Gaunt Brothers Racing (GBR) will field an entry in the 2018 Coca-Cola 600 on Sunday, May 27 at Charlotte Motor Speedway for driver Parker Kligerman.
Kligerman, of Westport, Conn., is a two-time race winner in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series and a 10-time winner in the ARCA Racing Series Presented by Menards. The 600-mile contest on Memorial Day weekend will serve as his 11th career Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series start.
Kligerman will drive GBR’s No. 96 Toyota Camry, which has competed in five Cup Series races in 2018 and averaged a 25th-place finish under crew chief Mark Hillman.
“We’re pleased to have Parker join GBR for the 600,” said GBR owner Marty Gaunt. “He has experience at 1.5-mile tracks, as well as within all of NASCAR’s national touring series, which helps us grow our program. Our growth to date has been positive and consistent. Having multiple drivers pilot our car allows us the ability to evaluate our program’s strengths and weaknesses.”
Kligerman’s best career Cup Series finish came on a 1.5-mile track similar to Charlotte; he finished 18th at Texas Motor Speedway in 2013. Since 2014, he turned his attention to the Truck Series, where he competes in select events for Henderson Motorsports. He earned five top-10 finishes in 10 career starts for Henderson, including a victory last fall at Talladega Superspeedway.
“I’ve known Marty a long time and have a tremendous amount of respect for his passion and professionalism,” said Kligerman. “I want to help him take GBR to the next level. I’m appreciative of the opportunity and am thrilled someone with his stature recognized and rewarded my effort last year in Trucks.
“I’m looking forward to driving in the sport’s longest event. It will certainly be challenging, but I’m confident in the team’s plans for the Charlotte race weekend.”
Stewart-Haas Racing utilized Kligerman as a practice driver for Coca-Cola 600 weekend at Charlotte in 2014 during Kurt Busch’s conflicting preparation for the Indianapolis 500.
Outside of competition, Kligerman serves as a NASCAR analyst for NBC Sports.
GBR PR
