When the 2018 season kicks off for Mini Tyrrell it’ll be the beginning of significant changes in the opportunities available to him to race all over the region and against the best drivers in the country.
Mini won’t turn 14 years old until September 8th but with the changing landscape in short track racing new opportunities have opened up for him to be able to compete at some new tracks and a part of some new series before his 14th birthday. One of those opportunities is to race in the two CARS Tour Limited Late Model events, the first of which will take place at Tri-County Motor Speedway on March 10th.
Mini will likely be among the youngest of competitors in the CARS Tour Limited Late Model opener. The opportunity isn’t something he’s taking lightly.
“I’m so excited to get to go and run those races,” Mini commented. “It’s such an honor to get to go and compete alongside the CARS Tour and I’m thankful that they’ve allowed me to go run these races. That series is second to none. It offers so much for racers in this region and for us to get to race on the same night as JR Motorsports team and Lee Pulliam is a big deal. There will be a great crowd and we hope to have a good run.”
A very large field of Limited Late Models are expected to make their way to Tri-County Motor Speedway for the $2,500 payday. It’s expected to be one of the biggest Limited Late Model races this season and Mini knows he’ll have to adapt to the track, a place he’s never seen before to be able to compete for the win.
“I think we’re going to have a lot of competition. For me, it’s about getting there and getting used to the track and finding the right line and getting the setup dialed in. I’ve never seen the track and but my crew chief has a pole in Hooters Pro-Cup and led most of that race, so I expect he’ll be able to get us close when we unload and we can put ourselves in a position to have a good run from there.”
Another new race track for Mini this season will be Hickory Motor Speedway. Mini will not only compete in the CARS Tour Limited Late Model race that weekend but will compete in a handful of events throughout the season on the 3/8 mile bullring. Mini is looking forward to competing at both Tri-County and Hickory and looks forward to the opportunity of racing a multi-groove race track which is different from his home track of Shenandoah Speedway.
“Shenandoah is a two-groove track at best and these places are multi-groove and really racey. It’s going to be a good change of pace for me and it’ll help me learn more in these Late Model cars to run at different types of tracks that offer different challenges to me as a young driver.”
Mini will continue to compete at Shenandoah as often as he can this season in between trips to other tracks.
“Shenandoah will always be my home track. I can’t thank Jeff Vaughan enough for allowing me to compete there for the last four seasons and give me experience that no other 13-year-old has in Late Model Stock Cars. We hope to run as much of their schedule as possible.”
Other tracks and events may be added to Mini’s schedule and certainly turning 14 in September will open even more doors.
“Once I turn 14 we can go pretty much anywhere and we’re planning to run as many races as we can at the end of the year to get as much experience for a full campaign around the region in 2019.”
Mini is also excited about being a part of Racing Virginia, a program initiated by Richmond Raceway, for another season. He was one of only four drivers to be selected to be a part of the group in 2017, it’s inaugural class and is just as excited about continuing to be a part of it.
“Racing Virginia is a huge help for us from a promotional standpoint and helping the tracks in the region to get fans in their stands,” continued Mini. “It shines a light on short track racing from a Cup track with Richmond’s involvement. It’s been good for us and we hope to continue to be a part of its growth for years to come.”
Mini will post a full schedule of events for the 2018 season soon as well as debut a new website in the coming weeks. Stay tuned for more exciting announcements on the upcoming season.
Mini is supported by Castrol Edge, PPC Lubricants, Beautiful Bodies Auto Body Shop and Team Racing Virginia. For more information on Mini and the Timmy Tyrrell Racing team check out their website at www.TimmyTyrrellRacing.com/ or click “like” on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/MiniTyrrell/ and @minityrrell on Twitter
