NWMT: Nocella to Compete for Sunoco ROY
Anthony Nocella of Woburn, MA will move to the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour full-time in the KLM Motorsports No. 64.
“(I) want to thank Mike Murphy and Ron both for offering me the ride and having the confidence in me,” Nocella said. “So hopefully we’ll run good with them and it’s definitely a big opportunity for me. … It’s something that we can go out and have some good strong runs and get top tens and fives and hopefully better than that. Maybe get the Rookie of the Year, which would be a big deal.”
“I was pretty excited when I got the call to be able to go and try to run that. Pretty tough competition I’d say and I was excited that they thought that I’d be able to do it and giving me the opportunity. … Mike Murphy there and Ron both seem pretty excited and I thought it was a real great opportunity to be able to go out try to run.”
Mike Murphy’s car has been driven by Ron Yuhas, Jr. recently. He was injured last September at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. Yuhas posted on Facebook that he is still recovering from his injuries and thankful for the support. The Groton, CT driver has raced for Murphy since 2011 in the Fast Track Electric/Hughes Motors car.
“They decided to call me up and ask if I’d be interested so I said yes and then we went down there and met with them and put it together,” Nocella said. One of the topics discussed was his indoor win last December.
Nocella picked up a major victory during the offseason in the Seymour No. 4. He won in his debut at the Rumble in Fort Wayne, the famed indoor race at Allen County War Memorial Coliseum.
“That was definitely a pretty big deal,” Nocella said. “That was a big win. It was fun. It was exciting. … It got my name to there a little bit ’cause that was one of the first things Ron said when they called up they had knew about that win so I don’t know if that helped them saw me or not but definitely got the name out there I would say and it was definitely a good experience running out there and be able to win. It was a good race.”
Nocella has worked with the team for a few weeks. Yuhas is still working with the team at the shop as well. Nocella has experience at every track on the schedule except Bristol, New Hampshire and Riverhead. He believes the team will be a valuable resource to help his learning curve.
“They definitely have all nice equipment and they’re all good guys and stuff working on it and know what they’re doing.”
“He’s (Yuhas) still working on the car still and helping out, which is definitely good, and he’s definitely got a lot of experience … He knows what he’s doing, so he’ll be able to critique some of the stuff I’m doing and hopefully make me even quicker than I would be just on my own.”
Nocella will drive a dirt Midget for the Seymours and his family’s Modified part-time.
“All the Tri-Track races, I’m going to run for my family with our car and then probably a few MRS shows,” Nocella said. “We’re not sure which ones yet.”
Nocella will be in front of a large audience as NBC Sports Network will broadcast ten races. It is the most extensive television package for NASCAR’s oldest division in some time. This is the 30th anniversary of the current touring series format.
“I saw that before I got offered the ride that they were going to be on TV and that’s pretty cool deal to know that you’ll be racing on TV,” Nocella said. “… It’s a way to get even more exposure, a lot more people than just people right there at the track. You could get some more opportunities. It definitely I think helps out the series and people running the division.”
Nocella has competed in the Valenti Modified Racing Series since 2012. He has 1 win, 6 top fives, and 9 top tens in 31 starts.
“We ran pretty well with the Modified stuff with our own car,” Nocella said. “We’ve had some good runs and some runs not so good. You just sometimes think it’s you and you start struggling a little bit.”
A standout Midget driver, Nocella has a pair of NEMA victories driving for former NEMA champion Bobby Seymour. His stint with the club’s junior division included 11 NEMA Lites wins between 2009 and 2011.
Sources: Nicholas Teto/YankeeRacer.com