MARTINSVILLE, Va. – Angela Ruch’s season just got a whole lot busier.
Ruch and Niece Motorsports announced Saturday that the NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series driver has joined the Statesville, N.C.-based team for 12 races beginning with Texas Motor Speedway on March 29.
Ruch will drive the team’s No. 44 Chevrolet Silverado which has been piloted by drivers Timothy Peters and Reid Wilson this season.
Ruch, 35, made her first two NGOTS starts earlier this year with NEMCO Motorsports, including her career-best eighth-place finish at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway, where she also led two laps and became the first female competitor to lead laps in the Truck Series at the 2.5-mile superspeedway.
She competed the following week at Atlanta (Ga.) Motor Speedway, where she finished 16th after starting 22nd.
“We are thrilled to welcome Angela Ruch into the Niece Motorsports family,” said team owner Al Niece. “Angela’s had a strong start to the 2019 season, and we look forward to continuing that, starting in Texas.
“The team is excited to work with Angela and see what we can all accomplish together this year.”
2019 marks the third year of competition for Niece Motorsports. Ross Chastain has become the team’s mainstay driver in the No. 45 Chevrolet Silverado and has four top-10 finishes in all four races this year.
Ruch is the niece of former Daytona 500 winner Derrike Cope. She began her racing career with go-karts at nine years old. She has made three starts in the ARCA Menards Series and 14 in the Xfinity Series with a variety of teams. Before this year, she last competed in the Truck Series in 2010 driving for Hispanic female owner Daisy Ramirez.
Ruch also raced several times with her sister Amber Cope who is now retired from racing.
Following Texas, Ruch will compete in 11 more races: Kansas Speedway (May 10); Charlotte Motor Speedway (May 17); Texas Motor Speedway (June 7); Chicagoland Speedway (June 28); Kentucky Speedway (July 11); Pocono (Pa.) Raceway (July 27); Michigan International Speedway (August 10); Canadian Tire Motorsport Park (August 25); Las Vegas (Nev.) Motor Speedway (September 13); Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway (October 12) and Homestead-Miami (Fla.) Speedway (November 15).
No sponsorship has been named for Ruch’s efforts, but she is currently filming a new unscripted TV docu-series entitled “The Ruch Life,” which will focus on how she balances her racing career, her relationship with her husband and her new role as a mother. Ruch recently adopted a child, King Knight Ruch.
The docu-series is scheduled to air beginning in April.
Follow Chris Knight on Twitter @Knighter01.
