Little Primed For Truck Series Debut
Source: Team Little Racing Media Relations
SHERRILLS FORD, North Carolina (May 26, 2015)–For 18-year old Jesse Little, a member of the 2015 NASCAR Next class, the dream of racing in one of the sport’s top three series has been with him nearly everyday growing up as the son of a former Sprint Cup Series driver.
This week Little will see the dream become a reality as his Team Little Racing No. 97 Toyota Tundra has been entered in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Lucas Oil 200 at Dover International Speedway.
The 2013 NASCAR K&N Pro Series East Rookie of the Year is eager to get to work at a track he has already tested at with his Tundra, he noted.
“We’ve been able to take part in a test at Dover and we’re comfortable with how our Toyota responded. (Crew chief) Harold (Holly) and the team have put together a good package for this weekend and I’m excited to see what we can do once we unload for the Lucas Oil 200.”
TLR has formed a technical alliance with reigning series championship organization, ThorSport Racing, with immediate benefits for Little, he added.
“When you can have (defending Truck series champion) Matt Crafton giving you advice and talking you through some points on the track with regards to how the truck will respond (at the recent test) that is very important for our small one-truck operation. I can’t thank Duke and Rhonda Thorson enough for agreeing to work with our team and make this dream possible. We’re going to go out there Friday night and put together a good effort to represent Team Little Racing and our alliance with ThorSport.”
Choosing Dover International Speedway as the site of his Truck Series debut suits Little just fine as the driver of The Carolina Nut Factory/PFC Tundra has had plenty of success at the Delaware facility in the past including a pole award in September’s NASCAR K&N Pro Series East event.
“Dover is a challenging track for many drivers and something that since our team started competing there we’ve managed to handled very well. You have to have patience in a race at Dover, and in qualifying need to know where that edge is without going to far because if you miss your marks it throws the whole lap off,” Little explained. “In our test we worked on both set-ups and we believe we’re close to dialing in this Tundra for the package we’ll need. The schedule allows us about two and half hours of practice so we’re going to have time to keep adjusting on things from our baseline set-up we unload with.”
The focus with the NCWTS effort is on Dover for now. With a good race result more opportunities to run in the series may come. For Little keeping the goal of having a finish Friday night is the primary concern.
“We would like to compete in the series as much as we can this year without going past the rookie eligibility limit (seven races maximum) but we’re only looking at the Lucas Oil 200 right now. All of the team’s focus is on this race and doing well. We know that when good things happen this weekend we can consider future races with some additional supporters onboard.”
Fans can keep up with Friday’s Lucas Oil 200 at Dover International Speedway, as the race will be broadcast live on FoxSports 1 and on MRN radio. Updates will also be provided on Twitter @jesselittle97 and at Jesse Little Racing on Facebook.
