MOORESVILLE, N.C. – USAC Midget champion Rico Abreu will make his NASCAR K&N Pro Series East debut in 2015 with HScott Motorsports and race all 14 series events.
Abreu will participate in his first stock car and pavement test session Tuesday at Motor Mile in Virginia before competing in his first stock car and pavement race on Saturday at New Smyrna in Florida. Speedway. Abreu's first K&N event will be Feb. 15 at New Smyrna Speedway.
Abreu, an open wheel standout, will continue to race open wheel events. The 22-year-old Californian driver is just 4-foot-4 and weighs less than 100 pounds. He uses foot blocks in the accelerator area of his race cars.
Harry Scott Jr. partnered last month with Justin Marks to form a NASCAR K&N Pro Series East team.
"As a full-time open-wheel driver on dirt, I'm aware that there will be a learning curve for me this season," Abreu said. "Knowing that Harry (Scott) and Justin (Marks) have faith in me to be successful in stock cars is a great confidence boost. I'm up for the challenge and look forward to learning from my teammates and making the most out of this season."
Abreu joins teammates William Byron, JJ Haley, Scott Heckert and Dalton Sargeant to complete the roster.
"Rico has remarkable talent and is a great fit for this organization," co-owner Harry Scott Jr. said "The addition of Rico to our stout lineup of drivers raises our level of excitement even higher going into the 2015 season."
Abreu's No. 98 NASCAR K&N Pro Series East entry will be led by veteran K&N crew chief Mardy Lindley. He has five career victories in three seasons, along with the 2013 K&N title with driver Dylan Kwasniewski.
Abreu won the Chili Bowl on Saturday night in Oklahoma. He won in a field of 326 entries that included NASCAR drivers Kyle Larson, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and J.J. Yeley, as well as Sammy Swindell and Kevin Swindell, a father-son tandem that has nine combined Chili Bowl victories.
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