Open-wheeler Paul Tracy, who made his NASCAR debut in NASCAR’s #2 series in 2006, will return to the oval-track for a one-day test at Chicagoland Speedway on Wednesday, May 28th. While this will be Tracy’s first experience in a truck, he is known as one of the most cerebral wheelmen in the business and he will adapt quickly. Versatility is a trademark of the 2003 Champ Car World Series Champion, as Tracy has raced open-wheel cars, Grand-Am cars, NASCAR, and off-road trucks, all in the last two years. (Player Mgmt. PR)(5-26-2008)
UPDATE: Possibility for 09? It was just an engine test with a driver currently out of work, as the 40-year-old Canadian has been unsuccessful in attempts to land a ride in the new unified IndyCar Series. Then again, it’s perhaps the most interesting pairing of a former open-wheel driver with a truck team. “We haven’t talked about specifics — it’s been more about maybe trying to think about that next year,” team owner Bob Germain said. “Though if we saw something come together, you’re so much further ahead if you can run some races this year to get everybody familiar with each other. But realistically, we’ve got a lot on our plate right now. We won’t rule out the possibility we’d do that, but this process just started.” This week, Tracy’s goals were modest: namely, to get acclimated to a race truck and to provide some feedback for the #30 team. Bodine tested all day Tuesday and Wednesday morning, then got to pass the wheel and rest for Friday’s race at Dover.(ESPN.com)(5-30-2008)
UPDATE 2: A few weeks ago, Paul Tracy tested Todd Bodine’s truck at Chicagoland Speedway and impressed Bob Germain enough to get a one-off deal. Tracy will drive the Germain Racing Toyota on September 20 at Las Vegas. “Paul did a nice job so we got a little bit if support and decided it would be fun to run him in his hometown,” said Germain, who along with his two brothers owns 19 car dealerships in Ohio and Florida. “We’re going to run Chrissie full-time in the trucks next year and we’ve got another year for sure with Mike (sponsored by Geico),” said Germain. “I know Todd would like to run the Nationwide series and we’ve got about a dozen different possibilities we’ll be looking at. “And running Paul full-time in the trucks is one of those.”(Robin Miller- SPEED/TV)(6-19-2008)
UPDATE 3: Canadian open-wheel star Paul Tracy will drive a Germain Racing Toyota Oct. 31 at Texas Motor Speedway, not at his current hometown Las Vegas Motor Speedway as previously planned. A Texas-based sponsor was the catalyst behind the move.(ESPN.com)(9-12-2008)
