Bobby Santos, III Straps Back into the Mystic Missile
2010 NASCAR Whelen Modified Champ Defends Title in 2011
Mooresvile, NC — 2010 NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour (NWMT) Champion Bobby Santos will return to the driver’s seat of the No. 4 Mystic Missile Dodge for the 2011 NWMT season. The Heinke-Baldwin Racing development driver will join the Mystic Missile team to defend the championship title.
Santos joined the Mystic Missile team in 2010 for his first full season in the NWMT. The team was hot right off the bat, with three wins, two poles and two track records in the first four races of the season. Santos and team tallied a season-high four wins and four poles by the finale at Thompson International Speedway. Santos, the youngest NWMT champion, beat NWMT veterans Mike Stefanik and Ted Christopher to take his first touring championship trophy in his first full NWMT season.
“It’s pretty exciting just to be on a second year with everybody at Mystic Missile,” explained Santos. “I think that we will be that much better working together. I think I will be better hitting the tracks for a second time. As a team, we can only be better, so it’s really exciting.”
While most called the 2010 championship run a surprise, the Mystic Missile team knew that focus and race wins would be key to winning the championship.
Ignoring critics, the No. 4 Mystic Missile held the top spot of the standings following all but one race of the season. After a banner year, owner Bob Garbarino believes the Mystic Missile team will improve this season. “We are planning to be tougher this year than we were last year, and I think we will be,” said Garbarino.
Santos will kick off the season with the Mystic Missile team on April 10 at Thompson International Speedway. The Franklin, Mass., native will return to the track where he was crowned champion, looking to repeat his 2010 Icebreaker win.
About Bobby Santos III
Bobby Santos III is a third generation driver, who has been racing since he was four years old. After running part-time in the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour since 2004, this season Santos ran his first full schedule and took home the 2010 Championship with four wins, four poles, 9 top-five and 11 top-10 finishes in the 14-race schedule.
The 25-year-old from Franklin, Mass. has driven 23 different styles of race cars, including USAC, ARCA, NASCAR Nationwide and Trucks, and the Modified car he currently races. Santos, a driver in the Heinke-Baldwin Racing driver development program, had one win, at Thompson International Speedway, in the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour prior to this season.
Sources: Heather Lumpp/Heinke-Baldwin Racing PR