FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Ben Shelton (901) 335-3037
September 29, 2010

Brett Wyatt turns wheel over to William Thomas

By Michael Moats – MRM Media Services
Crossville, Tennessee – Brett Wyatt, driver of the number 17 dirt late model out of Crossville, Tennessee, has turned over the wheel of his MasterSbilt car to William Thomas of Phenix City, Alabama. The formal announcement was made on Tuesday.

Thomas, 23, is already an accomplished racer. His biggest achievement, to date, is winning the FASTRAK Grand Nationals in 2007 where he won $50,000. Thomas also finished second in the UMP Modified championship in 2005 and has a number of wins in crate late models and super late models across the Southeast.

Wyatt made the decision to move from behind the wheel to crew chief with the arrival of a child coming in November. The move will allow Wyatt to remain in racing and still have plenty of time for his growing family.

“My wife and I are excited about the arrival of our baby girl,” Wyatt said. “I’ve been thinking about stepping away from driving for a few months. I have really enjoyed the driving, but felt it was time for me to do something else. This allows me to still be involved in our racing program and have time for our family.”

Wyatt emphasized his decision to step aside from driving is something he is fully behind.

“I am 100-percent committed to this move,” Wyatt added. “Like I said before, I have been thinking about this for a few months. I never had a lot of help on the car and William hasn’t either on his own car. By teaming up, William can concentrate on driving and I can work on the car.”

Wyatt is excited about the addition of Thomas to his racing team.

“I am really excited that we could get a driver like William to drive our car,” Wyatt said. “I’ve known William for some time through my graphics business and he’s a great young man. It excited me to know that he was excited about the opportunity once we started talking about the possibility of him driving for our team.”

The first race for Thomas in the #17 Chris Miller Painting-Wyatt Builders-Star Graffix-Race Engine Design-Auto Zone MasterSbilt will be at Boyd’s Speedway this Friday night for the $3,000 to win Southern Regional Racing Series event. The team is tentatively scheduled for another $3,000 to win race at Winchester Speedway in Winchester, Tennessee on Saturday night.