Fitzpatrick to debut in third TRG truck at Martinsville

MOORESVILLE, N.C. -- After a successful test at Iowa Speedway just two weeks ago, Canadian stock-car standout John Ryan "J.R." Fitzpatrick has been named driver of the No. 12 Chevrolet for TRG Motorsports in the Craftsman Truck Series race next week at Martinsville Speedway. Fitzpatrick will drive a third entry for TRG Motorsports, in conjunction with DGM Racing, and will serve as a teammate to T.J. Bell and Ben Stancill.

Fitzpatrick

"I am thrilled to be making my first Craftsman Truck Series start with TRG Motorsports," Fitzpatrick said. "Butch Hylton and the guys have really helped me make the transition nicely. They have really welcomed me there, which is cool because they really have no idea who I am or where I came from but once we started working together I felt like they believed I could do this. I'm confident we'll be able to put on a good show for the Canadian fans in attendance."

A 20-year-old native of Cambridge, Ontario, Fitzpatrick was Canada's youngest ever National Stock Car champion and has several other accolades to his name, so it was no surprise that the rising star turned heads in his testing debut for TRG.

"We spent two days testing at Iowa Speedway with the team and T.J. Bell was there to help me, too," Fitzpatrick said. "It went really well. These trucks are a blast to drive. The TRG guys were a lot of fun to work with, as well. We made a lot of changes, more than I'm used to. It really helped me to understand what the truck reacts to and I really started to get a feel for the thing underneath me so it helped my confidence a lot."

Although Fitzpatrick is confident heading into the 200-lap event, he knows that he's entering a garage steeped in experience and a tight points battle.

"I think the biggest challenge for me will be practice and qualifying to be honest," he said. "There is so much experience in that garage area. I'll always be one or two sessions behind and I won't know as well as they do what the truck needs to race well there. I just want to qualify well so I can run with the guys near the front and learn from them.

"At Martinsville I know my goal should be to finish the race with the fenders on it and to not upset the points battle because they're getting down to the end. I know I'll be hearing that on the radio and that's what I'll do. I'll keep my nose clean until i get my last set of tires and see where I'm at. I'll be respectful but I did come to the Truck Series to race, though. All the Canadians in the stands will be disappointed if I don't because that is what they're used to seeing from me."

It's that level of respect for his competitors that has earned him the title of Canadian Stock Car Racer of the Year and the NASCAR Canadian Tire Series 2007 Most Popular Driver. "I've been running in that series in Canada for four years now," Fitzpatrick said. "I've won on all types of tracks, road courses; you name it. I won the championship and was just looking to challenge myself. I desperately want to race in the Sprint Cup Series someday and felt like this was the perfect place to start."

The Kroger 200 will be held Oct. 18. Coverage begins at 2:30 p.m. ET on SPEED with NCTS Setup.