Grimes, Iowa – Brett Moffitt, driver of the Hattori Racing Enterprises (HRE) #11 Toyota, will carry a 20 point lead in the championship point standings into the next race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway (NHMS) on Saturday, September 22nd, for the G-Oil 100. Moffitt has a total of 9 wins, 7 poles, 28 top fives, and 34 top 10s in his 43 career starts in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East. With only 4 races remaining on the 2012 schedule, HRE will also maintain its 20 point lead in the owner point standings.
Even a championship caliber race team can not field quality cars without adequate sponsorship dollars, and the competition for sponsors is as intense today as it has ever been in the world of stock car racing. In recent years, the economy has forced many race teams to cut back, and after the rain out at Greenville-Pickens on Labor Day, it began to look as though the #11 HRE Toyota might become one of the growing list of casualties.
Early in the season, HRE had secured sponsorship commitments for 8 races on the K&N Pro Series East schedule. Thanks to the efforts of Shigeaki Hattori, sponsorship was located for 2 additional races, leaving only Loudon and Dover unfunded.
Following the rain out in Greenville, Hattori and his General Manager Andy Santerre met with Moffitt and his family. A strategy was mapped out, and everyone involved made a commitment to do all he could to get the remaining races handled. Moffitt immediately paid a visit to Michael Waltrip Racing (MWR), and Ty Norris started making phone calls to potential sponsors on his behalf. Meanwhile, Mike Greci let Travis Pastrana know what was happening, and through the joint determination and gracious efforts of all, a plan came together to enable Moffitt and the #11 HRE Toyota team to continue their quest for the 2012 championship.
Through these combined efforts, sponsorship was obtained from AAA, and Moffitt’s former teammate at MWR, Travis Pastrana, most generously offered to step out of his car at Dover in order to allow Moffitt to run Dover in Pastrana’s MWR car. MWR extended their financial help, and they will also set up Moffitt’s car for Loudon. The HRE #11 team will haul the car to the track and crew it, with Moffitt behind the wheel. What looked like it might be the end of the road proved to be only a bump in the road, thanks to the combined efforts of HRE, MWR, and Pastrana.
Moffitt exclaimed, “I want to express heartfelt gratitude and enthusiastic thanks to HRE, the Michael Waltrip team, and to Travis Pastrana! Everyone involved went far above and beyond in order to allow the #11 HRE team to return to the track, finish the season, and continue to compete for the championship. I can not ever thank them enough! This is a testament to the character of the people in our sport.”
Moffitt will also start on the pole for the race which was rained-out at Greenville-Pickens Speedway on Labor Day. The Kevin Whitaker Chevrolet 140 has been rescheduled for Saturday, October 27th, at 8:00 p.m. Eastern.
Historically, Loudon and Dover have been two of Moffitt’s best tracks on the circuit. Coupled with a guaranteed start on the pole in Greenville, the #11 team expects to finish the year strong, and their goal remains nothing less than winning the 2012 NASCAR K&N Pro Series East championship.