Pocono Raceway with its three diverse corners is called the “Tricky Triangle” for a reason. It is also arguably one of the hardest superspeedways to make a debut on, yet 17-year-old Erik Jones looked like anything but a rookie, leading a quarter of the Pocono ARCA 200 on Saturday, June 8 and bringing his No. 15 Toyota Care Venturini Motorsports Camry home in second place.
A rule change for the 2013 season by the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards allows Jones to run at Pocono Raceway and Kentucky Speedway. A test date early in the week gave Jones a day to get acquainted with a different car, team, and how it felt to reach peak speeds of over 200 mph. Ending the test on top of the speed charts, Jones felt more at ease going into the race on Saturday. Continue reading →
On Saturday June 8, one week after celebrating his 17th birthday, Erik Jones will be making his superspeedway début on the 2.5 mile triangular course found at Pocono (PA.) Raceway with the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards.
Teaming with Venturini Motorsports, Jones will first take part in an ARCA sanctioned test on Wednesday, June 5 in hopes of gaining some valuable experience on the “Tricky Triangle”.
“I’m really looking forward to getting on a bigger race track like Pocono,” stated Jones. “The ARCA cars are fun to drive and I’m excited to be teamed up with Kevin Reed (Crew Chief) in the Venturini Motorsports car. I’ve talked to a few people about Pocono and it’s a track that is like no other. From what I have heard it’s like running three different race tracks in one, which from a driver standpoint means a lot of fun!” Continue reading →
Erik Jones, driver of the #51 Toyota, during qualifying for the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Carolina 200 at Rockingham Speedway on April 14, 2013 Photo – Streeter Lecka/Getty Images
Already gaining valuable experience at the youngest age possible by driving for Kyle Busch Motorsports (KBM) in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS), Erik Jones will also be taking advantage of a lowered minimum age rule set in place by the Automobile Racing Club of America (ARCA).
The ARCA Racing Series announced late last yearthey would be lowering the age limit at the 2.5 mile triangle found at Pocono Raceway as well as the 1.5 mile oval at Kentucky Speedway to eligible 17 year-olds. An excellent opportunity to gain some Super Speedway experience,the Michigan native will be teaming back up with Venturini Motorsports for the June 8th Pocono ARCA 200 and the August 2nd Pennsylvania ARCA 125 at Pocono Raceway as well as the September 20th Kentucky ARCA 200 at Kentucky Speedway. Continue reading →
In 2011, his first full-time season in the Camping World Truck Series, Coulter earned the Rookie of the Year title and finished seventh in points. Looking for a better finish the following year, Coulter found it with a third place finish in 2012, his second season with Richard Childress Racing.
If Coulter continues to have it his way, his third season, now with KBM, will produce his first series’ championship.
In 1998, Coulter started his racing career in Naples, Florida racing go karts at West Coast Kart way. While still racing Florida’s WKA Championship series, in 1999 Coulter also raced the national Karting circuit in the WKA Horstman Gold Cup series and in his first two years of racing, he racked up more than 50 wins and two Championships. Then in 2000, Coulter received CJ Marvin Sportsman of the year award and remained in the series for six years.
Moving on to full-sized vehicles, Coulter started racing in Florida’s FASTRUCK Series in 2005, as well as, the NASCAR Whelen Late Model Series, and USAR Pro Cup Series.
In 2009, Coulter started his rookie season in ARCA, finishing a career-high fourth in the point standings earning two pole awards, seven top-five finishes and 13 top-tens. Also in 2009 he earned the HG Adcox Sportsman of the Year award, and in 2010 the Bill France Four Crown Championship.
When he’s not racing, Joey Coulter enjoys fishing, boating and, of course, working on his race cars. Coulter is also a student of Mechanical Engineering at University of North Carolina at Charlotte.
Starting his 2013 season at Daytona in February, Coulter ran inside the top-ten for the majority of the 100-lap race, advancing as high as the runner-up position, until he got caught up in a four-truck accident on the final lap and ended the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series opener with a disappointing 22nd-place finish.
To say Coulter is anxious for his next Camping World Truck Series race on April 6th at Martinsville Speedway, would be an understatement. With 21 races remaining in the 2013 season, Coulter is on a mission to race his way up the point standings.
Joey Coulter will be our next guest on Fan2Fan NASCAR Talk, this Monday, March 18th at 8:30pm ET. So mark your calendar, set your reminder and call 347-996-5176 during the show to interact with Joey Coulter and ask your questions.
