Driver Profile

At the age of 10, Phil Bonifield competed on BMX bicycles across the United States, winning multiple championships from 1979 to 1983.

A Napa, Calif. native, he raced go-karts in Northern and Southern California against the likes of Casey Mears and Kevin Harvick in 1987 before competing part-time in the NASCAR Elite Division, Featherlite Southwest Series in 1991.

In 1993, Bonifield moved east and became a driving instructor at the Buck Baker Driving School and opened his own fabrication shop, serving several NASCAR teams.

Bonifield turn his fabrication shop into a NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series team in 1996 with driver Brett Bodine. The team qualified an impressive 10th at the Walt Disney World Speedway in its debut event.

In 1999, he decided to pull double duty as an owner and driver. He made his Craftsman Truck Series debut at the Evergreen Speedway on April 4th. Bonifield would compete 13 more times that year, the most in one season to date. Tom Mazucchi became co-owner of Team 23 Racing later that season.

Bonifield would score best career finish twice in 2001 -- a 24th at the Las Vegas Motor and California Speedways. He would add two additional truck teams to his operation that same year, re-naming the fleet to Team Racing.