Akinori Performance Overview
Akinori Performance is an American stock car racing team that competes part-time in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series. The team was founded in 2025 by Akinori Ogata and fields the No. 63 truck primarily for Ogata from a base in Mooresville, North Carolina.
Founding and Organizational Origins
Akinori Ogata announced the formation of Akinori Performance on February 7, 2025, establishing a new entry to the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series for the 2025 season. The announcement identified Kyowa Industrial, Mooneyes and YKK AP as primary sponsors for the initial program and confirmed Ogata as the owner-driver of the No. 63 truck.
The team operates from Mooresville, North Carolina, under Ogata’s ownership and concentrates on a part-time schedule in the Truck Series while leveraging Ogata’s prior national-series experience. The organization assembled its initial crew and logistical footprint to support selected events in the 2025 national schedule, with race-week operations centered on entry preparation and race execution for the No. 63 truck.
Growth Into NASCAR Competition
Akinori Performance grew out of Akinori Ogata’s long-term involvement in American stock car racing and his prior activity as an owner/driver. Ogata previously ran as an owner/driver in K&N Pro Series East competition in 2014, piloting the No. 56 toyota/”>Toyota with Dale Quarterley serving as crew chief; that early experience provided program-level knowledge of car preparation, qualifying procedures and race logistics on national short-track and intermediate venues.
The creation of Akinori Performance in 2025 represented a formal step from occasional entries and owner/driver efforts into an organized part-time Truck Series operation. Initial planning emphasized fielding a reliable No. 63 entry for selected races and signing primary sponsorship commitments to support travel, equipment and race-week staffing for the season.
Akinori Performance Competitive Journey
Akinori Performance’s competitive record to date spans both regional development series experience and the team’s first season in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series in 2025. The program’s early results reflect a small, part-time entry progressing through race attempts, a debut event and continued entries later in the season.
Early Seasons and Development (2014)
Akinori Ogata’s earlier participation in K&N Pro Series East competition in 2014 served as the primary development chapter prior to forming Akinori Performance. In 2014 Ogata ran the No. 56 Toyota with Dale Quarterley as crew chief, qualifying in three of five attempts and recording a race finish at Iowa Speedway, which supplied foundational experience in stock car race preparation and event execution.
That regional and developmental experience kept Ogata active in national stock car environments and informed the organizational approach used when Akinori Performance launched as a Truck Series entrant in 2025. The 2014 entry provided practical lessons on race-week logistics, qualifying demands and the importance of sponsorship alignment for continued competition.
Breakthrough in NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series (2025)
Akinori Performance entered the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series in 2025 as a part-time team fielding the No. 63 truck. The team initially targeted an earlier race weekend, with plans to attempt a spring Atlanta race, but withdrew from that event. The first official start for the organization in the Truck Series came at the 2025 Baptist Health 200 at Homestead, where the team made its series debut.
At the Homestead debut the No. 63 entry finished 32nd, marking the team’s first completed Truck Series event. The season schedule then included later entries, with the team’s most recent recorded Truck Series start listed as the 2025 Rackley Roofing 200 at Nashville. Across national series competition, the combined entries listed for the organization total five races, including two Truck Series starts and three K&N Pro Series East starts tied to Ogata’s earlier efforts.
Modern Program and Current Direction (2025–Present)
As of 2025 Akinori Performance competes with Toyota manufacturers support listed and operates its part-time Truck Series effort from Mooresville, North Carolina. The driving roster for the No. 63 truck has included owner-driver Akinori Ogata and additional driver Kenko Miura for selected events during the 2025 season, reflecting a flexible, part-time driver lineup approach.
The team’s current program emphasizes establishing a consistent presence in select national events while managing resources across travel and race-week operations. Primary sponsor partners announced at the team launch support the initial campaign and provide a commercial foundation for continued part-time competition in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series.
Key Milestones and Major Moments
Key moments for Akinori Performance include the public announcement of the team on February 7, 2025, the selection of Kyowa Industrial, Mooneyes and YKK AP as primary sponsors, the attempted but withdrawn entry at the Atlanta spring race, and the team’s first official Truck Series start at the 2025 Baptist Health 200 in Homestead where the No. 63 finished 32nd. Ogata’s earlier 2014 K&N Pro Series East owner/driver effort and the single finish at Iowa Speedway are also notable milestones in the owner’s competitive timeline.
Akinori Performance Achievements and Results
Akinori Performance’s verified results through the 2025 season list a modest entry record as a newly formed part-time team. The combined career totals tied to the organization and Ogata’s related entries show participation across five national races, with no recorded race victories, pole positions or drivers’ championships to date.
Truck Series Achievements
In the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Akinori Performance made its debut in 2025 and completed two recorded Truck Series starts during that initial season. The team’s best verified result in the series during 2025 is the 32nd-place finish at Homestead in the Baptist Health 200; there are no Truck Series wins, poles or championships listed for the organization in the 2025 season record.
Truck Series and Development Program Success
Ogata’s earlier K&N Pro Series East activity in 2014 is part of the development lineage that led to Akinori Performance’s Truck Series entry. In that 2014 regional program Ogata qualified three of five entry attempts and recorded a race finish at Iowa Speedway, contributing to the small set of national-level starts that total three K&N Pro Series East races and two Truck Series races documented across the organization’s competitive history.
