Austin Wayne Self ready for the Talladega NCWTS race

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AM Racing | NASCAR Camping World Truck Series - Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway | Chevrolet Silverado 250

No. 22 AM Racing Team:

Driver: Austin Wayne Self

Crew Chief: Ryan Salomon

Spotter: Tony Raines

2021 Driver Points Position: 14th | 2021 Owner Points Position: 15th

Chevrolet Silverado 250 Starting Position: 12th (Based on event formula)

Chassis Intel: AMR Chassis No. 027; previously raced at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway on February 14, 2020 (Start: 24th | Finish: 31st).

Engine: Ilmor Racing Technologies

Primary Partner(s): AIRBOX Air Purifier | GO TEXAN | AM Technical Solutions

Manufacturer: Chevrolet Silverado

Chassis Intel: AM Racing crew chief Ryan Salomon has elected to bring chassis No. 027 to Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway.  This chassis has not seen the race track in nearly a year and a half, but this specific No. 22 Chevrolet Silverado has gone under a complete overhaul, rebuild, and a new approach with a focus on the 2022 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series season. If the team is happy with its performance Friday night, the team will consider additional updates to their superspeedway fleet for next season.

Looking Ahead: With the 2022 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series season on the horizon, AM Racing is starting to look ahead to its future. The organization is focused on adding a second truck to their team next year. The Statesville, N.C. team has the equipment and personnel to expand their footprint for 2022, whether it’s a part-time or full-time program.  Earlier this year, AM Racing tested the waters of a second Truck Series effort at Knoxville Raceway.

Brett Moffitt drove the No. 37 Concrete Supply | Destiny Homes Chevrolet Silverado in the event. Moffitt contended for a top-five finish before a late-race accident relegated the former Truck Series champion and team to a 38th place finish.

Banner Year: Entering the stretch zone of the 2021 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series season, Austin Wayne Self and AM Racing are enjoying a banner year. 19 races into the season, the team has just two finishes of 23rd or worse and maintains an average finish of 16.4 entering the Chevrolet Silverado 250. He is mirroring his 2018 Truck Series season where he finished a career-best 12th in the championship standings maintaining an average finishing position of 17.0.
 
Austin Wayne Self Truck Series Talladega Superspeedway Stats: Saturday afternoon’s Chevrolet Silverado 250 will mark Self’s sixth start at the famed Alabama superspeedway. In his previous five efforts, the Austin, Texas native has delivered a track-best of 12th in the 2018 FR8 Auctions 250 after starting 24th. Overall, he carries an average finish of 18.6 at the 2.66-mile superspeedway. He has completed 444 of the 475 laps available for a 93.5 percentage lap completion.

Austin Wayne Self Truck Series Superspeedway Track Stats: At NASCAR Camping World Truck Series tracks classified as a speedway, two miles and larger in length, Self has made 22 starts throughout his career with two top-five and three top-10 finishes, while also carrying an average finishing position of 18.6.
 
Las Vegas (Nev.) Motor Speedway | Victoria’s Voice Foundation 200 Race Recap: In the most recent NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race at Las Vegas (Nev.) Motor Speedway, Austin Wayne Self-made his 126th NCWTS start.
 
Starting 13th based on the metrics set by NASCAR without practice or qualifying, Self’s No. 22 GO TEXAN | AM Technical Solutions Chevrolet maintained a competitive pace throughout the 200-lap race and charged to a season-best eighth-place finish for the team’s fourth top-10 of the 2021 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series season.
 
The performance was a personal best for the former ARCA Menards Series winner at the 1.5-mile speedway.
 
19 races complete, Self and his Statesville, N.C.-based AM Racing have four top-10s, nine top-15s, 14 top-20s and 17 top-23 finishes.
 
To The Point(s): Entering Las Vegas, Self sits 14th in the championship standings with 410 points earned and moving up one spot following the Victoria’s Voice Foundation 200 presented by Westgate Resorts at Las Vegas (Va.) Motor Speedway. 121 points separate Self from 11th in the championship standings currently held by Grant Enfinger with three races remaining this season. Enfinger is the highest competitor who is not currently in the Truck Series Playoffs.
 
Self, however, is 14 points behind his next competitor Derek Kraus who occupies 13th in the championship standings.
 
AM Racing also secures 15th in the NCWTS owner standings.
 
Calling the Shots: Ryan Salomon will continue to lead Austin Wayne Self and the AM Racing team this weekend at Talladega Superspeedway. This weekend marks his 23rd race as crew chief for Self and in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series. During his tenure, he guided Self to an average finish of 15.9 during the 2020 and 2021 seasons, respectively.

Career Rundown: Since 2016, Self has competed in 126 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series races, delivering two top-five and 13 top-10 finishes. He finished a career-best 12th in the championship standings in 2018.
 
Spanning six years of Truck Series competition, he maintains an average finish of 18.3.

 Austin Wayne Self Pre-Race Quotes:

On Talladega Superspeedway: “Talladega is Talladega. You never know what you are going to get. I’m very thankful that the AM Racing team has brought me very competitive superspeedway trucks in the past and I know Ryan is really looking forward to bringing this piece back to the track on Saturday afternoon. We have not raced it since Daytona in February 2020, but we’ve been able to really rebuild this truck the way that we want too and I’m excited to see what we can do.

“Las Vegas was a good result for the AM Racing team and I’m hoping we can continue to mount more strong finishes as the season is nearing a close.”

On 2021 Season: “It’s hard to believe that the year is starting to wrap up. We only have three races left on the schedule and I definitely want to make the best of them. There are some good tracks left for our AM Racing over the next five weeks or so and I think there is definitely an opportunity to score more top-10s and hopefully even a top-five before we close the books on the 2021 season at Phoenix in November.”

The Chevrolet Silverado 250 (94 laps | 250.4 miles) is the 20th of 22 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series races on the 2021 schedule. The 40-truck field will take the green flag on Sat., Oct. 2, 2021, shortly after 12:00 p.m. CT (1:00 p.m. ET) with live coverage on FOX Sports 1, the Motor Racing Network (Radio) and SiriusXM Satellite Radio NASCAR Channel 90. All times are local (CT).

Follow on Social Media: For more on Austin Wayne Self, please visit awsracing.com, like his Facebook page (Austin Wayne Self), or follow him on Twitter @AustinWSelf.

For more on AM Racing, please visit AMRacingteam.com, like their Facebook page (AM Racing) or follow them on Twitter @AMRacingNASCAR.

AM Racing is a NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS) team headquartered in Statesville, N.C. Established in December 2015, AM Racing is prided on faith, honesty and intelligent performance.