BROOKLYN, Mich. – It seems like an eternity since Tyler Young has competed in a NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS) race, but that wait will come to an end in Saturday’s Careers for Veterans 200 at Michigan International Speedway.
Young returns to the No. 02 Young’s Building Systems / Randco Chevrolet Silverado after a two-race hiatus when close friend Austin Hill wheeled the truck at Pocono (Pa.) Raceway and last weekend at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway, where he notched his fifth top-20 effort of the season.
Looking to build on that performance from an owner’s perspective, the Midland, Texas native heads back to the Motor City looking for his second top-10 finish of the season.
“Austin did a great job for us the last couple weeks, but I’m ready to be back in a truck and I can’t wait to get to Michigan this weekend,” said Young. “We’ve been working hard on our intermediate program over the last month or so. We’re hopeful it pays off on Saturday.”
Scheduled to make his 10th start of the season in the 14th race of the year, Young heads to the Irish Hills of Michigan looking for his eighth top-20 performance of 2016. At Michigan, the 25-year-old aims for his third start at the 2.0-mile oval on the strength of two strong top-15 finishes including a 15th place run in last year’s Careers for Veterans 200.
From the drivers’ seat, Young looks at Michigan’s high speed track as a mini-restrictor plate track, where downforce is pivotal and the draft instrumental. Those two elements combined have the Texas thinking back to his career-best sixth place run in the season-opening race at Daytona in Feb., a restrictor plate race.
“Michigan is a lot of fun,” added Young. “You’re never out of the gas and it really is like a mini-Daytona or Talladega. You just have to look at making sure the truck gets off the corner and you can hold it wide open all while staying in the draft of the truck in front of you. You get a big tow with the draft at Michigan, which makes it a lot of fun.
“I’ve run at Michigan twice in 2014 and 2015 and we’ve been competitive both times. This weekend, we hope that strategy and speed will play into our hands.”
With the Chase for the Truck Series on the horizon, Young won’t have the opportunity to vie for the championship, but his Young’s Motorsports team will still be at every race focused on finishing and building their platform for this season and next.
“We had to take a step back to make two steps forward,” said Young of running a limited schedule this season. “The good news is that I’ll be running a majority of the rest of the season and I’m anxious to see what kind of performances we can deliver between now and Homestead.”
Young aboard the No. 02 Young’s Building Systems / Randco. Chevrolet Silverado will make his 66th career NASCAR Camping World Truck Series start at Michigan International Speedway. In 65 previous races, Young has earned a best finish of sixth at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway in February 2016.
For more on Tyler Young, please visit YoungsMotorsports.com or click on his Facebook page. Young is also active on Twitter. You can follow and tweet with him @TylerYoung02.
The Careers for Veterans 200 (100 laps / 200 miles) is the 14th of 23 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series on the 2016 schedule. Practice begins on Friday, Aug. 26 from 1:30 p.m. – 2:55 p.m., while a final session has been etched in from 4:00 p.m. – 4:55 p.m. Qualifying is set for race day, Saturday, Aug. 27 beginning at 9:45 a.m. The 32-truck field will take the green flag shortly after 1:00 p.m. with live coverage on FOX Sports 1, the Motor Racing Network (Radio) and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio (Satellite Radio, Channel 90). All time Eastern.
Young’s Motorsports Michigan International Speedway Fast Facts:
Driver: Tyler Young (@TylerYoung02)
Owner: Randy Young (Young’s Motorsports)
Crew Chief: Andrew Abbott
Manufacturer: Chevrolet Silverado
Engine Builder: Collins Automotive
