Moffitt Lands Front Row Motorsports Ride For Next Three Races

Less than a week after an eighth-place finish at Atlanta Motor Speedway, 22-year old Brett Moffitt will pilot the No. 34 Front Row Motorsports Ford Fusion in the next three NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races.

Moffitt will drive the No. 34 Shaw's Southern Belle Seafood Ford this week at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, and will also be behind the wheel at Phoenix International Raceway on March 15 and Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, Calif., on March 22. 

The Grimes, Iowa, native fills the seat temporarily vacated by Front Row Motorsports veteran David Ragan, who is subbing for the injured Kyle Busch in the No. 18 car. Moffitt turned heads in Sunday's 500-mile race in Atlanta, earning a Top-10 finish in just his eighth career Sprint Cup Series start. 

The young driver is a nine-time winner in K&N Pro Series East competition and currently serves as a test driver for Toyota Racing Development and Michael Waltrip Racing. He made starts in the NASCAR XFINITY Series in 2012 and Camping World Truck Series in 2013, before making his Sprint Cup Series debut last June at Dover International Speedway.

"I'm excited about the opportunity to run some races for Front Row," Moffitt said. "After last weekend, I'm obviously eager to get back into a car and keep racing. I'm grateful to Bob Jenkins and his team for giving me the chance to do that. I'll do my best to get some good finishes for them. I'm also thankful that Michael Waltrip Racing is allowing me to pursue this opportunity. I think it's going to benefit everyone in the end." 

Team owner Bob Jenkins believes Moffitt brings valuable experience -- plus an eagerness to continue learning -- to the No. 34 team. 

"We know Brett doesn't have a ton of Sprint Cup experience, but he's got a lot of hours behind the wheel in testing time, and he was certainly impressive Sunday in Atlanta," Jenkins said. "For only his eighth start, he showed a lot of poise, patience and maturity that you don't often see in drivers that age." 

Michael Waltrip Racing co-owner Rob Kauffman is supportive of the arrangement. 

"As we anticipated, there has been heightened interest for Brett Moffitt's services after his solid performance last weekend in Atlanta," Kauffman said. "While he is committed to MWR, we are happy for him to gain further valuable experience and help Bob Jenkins, Jerry Freeze and the team at Front Row Motorsports over the next few races. Bob and Front Row were very gracious with our Toyota teammates at Joe Gibbs Racing after Kyle Busch's unfortunate injuries by allowing David Ragan to vacate the No. 34 to drive the No. 18. We will continue to work on future opportunities for Brett." 

Shaw's Southern Belle Seafood joins Moffitt as a first-time partner with Front Row Motorsports for the Las Vegas event. The Jacksonville, Fla.-based, "Made in the USA" premium seafood company makes crab cakes and stuffed crabs, sold in fine supermarkets across the country. The Shaw family has owned and operated the business, using recipes from original Southern Belle "Mama Shaw," since 1934.