Dirty Dozen Cup: Reid Lanpher
Motor Mile Speedway Race Preview
THE STORY
MANCHESTER, Maine – Reid Lanpher of Manchester, Maine, heads back to the seat of the No. 8 JR Motorsports Chevrolet for the fourth round of the Dirty Dozen Cup, with Twin 125-lap Late Model events at Motor Mile Speedway in Radford, Va., on Saturday, April 27. The 14-year-old Lanpher posted his first career podium finish for the JR Motorsports team owned by NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver Dale Earnhardt Jr. This weekend’s event marks the beginning of four consecutive Dirty Dozen Cup dates to be held at the track where Lanpher’s teammate at JR Motorsports, Josh Berry, won the 2012 NASCAR Whelen All-American Series track championship.
THE FACTS
WHO: Reid Lanpher, Manchester, Maine
TEAM: No. 8 JR Motorsports Chevrolet
CREW CHIEF: Seth Kooika, Mooresville, N.C.
BEST CAREER MOTOR MILE SPEEDWAY FINISH: N/A
LAST RACE AT MOTOR MILE SPEEDWAY: N/A
WHAT: Dirty Dozen Cup Southern National Twin 125s
WHERE: Motor Mile Speedway, Radford, Va. (.416-mile oval)
WHEN: Saturday, April 27 – 2 p.m., practice; 4:45 p.m., qualifying; 7 p.m., race
Dirty Dozen Cup
LAST RACE: April 6, Southern National Twin 100s, Southern National Motorsports Park, Kenly, N.C. (3rd)
NEXT RACE: May 18, Motor Mile Twin 125s, Motor Mile Speedway, Radford, Va. (.416-mile banked oval)
DID YOU KNOW?
- Reid Lanpher became the youngest driver in history (14) to win an event at New Hampshire Motor Speedway when he won an Amsoil NELCAR Legends Tour race on the road course at the facility last May.
- Reid Lanpher finished third in just his sixth career Late Model Stock start while driving for JR Motorsports at Southern National Motorsports Park last month.
- Reid Lanpher won the Super Late Model feature at the Wiscasset Speedway’s “Fall Brawl” last October, earning a victory in just his third career Super Late Model start.
- Reid Lanpher will compete as a teammate at JR Motorsports to Josh Berry. Berry won the 2012 NASCAR Whelen All-American Series track championship at Motor Mile Speedway in Radford, Va.
- Just 14 years old, Reid Lanpher has already won Super Late Model, Modified, Legend, go-kart, Mini-Cup, motocross and snowmobile feature events in his career.
- Reid Lanpher will also compete in PASS-sanctioned Super Late Model races this season with his family-owned team at both Oxford Plains Speedway and Beech Ridge Motor Speedway, as well as compete in select weekly NASCAR Whelen All-American Series races at Beech Ridge Motor Speedway.
WHAT THEY ARE SAYING
REID LANPHER, Driver of the No. 8 JR Motorsports Chevrolet, On his recent test at Motor Mile Speedway: “It went really well. The biggest thing was that I had never been there before, and I felt like we were able to get the car drive-able and consistent. I think at one point I ran four laps in a row that were all within one-thousandth of a second of one another.
“(JR Motorsports competition director L.W. Miller) said that he didn’t think he’d ever been that fast testing before with Josh there. I felt really good about how we finished up there.”
On how Motor Mile compares to Southern National: “It’s a lot different, definitely. It’s got so much more grip than Southern National has. The tracks look pretty similar, but they drive completely different just because of the grip that Motor Mile has.”
On heading back to JR Motorsports after a tough weekend at Oxford Plains Speedway last weekend: “I’m really looking forward to it. I mean, I definitely learned a lot last weekend and it was nice to be back home and race in Maine, but it was pretty disappointing to not qualify for my first PASS race.
“It will be good for my confidence to get back with JR Motorsports. We’ve run really well down there so far this year, and we seem to keep getting better every time we go to the track. The competition’s really good there, too, and if we can keep working like we have we should get another good finish.”
UP NEXT
The Dirty Dozen Cup returns for Round No. 5 with a return trip Motor Mile Speedway in Radford, Va., for Twin 125 Late Model events on Saturday, May 18… Reid Lanpher will compete in that event after returning to Maine to compete in a PASS North Series race at Beech Ridge Motor Speedway in Scarborough, Maine, on Saturday, May 4.