Empire Racing Group (ERG) is excited to announce short track racer Dylan Martin will pilot the team’s entry in the Nashville ARCA 200 at Fairgrounds Speedway on Saturday, April 9. Martin and ERG previously partnered together during the January ARCA tests at Daytona International Speedway and for Martin’s first Late Model race at Caraway Speedway in early March.
“I’m very much looking forward to getting back to Nashville with Dylan,” said Mike “Grumpy” Cheek, team crew chief. “We had a great test there a couple of weeks ago. Dylan got right up to speed and has shown a lot of promise with our Late Model program. I think he’ll be a factor in this upcoming race and people will start to know his name.”
Martin, an 18-year-old driver from Lakeland, Fla., previously competed in Motocross, Quarter Midgets, Pro Trucks and Super Late Models. He made his first laps in an ARCA car during the series’ January test at Daytona International Speedway, where he finished eighth on the speed charts on the final day of testing. The upcoming race at the Fairgrounds Speedway will be his first start at the 0.596-mile track.
“The Daytona test will definitely be helpful in preparing for the Nashville race,” explained Martin. “The two tracks are different but it’s nice having that experience in the ARCA car. They are so different from anything I’ve driven before, so just having that track time is extremely valuable to me.”
“We had the opportunity to go up and test at Nashville a couple weeks prior to this race and it went really well,” he continued. “The track is a fast one and turns three and four are a little tricky with a big bump waiting for drivers at the end of four, so getting to experience that prior to race weekend has been great.”
Martin also made his Late Model debut with ERG recently, as he and the team competed in Caraway Speedway’s 150 Lap Season Opener on March 6. Martin and the team overcame multiple obstacles throughout the weekend, including an engine change on race day, limited practice time and Martin’s first experience with live pit stops. However, the team never gave up and earned a seventh place finish when all was said and done.
“The Caraway race was really good for us as a team,” said Martin. “We’ve only been together for a short amount of time and going through all those challenges really brought us together fast. It was a cool thing to see and be a part of.”
The Nashville ARCA 200 at Fairgrounds Speedway is set to to go green on Saturday, April 9 at 8:00 p.m. CDT. To learn more about the group and keep up on all ERG news, visit www.empireracinggroup.com.
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