Sauter talks youth movement in Truck Series

A lot of talk throughout the season has been how Cup Series driver Kevin Harvick has been dominating as one of the oldest drivers in the garage.

Johnny Sauter is in that same boat—four wins so far in the Camping World Truck Series. Sauter shows no sign of letting his age slow him down.

Sauter has been in the NASCAR top ranks for 15 years in is currently the fifth-oldest full-time competitor in the series at 40 years old. Matt Crafton is 42, Jennifer Jo Cobb is 45, Joe Nemechek is 54 and Norm Benning is 66.

“I don’t pay attention to it,” Sauter said to The Racing Experts about racing the younger drivers. “I don’t really care if they’re 15 or 50, it don’t matter to me. I know I’m 40 years old and I’m pretty well aware of that fact. I race against young guys, so it is what it is. I don’t pay no attention to it.”

Sauter spoke about switching over to GMS racing in 2016. Since that transition, Sauter has captured 11 wins and a Truck Series championship.

“You make choices in life and they either work or they don’t,” Sauter said. “Obviously it was a very tough decision because ThorSport [Racing] was great to me while I was there. I also felt like it was time to do something different so that’s what we did.”

Additionally, Sauter filled in twice in the XFINITY Series for Spencer Gallagher, posting one top-10 finish.

When asked if he would like to make the move back to the XFINITY Series in 2019, Sauter seemed pretty happy staying where he’s at.

“No, I’m pretty content with doing what I’m doing,” he said. “The Truck Series is a perfect schedule. I have four kids at home who like to hang out with their dad. So, that’s the number one priority for me.”

SOURCES
Racing Reference