NASCAR: Canadian J.R. Fitzpatrick Talladega Truck Series Advance

J.R. Fitzpatrick
#29 Equipment Express Chevrolet Silverado
Talladega Superspeedway Advance

Fitzpatrick To Make First Start at Talladega

CAMBRIDGE, ON (October 28, 2009) – J.R. Fitzpatrick will make his first start at the 2.66 mile Talladega Superspeedway this weekend in the Mountain Dew 250. That’s quite a contrast from his last time in the driver’s seat at Kawartha Speedway, a .375 mile oval and the last race on the NASCAR Canadian Tire series schedule.

“I can’t wait to get there and see this place first hand,” said Fitzpatrick. “I had great success at my first race at Daytona and love the superspeedway racing. I really enjoy the drafting and the whole chess match that takes place with this style of racing. Brad (Keselowski) and Wayne (Setterington) have been great to work with and I am really looking forward to giving them a good finish.”

Fitzpatrick will be driving the #29 Equipment Express Chevrolet of Brad Keselowski Racing. This will be the first time the two have worked together and the excitement is mutual.

“I am very excited about having J.R. in my truck,” said Keselowski, the 2008 Nationwide Series Champion. “I really like having a young, fresh driver in my equipment and think we really have a package we can win with. We have a really good truck and J.R. is a good superspeedway racer so maybe he can pull off a surprise win like I did in the spring Sprint Cup race here.”

Crew Chief Wayne Setterington had the same outlook. “I am really looking forward to this weekend. With the experience J.R. gained leading the most laps and finishing fourth at the Daytona race in the spring he gained a lot of experience. If we put ourselves in the right position I believe we have a shot at winning.”

About J.R. Fitzpatrick: John Ryan (J.R.) Fitzpatrick got is first taste of racing in karts at the age of six, moving quickly into CASCAR Juniors and late models by the age of 13. He is Canada’s youngest ever national stock car race winner and the youngest ever National Champion. Fitzpatrick began his NASCAR career in the Camping World Truck Series and recorded a career best 4th at his first Daytona start. In just a handful of starts he has 3 top ten starting positions. In 2009 he also competed in two Nationwide Series races and ran regularly in the top ten. He has one victory this season, in the NASCAR Canadian Tire Series at the famed Circuit Gilles Villeneuve.


Pre-Race Schedule
Friday:    Final Practice: 10:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m., EST
Qualifying: 5:10 p.m., EST
·         TV: The Mountain Dew 250 can be seen on SPEED at 4:00 p.m., EST
·         Radio: The Motor Racing Network (MRN) will broadcast live at 4:00 p.m., EST

From Jason Sharpe // Fitzpatrick Motorsports // jasons@jrfitzpatrick.com