Speed has also committed to the team exclusively, meaning he will not drive for other teams.

It’s a big deal to go from a partial schedule to a relatively full-time deal for the 2013 season. It’s the start of a bigger journey. Now is the time I need to give them 100 percent of my time and effort. No longer will I be competing in anything else other then the No. 95.

The team is expected to run 28 of 36 races.

Speed has made eight starts in the Sprint Cup Series this year, six in the No. 95 of LFR and two starts in the No. 79 of Go Green Racing. His best finish this season was a 25th-place finish in the Toyota/Save Mart 350 at Infineon Raceway.

Scott Speed attempted to qualify for the Goody’s Fast Relief 500 at Martinsville Speedway. He did not make the race.

Crusader’s Staffing, a company owned by team owner Dell Hamilton, will sponsor the car.

The team plans to run the full races it enters, instead of starting and parking.

Speed said:

You can make more money doing (start-and-parks), for sure, but that’s not what Bob wants to do. We want to be professional about it. We’re going to look good, we’re going to have all of our stuff right and represent our brand and what we’re doing the right way and not just be another start-and-park team.

The team will field cars and engines purchased from Roush Fenway Racing. They do not plan to buy a superspeedway car, but they will buy a road course car because they feel they have a better chance at doing well in races that are more within their control.

Team owner Bob Leavine said:

We are pleased to have Scott Speed join our team. We, as a team, want to give Scott the equipment and the resources he needs to win – and that is what I believe he will do for us in return. Scott is a proven driver. He was the first American to race in Formula One since Michael Andretti and has a lot to offer our program as a teammate and a competitor.

Speed added:

I am excited to team up with Bob Leavine and his guys at Leavine Family Racing. They have a solid group of guys working on the team and I think it will be a real fun deal. Our goal is to build this race team to become competitive. We know it will be baby steps, but we are all excited to get it rolling.

Speed is in his fifth NASCAR season, having driven for Red Bull Racing, Max Q Motorsports, and Whitney Motorsports.

Travis Kvapil, who normally drives the No. 38, will move to FRM’s No. 55 entry, the car Yeley normally drives, for the race.

Yeley started the season driving for Whitney Motorsports in the No. 46 Chevy. He filled in for Kvapil in the LENOX Industrial Tools 301 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway while Kvapil drove in the Camping World Truck Series race at Iowa Speedway.

Two races later, he drove the No. 55 for FRM.

Erik Darnell replaced Yeley in WMS’s No. 46 car at NHMS. He also drove in the Good Sam RV Insurance 500 at Pocono Raceway for Whitney.  At Watkins Glen International, Yeley was back in the No. 46.

The following week, Yeley drove the no. 55 again. WMS announced that Scott Speed would drive their No. 46 for the remainder of the season.

Yeley has made 19 starts this season; he has an average finish of 40th.

The team also announced via its Facebook page that it has secured sponsorship for the AdvoCare 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway and the Hollywood Casino 400 at Kansas Speedway.

This weekend will mark Speed’s first start in the 2011 Sprint Cup Series season. Speed ran two seasons for Red Bull Racing. In 76 starts, Speed has one top 5 and three top 10’s.

Speed has two starts in the Brickyard 400, with a best finish of 25th in 2010. Speed thanked his fans on his Twitter page by saying, “Really appreciate all the love and support from everyone! Feels great to be going back to the races and look forward to this new challenge.”

Speed is currently in the midst of a lawsuit against RBR for $6.5 million for breach of contract. At the beginning of the month, Speed obtained an order of attachment against RBR, which meant a lein has been placed on their race shop.

Speed filed a motion for the attachment because RBR has said that they are going to leave the sport at season’s end. Essentially, a plantiff (in this case Speed) can seek an attachment if they believe that the person or entity they are suing (in this case RBR) is planning of packing up and leaving the state. The attachment prevents the defendant from removing or disposing of the property before the plaintiff can win the action and collect on the judgment.

RBR can contest the action, but they have yet to do so and have not commented.

A discovery motion in Speed’s case is scheduled to be heard on July 11 in Iredell County Superior Court in Statesville, N.C.

[T]oday should be the day my lawyer files this lawsuit against Red Bull…Had to tell my loyal twitter followers before they saw it online.

According to Speed, he was notified via fax at the end of the November that he was released. Speed said:

I’m obviously stupid disappointed that I didn’t even get a phone call, not a conversation, not anything from anyone from Austria. They all showed up at Miami. None of them spoke a word to me. I got a fax. … They thought it was OK to kick me to the curb and not try to do absolutely anything for me.

While he would not discuss specifics, Speed did say that he had a contract from RBR for 2011.

Speed is currently looking for a red next season. He would like to remain in stock cars, including a competitive Nationwide or Camping World Truck Series team.

There was a small chance that the team would retain Speed, if Brian Vickers, who plans to return after being sidelined by blood clots, experienced complications during his recovery and was unable to return.

RBR General Manager Jay Frye said before the final race of the season at Homestead-Miami Speedway that no complications were expected. This left Speed the odd man out.

RBR later confirmed the move. The team issued a statement that said:

We have exercised our rights to end the relationship at the end of 2010. We wish Scott the best of luck in his career. 

In 2008, Speed made his Cup debut driving for RBR. He drove the final five races of the season, posting a high finish of 16th at Homestead.

In 2009, he started 35 of 36 races.After failing to qualify at Darlington Raceway and Infineon Raceway, he competed in Joe Nemechek’s NEMCO Toyota. He did not qualify for or compete in the 2009 Samsung 500 at Texas Motor Speedway. He finished out the season with one top 5 in 35 starts, and finished 35th in driver’s points.

But, he finished 36th in owner’s points, meaning he would have to qualify for the first five races in 2010.

He qualifed for the first five events, posting one top 10 and three top 20s. Despite working his way back into the guaranteed starting spots, he managed only one more top 10 in the remaining 31 races.

Speed has one Camping World Truck Series win and three ARCA/REMAX Series wins to his credit.