Ryan Truex - Lee USA Preview

CORNELIUS, N.C. — Michael Waltrip Racing development driver Ryan Truex will pilot the No. 00 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota in the K&N Pro Series East race Friday night at Lee USA Speedway in Lee, N.H. Truex is the East Series’ defending champion and leads Darrell Wallace Jr. by 43 points with four races remaining in the 2010 championship. The 18-year-old made his NASCAR Nationwide Series debut July 17 at Gateway International Raceway where an accident with 22 laps remaining ended a top-10 run. The Mayetta N.J. native said experience gained in the East Series prepared him well for his race at Gateway, but on transitioning back to the East Series his focus is on clinching a second consecutive championship.

QUOTES


Truex on racing at Lee USA Speedway: “Lee is a shorter track, not much grip. I’ve never been there, but (No. 00 crew chief) Mike Greci has been there, my brother and dad have both been there so I’ve heard about it. They say the surface of the track is a lot like Greenville there’s not much grip so the biggest thing is getting your car to drive off of the corners. I think we’ll be able to do that. We’re good at Greenville and we’ve had a good short track program this year so far, so I’m confident we can go there and run pretty good. The biggest thing is just going there, learning the track and figuring out what we need to do to go fast.”

Truex on how the East Series has helped his transition to Nationwide: “The K&N Pro Series East is probably the best place to start before jumping into the Nationwide Series just because the cars are so similar. The series is good because we go to a lot of bigger tracks like Loudon, Iowa and Dover to get experience. It’s a better place to step up than anywhere else just because of that and the way the cars drive. It has definitely made my transition easier being in the East Series for two years. Even with my partial Nationwide schedule, I’m still definitely looking forward to running the rest of the East Series this year too.”


Truex on added pressure upon returning to the East Series from the Nationwide Series: “I don’t feel like there is as much pressure going back from the Nationwide to the East Series. I feel like it will actually help me because I’ve raced with a higher level of competition. Now when I go to the East Series I’ll have more confidence going into the race. Hopefully that’s how it is, maybe we can go in there and win some more races and keep doing good in points. We’ve had great cars all year and I’m pretty confident that we can have good cars for the rest of the year and hopefully we can get another championship.”


Truex on NASCAR's 2010 Most Popular Driver competition: “It would be nice to be voted Most Popular Driver. We didn’t get it last year, but I’ve done a lot more this year to connect with fans. Hopefully I have more people who have gotten to know me this year that will go out and vote for me. It would be nice to know that I have a lot of fans out there who support my career, but the biggest thing for me is to win the championship.”

ADDITIONAL NOTES OF INTEREST

Truex resumes his six-race NASCAR Nationwide Series schedule on Aug. 14 in Michigan.

Vote for Ryan Truex the 2010 Most Popular Driver at http://bit.ly/cmtPQi

Truex is the third member of his family to win in the K&N Pro Series East. His father, Martin Truex Sr. won at New Hampshire in 1994 and his brother Martin Truex Jr. won five times.

Ryan is the first driver to earn a championship for Michael Waltrip Racing when he won the K&N Pro Series East Championship in 2009.

The 18-year-old was the youngest competitor to make a start in any of NASCAR’s top-three series this season.

Truex Has A Strong Run In Nationwide Series Debut

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Ryan Truex Race Summary: It only took half a race for No. 00 Ryan Truex to claw his way into the top-10 in his first NASCAR Nationwide Series appearance. The 2009 K&N Pro Series East Champion and 2010 points leader impressed competitors and fans at Gateway International Raceway on Saturday night by driving like a veteran. The 18-year-old qualified 18th then stormed into the top 10 at the halfway mark and even climbed as high as eighth. With just 22 laps remaining, Truex lost control of his car and slapped the wall. He parked the car after the accident but drove the No. 20 Toyota in relief for Matt DiBenedetto who was involved in an earlier accident. Truex returns to Nationwide race at Michigan on Aug. 14.

‪·‬ Truex started his first NASCAR Nationwide Series race in 18th.

‪·‬ Truex moved into the top-10 at the halfway mark of the race.

‪·‬ He climbed as high as eighth late in the race.

‪·‬ Raced in 10th on lap 178 when he hit the wall and pulled into the garage.

‪·‬ Served a relief driver for Matt DiBenedetto who was in an accident earlier in the race.

TRUEX QUOTE: "Man that was a lot of fun until I spun out. I was really surprised how well we ran. I didn’t know if we would run that well. Napa and my crew made all this happen. I just drive. I have a lot to learn but that started tonight. I was having fun out there. Really, I was. Next time will be more about racing. This weekend was getting in the field and learning. I got hot out there, but I think everyone did. Sounds like it was a cool finish.”

RACE NOTES:

‪·‬ Carl Edwards and Brad Kesolowski made contact the front stretch coming to the checkered flag.

‪·‬ Edwards survived the contact and claimed the victory. Kesolowski hit and wall and was struck by another car and finished 14th.

‪·‬ Reed Sorenson finished second and Bayne finished third.

‪·‬ The next race is July 24 at Raceway Park in Indianapolis.

Trevor Bayne Race Summary:  No. 99 Out Pet Care Toyota driver Trevor Bayne earned his second career pole and posted a career-best third-place finish Saturday night at Gateway International Raceway. Bayne opted to stay on the race track while the leaders pitted with just under 30 laps remaining to take the lead.  Bayne relinquished two spots during the several restarts but was still able to hold off cars with fresher tires through the wild racing to hold on for the third-place finish.  Bayne led the race’s opening lap and never faded outside the top-five in the first half of the race. The Jerry Baxter-led team prepared a Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota that looked good in every practice, qualifying and in the race on the 1.25-mile oval. Bayne’s finished, kept him in 11th-place in the series points race. The Nationwide Series returns to action Saturday night in Indianapolis.

‪·‬ Bayne won his second career pole in just his 34th career race.
‪·‬ His third-place finish was the best of his brief career.
‪·‬ Bayne led the first lap and never fell outside the top five in the first half of the race.
‪·‬ Ran in the top-10 in second half of the race.
‪·‬ With 20 laps remaining, crew chief Jerry Baxter had Bayne stay on the track giving him the lead.
‪·‬ Carl Edwards and Brad Kesolowski passed Bayne before a red flag stopped the race.
‪·‬ Bayne restarted the with two laps to go in fourth and finished third after Kesolowski and Edwards made contact.

BAYNE QUOTE:  How do you feel after tonight’s race?

“It was just a really enduring race.  It was hard for the drivers, it was hard for the team, but Jerry Baxter (crew chief) did a great job with the call there to not pit and got us our track position back.  We had a strong enough car to be up there and that was the way it was for us in our Out! Pet Car Toyota all weekend.  We unloaded fast, in the top three, qualified on the pole and then finished top three so it’s a great weekend for us.  Can’t thank everyone enough for giving us this opportunity.  It was a great weekend for us and we’re happy to be in the top three.”

How important was the call by Jerry Baxter to not pit on the last caution?
“That was a crucial call for us and we had fallen back to eighth.  That wasn’t because of our car, that was just because of some coincidences that had happened when I got pinched down on the bottom by the 62 (Brendan Gaughan) and that cost us to lose a couple spots.  We were coming back, but track position is so important here because you don’t have the gear to get off the corners.  That was a really great call and it took a lot of guts for Jerry Baxter (crew chief) to do that, to leave us out when everybody was coming down pit road.  It paid off for us.  We got a top three out of it, we had a strong Out! Pet Care Toyota all weekend.  We unloaded top three, stayed top three all through practices, qualified on the pole and then finished top three.  Just a really strong weekend for us.”

What did you see on the final lap between Carl Edwards and Brad Keselowski?
“I had a front row view of it for sure.  I was just hoping I could get by the 32 (Reed Sorenson) because I figured for sure I would win the race if I got by him because I figured the 60 (Carl Edwards) and 22 (Brad Keselowski) would kind of take care of themselves just by the way turn one and two looked.  It was insane from the very beginning of the restart.  They went into one and two -- Keselowski overdrove it and slid up the track and it looked like the 22 just overdrove it a couple times and slid up the track and tried to run the 60 up and then the 60 just came down there at the end and got the 22 from what I saw.  I was kind of focused on chasing my car through three and four because I overdrove it as well on the last lap.  Fortunately, it helped us and we got our first top three.  It doesn’t really matter how we got it, as long as we got it.  I hate it for those guys because they were so dominant all day, but it was just a great run for us.”



Results
1           Carl Edwards
2           Reed Sorenson
3           Trevor Bayne
4           Paul Menard
5           Steve Wallace
6           Brian Scott *
7           Colin Braun *
8           Josh Wise
9           Ricky Stenhouse Jr. *
10         Tony Raines
11         Michael Annett
12         Shelby Howard
13         Steve Arpin
14         Brad Keselowski
15         Willie Allen
16         Kevin Harvick
17         Brendan Gaughan
18         Tayler Malsam
19         Mike Bliss
20         Kenny Wallace
21         Morgan Shepherd
22         Mike Wallace
23         Jason Leffler
24         Alex Kennedy
25         Justin Allgaier
26         Eric McClure
27         Joe Nemechek
28         Ryan Truex
29         Matt DiBenedetto
30         Brad Coleman
31         Landon Cassill
32         Kelly Bires
33         Brad Baker
34         Jason Keller
35         Kevin Lepage
36         Chase Miller
37         Danny O'Quinn Jr.
38         Brian Keselowski
39         Kevin Swindell
40         Johnny Chapman
41         Johnny Sauter
42         Dennis Setzer
‪43‬        Mark Green

Points
1           Brad Keselowski          Leader
2           Carl Edwards                -168
3           Justin Allgaier                -497
4           Kyle Busch                    -556
5           Kevin Harvick                -608
6           Paul Menard                  -675
7           Steve Wallace               -838
8           Brendan Gaughan       -915
9           Joey Logano                 -934
10         Jason Leffler                 -954
11         Trevor Bayne                -1002
12         Brian Scott*                   -1051
13         Michael Annett             -1069
14         Reed Sorenson            -1085
15         Tony Raines                  -1110
16         Kenny Wallace             -1296
17         Mike Wallace                 -1323
18         Mike Bliss                      -1341
19         Eric McClure                 -1483
20         Ricky Stenhouse Jr.*   -1494
21         Joe Nemechek             -1499
22         Michael McDowell        -1563
23         Jason Keller                  -1608
24         Colin Braun*                  -1633
25         Greg Biffle                     -1674
26         Scott Lagasse Jr.         -1714
27         Josh Wise                     -1847
28         Willie Allen                    -1962
29         Shelby Howard            -1972
30         Robert Richardson Jr.  -1983
31         Jamie McMurray          -1998
32         Morgan Shepherd        -2014
33         Brian Keselowski         -2068
34         James Buescher*         -2139
35         Mark Green                   -2156
36         Clint Bowyer                  -2187

Ryan Truex Race Preview - NNS debut at Gateway

CORNELIUS, N.C. — Defending K&N Pro Series East champion and 2010 points leader Ryan Truex makes his NASCAR Nationwide Series debut Saturday night at Gateway International Raceway. Truex will pilot the No. 00 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota in the 200-lap race on the 1.25-mile oval near St. Louis. When the 18-year-old Mayetta, N.J. native takes the green flag, he’ll be the youngest of any driver racing in NASCAR’s top-three series. Truex is the son of race car driver Martin Truex Sr. and the younger brother of Martin Truex Jr. who drives the No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series for Michael Waltrip Racing.

QUOTES

 

Truex on racing in the NASCAR Nationwide Series: “It is a really big opportunity and I’m just excited to get started. I can’t wait to get the first race started. I just can’t thank everyone enough at MWR for giving me this opportunity. Three years ago I remember racing a Legend car at Wall Stadium in New Jersey and now I’m here. It’s hard to believe how fast it’s come, but I’m excited, ready to get started and make the most of my opportunity.”

 

Truex on following in brother Martin’s footsteps: “It’s pretty big shoes to fill. I don’t expect to go out and set the world on fire. I know it’s not going to happen. I’m just going to get my feet wet and just try to get as much experience as I can. I’m not going to go in and think I can run top-10 or top-five or anything like that. It’s a tough series. It took him a lot of starts to figure it out. It’s going to be tough. I put more pressure on myself than anything just to run as good as him just because of the last name and everything. I’m just going to go and try to do the best that I can.”

Truex on racing at Gateway: “I’ve never been there before so I’ll get some advice from my brother. He’s always helped me out in the K&N Pro Series cars so this series won’t be any different in that respect. It’s a tough series, they have a lot of the cup series guys competing each week, but the cars aren’t that much different than what I have been running in. I’m just going to go to the track and get as much practice time as I can on Saturday. I’m not there to set the world on fire, I’m just there to learn, gain respect and show them that I deserve to be there.”

 

Martin Jr. on coaching Ryan: “It’s been fun to watch Ryan progress. Like he said, he hasn’t been doing this very long and he’s come a long way as a driver. He’s been impressive on the race track and behind the wheel. All the things that he’s done has led to this point. I’ll coach if he needs help, but he’s done a great job so far and he’s got a great team behind him. I look forward to watching him make his first start in the Nationwide Series.”

 

Martin Sr. on his son’s Gateway debut: “I am very proud of him. In the early days I wasn’t sure this is what he wanted to do and I really never coaxed him to do it. When he was about 14 years old, he decided he wanted to race. I wasn’t real happy about it, but we’re proud of what he’s doing and he’s really come a long way in a short time. I think he’s really got some true talent. As we progress up the ladder, we’ll see what he has.”

 

Notes

 

• Ryan Truex will be available in the Gateway media center at 1 p.m. on Saturday.

 

• Veteran Mike Greci, who once served as Martin Truex’s crew chief, will serve as Ryan Truex’s crew chief this weekend at Gateway.

 

• Martin Truex Sr. competed in 15 Nationwide Series races 1989-1998. His best career finish of 12th came at Nazareth Speedway in 1994. He won an East Series race at New Hampshire in 1994.

 

• Ryan is the first driver to earn a championship for Michael Waltrip Racing when he won the K&N Pro Series East Championship in 2009. He leads the 2010 standings by 43 points over Darrell Wallace Jr.