Timothy Peters Looks To Make History at Talladega

Timothy Peters celebrates in Victory Lane at Talladega, Oct. 24, 2015.
Credit: Todd Warshaw

 

by Courtney Horn

 

Timothy Peters gives credit to everyone at Red Horse Racing for his success with restrictor plate racing, especially at Talladega Superspeedway. Peters is the two-time defending winner of the fred's 250.

The driver of the No. 17 Toyota Tundra sits fifth in the Camping World Truck Series inaugural Chase standings, 16 points ahead of the cutoff position. Peters finished ninth at Las Vegas two weeks ago, and is looking to become the first person in CWTS history to win three consecutive races at Talladega Superspeedway.

“I wish our finish would reflect how we qualified at Las Vegas, but it could have been better it could have been worse for sure,” Peters told Skirts and Scuffs. “Going into Talladega, where we’ve had a lot of success before, at the end of the elimination race of the Chase, it gives us a lot of confidence and a lot of momentum.”

That momentum has earned him three top-10 finishes in the last four races and an average finish of 9.67 in 2016. Although this statistic might not have won the title in past seasons, it may help Peters advance into the Round of 6.

Peters doesn't look at Talladega any differently now that the series has the knockout-style format. He embraces the position that he's in heading into the weekend as well as the format, where two drivers will be eliminated in the first cutoff race of the Chase.

"It makes everybody elevate their game and really concentrate a lot on winning,” Peters said. “You go back and look at our finishes that we’ve had over this year, you don’t have an average finish that in years past would win you a championship. It just goes to show you the Chase, how it elevates every team, and I feel like I have a great team with Red Horse Racing.

"We’ve been attacking it one race at a time, and hopefully that win will come this weekend.”

A win would do a lot for Peters and the No. 17 team, whose last win came at Phoenix in 2015.

“It would be a really cool accomplishment to know that we would be the only one that has ever done it. Not putting the cart in front of the horse by any means,” Peters said. “It just makes my job a lot easier and gives me that confidence knowing that we have a legitimate shot to go three in a row.”