Rico Abreu

Rico Abreu

Abreu (right) being interviewed at Angell Park Speedway in 2013
Born (1992-01-30) January 30, 1992
St. Helena, California
Achievements 2014 USAC Midget national champion
2015, 2016 Chili Bowl winner
2015 Pepsi Nationals Winner
2014 Belleville Midget Nationals Champion
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series career
25 races run over 2 years
Truck no., team No. 98 (ThorSport Racing)
2016 position 13th
Best finish 13th (2016)
First race 2015 Lucas Oil 150 (Phoenix)
Last race 2016 Ford EcoBoost 200 (Homestead)
Wins Top tens Poles
0 5 0
Statistics current as of November 18, 2016.

Rico Emanuel Abreu (born January 30, 1992) is an American professional stock car racing driver. He currently competes full-time in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, driving the No. 98 Toyota Tundra for ThorSport Racing. Abreu won the 2014 USAC Midget car championship, and previously competed in the K&N Pro Series East in 2015.

Racing career

Early career and dirt racing

Abreu's midget at Angell Park Speedway
Abreu celebrating after winning a 2013 midget car race

Abreu first began racing dirt bikes,[1] but after watching an Outlaw kart race in Vallejo, California,[2] started to race shifter karts.[1] When he turned 15, he was given his first Outlaw kart.[2] To support his career, his father built a  1⁄8th-mile asphalt oval in his backyard. On January 24, 2009, Abreu made his Outlaw kart debut at Lakeport Indoor Speedway, finishing fourth, and scored his first Outlaw win at Cycleland Speedway. During the year, local driver Kyle Larson met Abreu at a charity karting event held at Abreu's backyard oval, and in 2011, introduced him to sprint cars.[1] During the year, he made his Chili Bowl Nationals debut, along with running his first World of Outlaws sprint car race. He would eventually win the 2011 360 Winged Sprint Car Series Rookie of the Year Award. In 2012, Abreu raced in the USAC National Midget Series, clinching Rookie of the Year, while qualifying for the A-main at the Chili Bowl. The next year, he won the Belleville Midget Nationals, the Johnny Key Classic at Ocean Speedway, the 4 Crown Nationals at Eldora Speedway and the USAC Gold Crown at Tri City Speedway. In 2014, he won his first WoO race at the Thunderbowl Raceway,[2] and later won the USAC Honda Midget Series national title.[3]

On January 17, 2015, Abreu returned to the Chili Bowl. On lap 26, he passed the previous year's winner Bryan Clauson, and held off four-time Chili Bowl winner Kevin Swindell to win.[4] The win was Toyota's first Chili Bowl victory,[5] and the first for owner Keith Kunz since 2002.[6] The following year, Abreu repeated his Chili Bowl win after defeating Clauson and Zach Daum.[7]

K&N Pro Series East

On January 20, 2015, Abreu was hired by HScott Motorsports to run full-time in the K&N Pro Series East. He made his stock car debut in the Pete Orr Memorial Super Late Model 100 at New Smyrna Speedway later in the week.[1] On July 4, 2015, Abreu won his first ever race in the K&N Pro Series East at Columbus Motor Speedway after starting from the pole position, setting a new track record.[8][9]

Camping World Truck Series

During the 2015 season, Abreu made his Camping World Truck Series debut in the Lucas Oil 150 at Phoenix International Raceway, driving the No. 31 Chevrolet Silverado for NTS Motorsports.[10] In 2016, he signed a full-time drive for ThorSport Racing, replacing Johnny Sauter who left for GMS Racing.[11]

Abreu almost won his first career NCWTS race at Texas on June 10. He was within a car length of race leader William Byron with 2 laps to go, but scraped the wall, and ended up cutting a tire, all but riding the wall for the last lap and a half. He still ended up finishing a career-best 9th place.

Personal life

Born to a Portuguese father and Italian mother,[12] he currently lives in Rutherford, California.[13] His father, David, is a vineyard manager.[1] He also has a brother and a sister. Among Abreu's hobbies is fishing.[2]

Abreu is 4 ft 4 in (1.32 m) tall and weighs 95 pounds (43 kg). He was born with achondroplasia, a genetic disorder that is the most common cause of dwarfism. Due to his short stature, he needs special modifications to the cockpit area of his race cars, such as foot blocks to help him reach the throttle.[1][5][14] The car is also modified for Abreu, such as the pedals and the steering column being lengthened, with the powertrain and a-frame moved 6 inches (15 cm). For stock cars, the steering column, pedals, and switches are moved, while the remainder of the cockpit remains the same.[1]

Motorsports career results

NASCAR

(key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. Italics – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)

Camping World Truck Series

K&N Pro Series East

* Season still in progress
1 Ineligible for series points

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 McGee, Ryan (January 20, 2015). "Rico Abreu eager to make next step". ESPN. Retrieved January 20, 2015.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "Rico Abreu - Stockton Dirt Track 360 Winged Sprint Car Main Event". Alpinestars. Retrieved January 20, 2015.
  3. ↑ Bruce, Kenny (January 20, 2015). "Rico Abreu Hopes to Follow Path of Nascar Standouts". NASCAR. Retrieved January 20, 2015.
  4. ↑ Pennell, Jay (January 18, 2015). "Rico Abreu wins 29th Lucas Oil Chili Bowl Nationals". Foxsports.com. Retrieved January 21, 2015.
  5. 1 2 Hembree, Mike (January 18, 2015). "Rico Abreu wins Chili Bowl with bold pass". USA Today. Retrieved January 20, 2015.
  6. ↑ Associated Press (January 18, 2015). "Rico Abreu, all of 4-foot-4, is a big hit by winning prestigious Midget race with a bold pass". Fox News Channel. Retrieved January 20, 2015.
  7. ↑ "Back-to-back: Rico Abreu earns second Chili Bowl Nationals win". Foxsports.com. January 17, 2016. Retrieved January 17, 2016.
  8. ↑ ESPN.com new services (July 5, 2015). "Rico Abreu gets 1st stock car win in NASCAR K&N Pro Series East". espn.go.com. Columbus, Ohio: ESPN. Retrieved July 5, 2015.
  9. ↑ "2015 NAPA 150 at Columbus Motor Speedway - NASCAR K&N Pro Series East". YouTube.com. Retrieved October 18, 2015.
  10. ↑ "ABREU, BYRON TO MAKE TRUCK DEBUTS AT PHOENIX". NASCAR. November 6, 2015. Retrieved November 6, 2015.
  11. ↑ "Abreu lands full-season deal in NCWTS". Motorsport.com. January 14, 2016. Retrieved January 14, 2016.
  12. ↑ "About". Rico Abreu. Retrieved February 3, 2015.
  13. ↑ Estrada, Chris (January 20, 2015). "NASCAR: Sprint car standout Rico Abreu to enter K&N East Series in 2015". NBC Sports. Retrieved January 20, 2015.
  14. ↑ Moody, Dave (January 20, 2015). "Rico Abreu Set For K&N Pro Series East Challenge". godfathermotorsports.com. godfathermotorsports.com. Retrieved January 20, 2015.
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