Patton to Run Daytona NCTS Race with MB Motorsports

New Mexico native J.R. Patton will make his Daytona debut with MB Motorsports for the Florida Dodge Dealers 250 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series (NCTS) race Feb. 18th. Patton ran seven races last year with Fiddle Back Racing and is looking forward to a strong finish in the 2005 NCTS season opener.

“ I’m pumped,” said the 21-year-old Patton. “(MB Motorsports owner/crew chief) Mike Mittler has been in the Truck Series since its beginning and all you have to do is look at the guys who have raced for his team. Guys like Carl Edwards and Jamie McMurray got their starts with Mike and hopefully, this will be a springboard for my career as well.”

Eric Jones had originally been tapped to run the #63 Ford for Mittler, but scheduling conflicts with Jones’ NASCAR Busch Series ride, the Red Cactus Salsa team, prompted the St. Louis-based NCTS team to make a change.

"We wish Eric the best and maybe we can work together down the road,” said Mittler. “He has a great opportunity in the Busch Series and we don’t want to stand in the way of that. Plus, in J.R., we have a great young driver who ran some pretty good races last year and we’re expecting another good one from him at Daytona.”

Patton, a registered Cherokee Indian with a Hispanic heritage, got his start running sprint cars in the Southwest. He later made his mark as a NASCAR Super Late Model Series rookie of the year in 2002 and a year later, earned NASCAR Featherlite Southwest Series rookie of the year honors. In seven races with Fiddle Back Racing last year, he earned two top-20 finishes, including a 15th-place finish in his NCTS debut at Las Vegas.

"Tom Eldredge at Fiddle Back gave me a great opportunity last year and I’ll always be grateful for that,” Patton said, “but this business changes all the time and I was fortunate enough to have Mike Mittler offer me a ride in his truck. It’s a one-shot deal, but hopefully, I can make the most of it and reward Mike and MB Motorsports for their faith in me.”

Onboard with the team in terms of sponsorship are long-time MB Motorsports sponsors Dave Porter Truck Sales and ENERPAC. Debuting with Patton is Lubri-Loy, an innovative and valued member of the international petroleum industry since 1949.

"We’ve got some great sponsors onboard with us,” said Mittler. “Guys like Dave Porter and the people at ENERPAC have been with us for a couple years and are like family to us. Lubri-Loy has come onboard for Daytona and hopefully, they will like what they see and will partner with us for some additional races.”

The Florida Dodge Dealers 250 will air live on the SPEED Channel, Friday, Feb. 18, at 8 p.m. EST, and on MRN Radio at 7:30 p.m. EST.