Derek White First Native American Driver In Sprint Cup
Derek White Motorsports
Press Release – For immediate distribution
NASCAR Sprint Cup Series
Derek White First Native American Driver In Sprint Cup
Derek White has just confirmed that he will be at the wheel of the Circle-Sport No. 33 for the July 19 race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. The team is a satellite of Richard Childress Racing, one of the lead teams in NASCAR. This will mark the first time a Native American will race in NASCAR top category. White, a full-blooded Mohawk, resides in Kahnawake, just outside of Montreal, Canada.
Kahnawake, July 13, 2015 – Derek White secured his ride for the New Hampshire race at Kentucky Speedway this past weekend. The Xfinity driver is thrilled to have this opportunity. "I have always wanted to associate with the best, and I know that Circle-Sport team principals Joe Falk and Mike Hillman have exactly what I am looking for at this stage in Sprint Cup: great equipment and team personnel, and the right experience and attitude to help me make the most of this opportunity."
White was very busy this past weekend in Daytona, negotiating with two Sprint Cup teams to secure a deal for his first drive in the highest level of racing in NASCAR, at the upcoming race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway on July 19. White is committed to making the jump into the senior series. "I love to compete against the best there is, as I did earlier in my career in the NASCAR Canadian Tire Series and then in the NASCAR Xfinity Series. Racing in the Sprint Cup has been a goal of mine right from the start of my racing career."
Derek White, a Mohawk living near Montreal (Canada), came to NASCAR after almost 30 years of Drag Racing, culminating with a 1300hp-8 sec car. At the time, White wanted an even more exciting outlet for his energies and turned to oval racing on pavement in 2009. He enjoyed the new type of racing right from the start. "After a few races in lower series, I moved to the highest level of stock car racing in Canada, the NASCAR Canadian Tire Series where I was named 2010 Rookie of the year.''
After some 35 races in the Canadian Tire Series, White moved up again, to the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series for six races before moving up again to the NASCAR Nationwide Series (Now called the Xfinity Series), and one step below the top series in NASCAR, the Sprint Cup.
On a different front this past weekend, all did not go well with the two cars entered by White Motorsports - Grafoid – Braille Battery in the Xfinity Series, as neither car was allowed to start. Derek's car broke its engine and could not run quickly enough to qualify, and the second car did qualify but was then disqualified in post-qualifying inspection for a freak rear suspension problem that left the car too low at the back.
Derek White was not a happy man. « We have brought both cars at every Xfinity race this season and this is the first time at least one car does not make the race – the first time in my career in fact! Both cars were certainly quick enough to qualify, after finishing in the Top 5 in one of the practice sessions. This is extremely frustrating. »
Reached by phone on Sunday, White had already pushed the Xfinity misadventure out of his mind, and concentrating on the Sprint Cup ride. Both Xfinity cars will be at Kentucky for the next race this coming Saturday.
-30-
Contact Marc Cantin if you need more information, at m.cantin@netaxis.ca
Copyright-free photos are included for editorial purposes only. Photo credit: NASCAR, Braille Battery, Grafoid
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment