Casino-mogul Gaughan buys NASCAR truck team

Friday, Sept. 10, 1999 | 12:28 p.m.

Michael Gaughan, chairman of Las Vegas-based Coast Resorts, has assumed another title: NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series team owner.

Gaughan recently purchased the assets of NCTS owner Marshall Chesrown and is in the process of moving his Orleans Motorsports into a new 13,500-square-foot race shop in the Las Vegas Motor Speedway industrial park.

Gaughan purchased seven Chevrolet race trucks, one hauler and all the shop equipment from Chesrown Racing, which fielded trucks for driver Rick Carelli since the series' inception in 1995.

Carelli was seriously injured in an single-truck accident during the May 8 running of the Memphis 200 at Memphis Motorsports Park. The 44-year-old driver suffered a concussion, multiple facial injuries and vision problems in the accident and has been unable to return to racing.

"This was a sound business opportunity that I couldn't pass up -- especially since Chesrown Racing is such a first-class operation," Gaughan said. "This gives us many different options for Orleans Motorsports and ... has saved me a lot of time running around to find all the pieces to put together a complete race team."

Gaughan has provided sponsorship for his son, Brendan, to run a full NASCAR Winston West Series season this year, as well as selected NCTS races, for Walker Evans Racing.

Brendan Gaughan said it was too early to say exactly what his father has planned for Orleans Motorsports' new trucks, and said speculation that he would run a full season in 2000 was premature.

"We don't know yet what we're going to do next year," Gaughan said. "We're working on things and talking to some people (about sponsorship), but this is my dad's team and he'll make those decisions.

"(Owning a truck team) is something he wanted to do -- not just for me, but for himself. He might have two drivers next year and, who knows, one of them might not even be me. We'll just have to wait and see."

Gaughan will run in both the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series and Winston West races next month at Las Vegas Motor Speedway -- two races that are sponsored by the elder Gaughan's Coast Resorts.

Brendan Gaughan said he "most likely" would run one of the trucks purchased from Chesrown, but with motors supplied by his current engine builder, in the Sept. 24 Orleans 250 at LVMS. Gaughan also will run his Chevrolet stock car in the Gold Coast 150 Winston West on Sept. 25 on the 1.5-mile superspeedway.

In addition to The Orleans and Gold Coast hotel-casinos, Michael Gaughan's Coast Resorts also owns the Barbary Coast and the Suncoast hotel-casino, which is under construction in Summerlin.