After exploring all his potential opportunities available for the upcoming season, Ben Rhodes has decided to return to ThorSport Racing in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series.
The Louisville, KY native will pilot the No. 27 Toyota Tundra this year with crew chief Eddie Troconis calling the shots. Troconis who is married to Truck Series driver Jennifer Jo Cobb led former ThorSport Racing driver Cameron Hayley to a top-10 championship finish last season.
“This is an amazing opportunity to be partnered with Toyota and ThorSport Racing again for the 2017 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series season,” said Ben Rhodes.
Despite some bumps in his rookie season with veteran crew chief Kevin Bellicourt, Rhodes earned his first series pole at Martinsville Speedway and led 55 laps en route to two top-five and five top-10. Rhodes missed the series’ inaugural Chase, but finished 14th in the championship standings. His best finish came at Gateway Motorsports Park, finishing second to fellow Toyota driver Christopher Bell.
“The 2016 season had a lot of ups and downs, but we have put all that in the rearview mirror and we’re focused on the year ahead,” added Rhodes. “We have a new team, a new number, and great support from Toyota. With the NASCAR changes to the race and point structure, the No. 27 team will be up front contending for segment wins and race victories to get us into the playoffs and contend for the championship.”
Alpha Energy Solutions, a commercial and industrial mechanical self-performing service provider returns for another season of support for Rhodes. The Louisville, Ky.-based company will back Rhodes for two races at Kentucky Speedway (July) and Bristol Motor Speedway (Aug.). Additional partners for Rhodes will be announced at a later date.
Rhodes, the 2014 NASCAR K&N Pro Series East champion and Most Popular Driver joined the Sandusky, OH-based team following a 10-race stint in the NASCAR XFINITY Series in 2015 at JR Motorsports. During his short XFINITY tenure, he earned the pole at Elkhart Lake (Road America) and posted two top-10 finishes at Iowa Speedway and Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course respectively.
Before NASCAR, Rhodes began his racing career in 2004 when he was seven years old, starting in Kart racing, winning several champion titles before moving to Bandoleros in 2008 followed by Legend cars in 2010. Quickly, the Kentuckian moved to Late Models in 2011.
Rhodes first beamed on the NASCAR radar when in 2012 he signed with then Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series driver Marcos Ambrose to begin racing Late Model cars in the UARA-STARS Series. From there, he moved to K&N competition with Turner Scott Motorsports (formerly HScott Motorsports).
Rhodes is also a NASCAR Next alumnus.
Follow Chris Knight on Twitter @Knighter01.
