MONROVIA, Ind. – Justin Peck has landed the Premier Motorsports sprint car ride recently vacated by Spencer Bayston and will contest the remainder of the Ollie’s Bargain Outlet All Star Circuit of Champions schedule under the guidance of team owner Pete Grove.
The duo will begin its tenure together during Friday night’s All Star event at Jacksonville (Ill.) Speedway.
“Honestly, I didn’t expect to land an All Star ride like this,” Peck admitted. “I had some feelers out there and we were talking to a few people trying to drum some stuff up, but none of that was really making any headway. Our goal was really to build our own stuff up to take the family car All Star racing eventually. We wanted to get better in Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin and places like that.
“This was unexpected, though. I had a few good people in my corner talking to Pete … and now it’s blossomed into a deal to really grow our schedule and do this for the rest of the season,” Peck added. “It’s definitely a huge step for me, I feel like, and one that I’m hoping to make the most of.”
Peck, 20, has found his way back to the upper echelon of 410 sprint car racing 11 months after a failed drug test during Kings Royal weekend at Ohio’s Eldora Speedway threatened to derail his career.
At that point, he didn’t know what would be next as he worked to rebuild his racing foothold. Now, Peck has a clear path forward and the biggest opportunity he’s ever had well within his grasp.
“It’s been a long road to get back to this point,” Peck admitted. “There were times when I wondered if it ever would. I truly appreciate everyone who didn’t hold it against me, though, and that’s not to say they shouldn’t have. … I was in a pretty dark place for a while, but I had to work through it and keep fighting.”
Peck injected his name into the sprint car scene with authority two years ago, when he beat the All Stars to win as an 18-year-old at Macon (Ill.) Speedway in his sixth winged sprint car start.
Now with a chance to join the ranks of the tour’s regular drivers, Peck is hoping to further cement his name in the sprint car landscape, though he admits his mindset has shifted in the wake of the last week.
“Our goal this year was to hit a lot of the local All Star and (World of) Outlaws shows that were in our area, but it worked out to where we were sitting pretty well in the FAST points and that changed our plans a bit because they do have a championship payout at the end of the year,” Peck explained. “Now our focus has shifted again. I like to say it’s all (about) time; that’s just how racing is.
“You never know what’s in store, but when you put your head down, get to work and build friendships … things like this deal with Pete can come together,” he added. “I’m thankful he’s willing to take a chance on me and I’m excited to hit the All Star tour running full bore.”
After years of driving family-owned equipment, Peck called it “refreshing” to have an opportunity to take the wheel for an outside car owner and be able to showcase his skills even further.
“Everyone wants to go get a ride and be able to chase the All Stars or the Outlaws, but it’s something that’s not easy to do, even in the current climate,” Peck said. “To have this chance is really cool for me. A few weeks ago, it looked like I was only going to be able to get to run 15 or 20 more races this year, and now there’s 30 races left on the All Star schedule … plus some others that we should get to hit.
“Racing is what I’ve always wanted to do, and now I have a really solid opportunity to go and do just that,” Peck added. “We’re going to plug away at it, rebuild this team and make the best of it.”
Though it’s a new team and a new situation, Peck believes winning in the famed No. 70x car is something that’s closer than people might think.
“We’re definitely going to have to have some time to jell, figure out what we all need and what these J&Js want, but I think race wins are definitely realistic this year,” Peck noted. “I feel like we can go out, have a shot to run in the top 10 every night and put ourselves in good positions going forward.
“If we do that, I think success will come. I hope this year is the start of a great journey with this team.”