Richard Petty Motorsports confirmed Sunday it has signed Ryan Truex to a development deal, the second young driver to join the organization this week.
Truex joins Corey LaJoie, who also signed a development deal. Sponsorship will determine their programs, Sammy Johns, RPM’s competition director, told Motor Racing Network.
The 21-year-old Truex has run 35 Nationwide races the past three seasons for a variety of teams, including Michael Waltrip Racing and Joe Gibbs Racing.
He had two top-five finishes and nine top 10s. He’s run three Camping World Truck Series races, including Daytona this season. He placed 28th in that race, his only start in any of NASCAR’s national series this season.
Truex, the brother of Martin Truex Jr., was scheduled to make his NASCAR Sprint Cup debut at Richmond but had to miss that after breaking his collarbone in two places on Easter. Ryan Truex had hinted in recent days on Twitter that he’d been hired.
He tweeted Saturday that “I will say that my future is finally clear and secure.” The changes are part of the growth Richard Petty Motorsports is seeking to make.
“I think we’re changing as a company,” Johns said. “There have been a couple of years where we were just trying to keep the doors open. We’ve got a lot better footing on that. Our Cup programs are starting to run better and we’re starting to look like we can possibly be Chase contenders.” (Motor Racing Network)
