James Hinchcliffe is set to make his NASCAR Truck Series debut this February at the St. Petersburg street circuit. The former IndyCar star will race on the road course that forms part of IndyCar’s opening weekend. Spire Motorsports will field the entry and place Hinchcliffe in one of its part time seats.
The St. Petersburg Truck Series will run on the same downtown circuit that hosts IndyCar’s season opener along the waterfront and runs past the harbor and airport.
Hinchcliffe scored his first IndyCar win at the Grand Prix of St. Petersburg back in March 2013. He started from fourth place and took the lead after a late restart, then held off veteran Helio Castroneves, who made his NASCAR Cuo debut last year at Daytona 500.
Hinchcliffe said he has been close with the Spire Motorsports for a while and thanked the team owner and crew for helping make the opportunity happen.
“I just love this track and I have always wanted to try something in the NASCAR world. I have been in the Spire family for a long time, so it just made sense to run with them. I can’t thank Dan (Towriss, CEO and President), Jeff (Dickerson, co-owner), Bill (Anthony, team president),” James Hinchcliffe said in a team release.
The six-time IndyCar Series winner will pilot the No. 77 Chevrolet Silverado RST for Spire on the 1.8-mile, 14-turn road course. He will get sponsorship from Delaware Life.
Spire Motorsports’ James Hinchcliffe And Other IndyCar Stars to Compete at St. Pete Truck Race
St. Pete weekend will also have other popular names on the NASCAR Truck Series lineup. Four-time IndyCar champion Dario Franchitti will race in the Truck race for TRICON Garage, in the No. 1 Toyota backed by Dollar Tree and Legacy Motor Club. The Truck race will air on FOX on Feb. 28.
“It will be a baptism of fire. Having my first race in a truck being on a street course with no room for error, but these races always look like so much fun, so I am really looking forward to the opportunity. Plus, I love that it’s going to be shown on FOX Sports, with some of my IndyCar colleagues joining the broadcast, so that should add an extra layer of fun to it,” James Hinchcliffe said.
Hinchcliffe will also be in the broadcast booth for the IndyCar race at St. Petersburg on March 1. He is part of the FOX Sports commentary team alongside Will Buxton and Townsend Bell.
Meanwhile, Spire Motorsports has broadened its part time program this year, with Kyle Busch set for eight Truck starts in the No. 7. And Carson Hocevar will run in 13 Truck races for the team this season in the No. 77 truck this season starting with Daytona International Speedway.
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