Series PR Report
Photo by: Adam Fenwick/AKFPhotos.com Photo

Hickory, NC(October 17, 2012) — West Virginia’s Dalton Hopkins is usually a fairly quiet young man, but as of late the Rev-Oil Pro Cup Series rookie has been making a lot of noise in the best way possible.

Hopkins, on the strength of two-straight fifth-place finishes, suddenly finds himself second in the Championship Series standings behind leader J.P. Morgan. In addition, Hopkins also leads the Rookie of the Year standings for the first time all season as the series heads to Hickory Motor Speedway this Saturday for the Rev-Oil 250.

With two races left in the Rev-Oil Pro Cup Series season, Hopkins hopes to continue his run of consistency at Hickory. The odds appear in his favor, as Hopkins finished fifth at Hickory earlier this year.

“I believe we will be top three hopefully, maybe even come out of there with a win,” Hopkins said. “We’ve been really good these last couple of races and I believe we’re just going to get better and better every race.”

On top of that, Hopkins has some extra confidence after leading laps for the first time in his career during the last Rev-Oil Pro Cup Series race at Southern National Motorsports Park on Oct. 6

“I was nervous because I’d never really run up front in Pro Cup before,” said Hopkins, who led 36 laps after gaining the lead during the mid-race invert. “I didn’t know really what to expect or how long I was going to be able to stay up there. Once the green flag flew I just fell into racing and forgot all about it.”

While winning the Rev-Oil Pro Cup Series championship would be a pleasant surprise, Hopkins’ primary goal is to claim the Rookie of the Year Award. He currently holds an eight-point lead in the standings over Gus Dean, with Nathan Russell only 24 points back.

“We knew we were going to come in as a rookie this year and we just wanted to try our best to win it (the Rookie of the Year Award),” Hopkins said. “It looks like it is going to be a very tough battle at the end, but I believe we’ll be alright.”

Morgan holds a 110-point lead over Hopkins entering Saturday’s 250-lap event. Tyler Young is third, 116 points back. If Morgan can leave Hickory with at least a 176-point lead, he will clinch the Rev-Oil Pro Cup Series championship before the season finale at Orange County Speedway in Rougemont, N.C., on Nov. 3.

Gates for Saturday’s Rev-Oil 250 open at 5 p.m. with qualifying scheduled to begin at 5:30 p.m. An on-track driver autograph session is scheduled for 6:15 p.m. The Rev-Oil 250, featuring 250 laps of intense racing action, will go green at approximately 7:30 p.m.