Kaulig race team knows, from top to bottom, the challenges and obstacles that await us. But the thrill to work alongside Ram, and I hope to enter Victory Lane next year is what excites this emerging team.
“It is the family, the pleasure and the pleasure of winning races,” said Rice. “This is what we want to come back: winning races and a trophy hunt. It’s just a new era hunting trophy in the series of trucks.”
