Barring disaster, in just about two weeks, Lee Pulliam of Semora, N.C. will win his second consecutive NASCAR Whelen All-American Series national championship. Pulliam will join a very exclusive club, that of multi-time All-American Series national champions.
Vin Beedle (right), with driver Ed Puleo, will add Keith Rocco to his Mr. Rooter Racing stable in 2014
Larry Phillips and Philip Morris are the only two drivers to win multiple national championships since NASCAR began awarding the title 1982.
And it’s an exclusive club that Keith Rocco, the 2010 NASCAR short track national champion, also desperately wants to join. And in 2014 Rocco will go chasing a second national title under the banner of the Mr. Rooter Racing team.
Vin Beedle, owner of the Mr. Rooter Racing team, confirmed Thursday that Rocco will be part of his racing stable in an SK Modified next season.
Rocco, of Wallingford, runs full-time in the SK Modified divisions at Stafford Motor Speedway, the Waterford Speedbowl and Thompson Speedway. He drives for owner John Rufrano at Stafford and he owns the teams he competes with at Waterford and Thompson.
Beedle currently fields an SK Modified team with driver Ed Puleo at Waterford.
Beedle said he has a big desire to run for a NASCAR short track national championship.
“I had been having discussion with multiple people looking at my options and I feel that Keith is my best option,” Beedle said. “Having multiple discussions with Keith, I feel like our goals are the same in mind. I think he’s the right fit for what I want to try to accomplish.”
Rocco will still run for Rufrano at Stafford in 2014, though Mr. Rooter will be the primary sponsor on the car and Beedle will work with the team. Rocco will work together with Beedle in an ownership capacity with the SK Modified team he runs at Waterford and Thompson.
“It works out for me because I need someone financially that can really bring my team to what it should be,” Rocco said. “We’re really good right now but sometimes you’ve got to be cautious on the racetrack and you can’t really give it everything you’re capable of. We’re going to be able to bring the team to its full potential.
“Every year I do the same thing, I go out there to win races. That’s the only way you’re going to win that title. Having the extra support next year [from Beedle] will definitely make a difference in the long run. We’re going to work together with everything and everywhere. He’ll support me and definitely be a big part of my team. I want him involved and really part of the team, not just a sponsor.”
Rocco finished second in the national standings in 2009, 2011 and 2012. He is currently third in the national standings.
Beedle still he will still work directly with Puleo, and that Puleo will likely make some appearances in 2014 in an SK Modified at Thompson.
“By joining forces with Keith, we’ll be able to work together and help both teams on both sides,” Beedle said. “It will be a stronger Mr. Rooter Racing in the end.”
In addition to working with Puleo, Beedle’s Mr. Rooter team also includes Waterford Street Stock driver Josh Galvin and Waterford SK Light Modified Victoria Bergenty. He has also been a sponsor with Hillbilly Racing and Woody Pitkat this year on the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour.
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Cool!
Sounds like a great marriage. Best of luck!
This is another good marketing partner for Keith Rocco. The tough part in all of this concerns all our local New England teams. With Thompson Speedway “cutting back” on Thursday events that is less ability to secure the points and ofcourse the Title.