Hot
off his series debut at Dover last weekend, Michael Waltrip Racing has announced
thatBrett Moffitt will drive the No. 66 Let’s Go Places Toyota at Michigan
International Speedway next week.
Moffitt,
a 21-year-old Iowa native, made his NASCAR Sprint Cup debut in Dover last week
in the No. 66 with Jay Robinson Racing, starting 18th and posting a 22nd-place
finish. Jeff Burton, who was originally slated to run the Michigan race, now
will be entered in the July 13 Sprint Cup Series event at New Hampshire Motor
Speedway, where he has won four times.
“Our
No. 66 team was originally scheduled to run some new components at Michigan
with Jeff, but those plans were delayed last week, causing us to debate running
Michigan at all,” said MWR co-owner Michael Waltrip. “However, after the great
effort we saw with Brett in his debut at Dover, we decided to move forward with
Michigan, allowing Brett more seat time and to work towards his NASCAR
eligibility to race on bigger tracks.
“Brett
did an amazing job in Dover, not only to gain experience, but more importantly
respect from the other competitors. The best part is we are now taking Jeff
Burton to New Hampshire where he has a lot of success and can really impact the
performance of all MWR cars.”
Moffitt
is a nine-time winner in K&N Pro Series East competition and has served as
a test driver for MWR for the past two seasons.
“It
seems like this is all happening very fast, but I feel like we have been
working towards this kind of opportunity for a long time,” said Moffitt. “At
Dover, we set some goals and I feel like we accomplished all of them and
exceeded most of them. Heading to Michigan our goals will be much of the same.
I want to get comfortable and I want the greatest drivers in the world to be
comfortable around me.”
Burton
said he looks forward to racing at New Hampshire. His four victories are the
most of any driver in the 38 Sprint Cup races held at the mile oval in Loudon.
"When
the testing plans for Michigan changed and the ability to run New Hampshire
became available I jumped at the opportunity. This gives Brett a chance to get
some well deserve race time and the ability for me to race at one of my
favorite race tracks. This is a win for all of us at MWR."
A
partnership between MWR and Jay Robinson Racing allows the No. 66 to compete in
all NASCAR Sprint Cup races. Waltrip raced the Toyota at Daytona and Talladega
while Burton raced in Las Vegas.
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