Ryan Truex Greenville Pickens Preview

CORNELIUS, N.C. — Ryan Truex begins his quest to defend his NASCAR K&N Pro Series East championship this weekend at Greenville (S.C) Pickens Speedway. The Michael Waltrip Racing development driver won the championship on the heels of three wins (Watkins Glen International, Thompson Speedway and Lime Rock), two poles, seven top-five and eight top-10 finishes in just 11 starts.

QUOTES

ON DEFENDING HIS K&N SERIES TITLE: “There are so many good drivers in this series. You’ve got a lot of veterans like Matt Kobyluck and Steve Park plus you’ve got a lot of younger guys like myself, Sergio Garcia and Brett Moffitt. It’s a great blend of experience. I know every race is going to be a battle.”

ON GREENVILLE PICKENS SPEEDWAY: “I really like racing there. We’ve turned a bunch of laps there in testing and the race last year so I feel like I’ve got a pretty good handle on the place. The main thing for us is to get a solid finish to start the season off right. I know that everybody on the NAPA Auto Parts team is ready to get back to racing.”

ON BEING THE FIRST SERIES CHAMPION AT MWR: “That’s one of the coolest things about winning the title. They’ve got a championship banner hanging up in the shop and it’s something that me and the guys on the team can look at every day and take pride in. I’m really glad that Michael Waltrip, Ty Norris, and everyone at MWR gave me the opportunity. Now it’s up to us to go get another title for the team and everyone at NAPA. I really think we’re going to have another great season.”

ADDITIONAL NOTES OF INTEREST

Truex is the younger brother of two-time NASCAR Nationwide Series champion Martin Truex Jr. who drivers MWR’s No. 56 NAPA Toyota in NASCAR Sprint Cup Series competition.

The 18-year-old driver started fifth and finished 14th last year at Greenville-Pickens Speedway in South Carolina.

Truex is the third member of his family to compete in the K&N Pro Series East. His father, Martin Truex Sr., and his brother Martin Truex Jr. also competed in the series.

MWR announced last week that Truex will run six NASCAR Nationwide Series races in 2010. He will make his NNS debut on July 17 at Gateway International Raceway. Also tentatively scheduled are Michigan, Richmond, Kansas, the fall Charlotte race and Homestead-Miami Speedway.