Officials from AM Racing announced today that mainstay driver Austin Wayne Self will return to NASCAR competition and compete in Saturday afternoon’s O’Reilly Auto Parts 150 at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course.
The 14th race of the Truck Series will be Self’s first NASCAR-sanctioned event in 2023 and first since competing at Phoenix (Ariz.) Raceway in November 2022.
AIRBOX Air Purifier, America’s top provider of commercial-grade safe air solutions will support Self in his 147th career start.
“I’m excited about returning to the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series this weekend with my AM Racing team,” said Self.
“I have missed the atmosphere that the NASCAR garage provides, so I am looking forward to that as well as an opportunity to have a strong performance for my AM Racing team.”
Self will make his second Truck Series start at the 2.25-mile road course in Lexington, Ohio. Last July, the Austin, Texas native qualified his truck 14th in the rain and withstood a chaotic finish to the race to deliver a strong 14th place finish.
This year, Self believes he can better his effort from last summer and deliver his 16th career top-10 finish.
“I loved competing at Mid-Ohio in both the wet and the dry,” he said with a chuckle. “The track really fits my driving style for a road course. We were super competitive last year and contended for a top-10 finish but ended up with 14th because of the fender-benders that erupted in the closing laps of the race.
“I am looking forward to a second chance at Mid-Ohio with our No. 22 AIRBOX Air Purifier Ford F-150.”
Since 2016, Self has competed in 146 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series races, delivering two top-five, 15 top-10 finishes and carries an average finish of 18.9. He finished a career-best 12th in the championship standings in 2018.
Wade Moore, president of AM Racing added, “We are excited to welcome Austin back to NASCAR this weekend at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. Austin is a huge fan of road course racing and given his performance at Mid-Ohio last year and with the continued support of his long-time partner, AIRBOX Air Purifier we are looking forward to seeing the No. 22 AM Racing Ford F-150 back on the track on Saturday afternoon.”
Ahead of Mid-Ohio, Self has spent the 2023 racing season with AM Racing’s Dirt Division participating in various Dirt Modified events throughout the region. Most recently, he picked up his seventh win of the season this past Saturday night at Fairgrounds Raceway in Boone, N.C. Overall, the Statesville, N.C. division has eight victories thus far in 2023.
