INDIANAPOLIS – Davey Hamilton Jr., son of Indianapolis 500 veteran Davey Hamilton, has announced plans to compete in no less than 28 pavement sprint car races this year.
Among the events on his schedule is the 74th Pay Less Little 500 at Anderson (Ind.) Speedway and the eighth Pink Lady Classic at Idaho’s Meridian Speedway.
Hamilton’s hectic season will begin Jan. 22 at the BG Products Southern Sprint Car Shootout Series opener at 417 Southern Speedway in Punta Gorda, Fla. The 24-year-old scored his first Southern Sprint Car Shootout Series victory at the same track on Dec. 4 of last year driving the Morgan Motorsports Hurricane chassis.
The former King of the Wing champion and Little 500 polesitter sat out the entire 2020 season and half of 2021 to deal with personal issues. He made his return to competition Oct. 10 and scored a fifth-place finish in the USAC Silver Crown Series event at Toledo (Ohio) Speedway despite being inactive for more than a year.
The Toledo performance got him an invite to drive the Kirk Morgan-owned machine at Citrus County Speedway in Inverness, Fl.a, on Nov. 13 and he did not disappoint. He scored a runner-up finish in that event and backed it up with a win two weeks later. His impressive return got him the Morgan Motorsports ride for the entire 2022 season.
“I am honestly just super thankful to be given the opportunity to sign with Morgan Motorsports and be a part of this program,” explained Hamilton. “They have the right people and equipment to be running up front in every race, so for them to give me a chance and give me this drive, it will be a great fit for sure. With not competing in a sprint car in years and for us to have finished off the 2021 season with a win in our 2nd race together, says something and shows what we are here to do.
“They have been working hard over the past few years, and to be able to bring them their first win, motivated us to put together a solid 2022 schedule and compete all over the country. 28 pavement sprint races is a really good amount and to add this to all of the other racing I am doing in 2022 it definitely is going to keep me busy.
“I am hoping to be able to finalize my full schedule in the coming weeks and share it with everyone, but it is looking like it could be over 60 races, but to have at least the sprint car portion finalized is great. I need to give a huge thank you to the whole Morgan Motorsports group for giving me this opportunity and believing in me.”
In addition to his hectic sprint car season, the driver who now calls Tampa, Fla., home, will compete in USAC Silver Crown and Stadium Super Truck events as well as another series that will be announced soon. The remainder of his schedule will be announced in the coming weeks.