Moffitt, Hattori Gain iRacing Sponsorship for Eldora

By Seth Eggert, Staff Writer

NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Championship contender Brett Moffitt has one less race to worry about sponsorship. Moffitt, and his Hattori Racing Enterprises team will have iRacing adorn the No. 16 Toyota Tundra in the Eldora Dirt Derby at Eldora Speedway on July 18.

iRacing, the world’s leader in the online racing simulation and gaming market, which is celebrating its 10^thanniversary added dirt racing to its’ simulation service last year. While some teams and drivers may use iRacing as a tool to prepare for Eldora, Moffitt will be able to fall back on his prior dirt experience. He is a former IMCA dirt modified driver, but will utilize iRacing to get acclimated to racing a NASCAR Truck on dirt.

“To have this support from iRacing to step up and partner with this race team is really special,” Moffitt said. “I have some dirt experience running modifieds back in Iowa, but have never run a truck on dirt, so racing at Eldora on iRacing is definitely going to be a benefit. It’s pretty cool to be part of iRacing’s 10-year anniversary. I was just a teenager when iRacing first went live to the public and I joined right away. I raced online a ton for a few years and really enjoyed the racing and community aspects of iRacing.”

“It will be fun to get back in it again with the fans to see how far they have come and to experience running the Toyota Tundra at Eldora before we race there later this month.”

Moffitt and HRE have talked about their sponsorship woes, with both Iowa Speedway and Chicagoland Speedway originally being questionable for the team to participate. Ultimately, the Grimes, IA native earned sponsorship for both races and went on to win both of those races. With three wins this season, Moffitt is locked into the 2018 Playoffs pending sponsorship for at least one more race, Bristol Motor Speedway.

“We have been following the NASCAR Camping World series all season and have seen stories talking about the need for Moffitt to compete in every race of the season in order to qualify for the playoffs – despite having won several races already,” iRacing Executive Vice President and Executive Producer Steve Myers said. “We have a history of helping aspiring drivers from the online racing world find opportunities in real world cars and this felt like something we almost had to do – support a racer who really deserves a shot but needs a little help getting to the finish line.”

In the meantime, with an added weight off of his shoulders, Moffitt can focus on the Buckle Up in Your Truck 225 at Kentucky Speedway this Thursday night.