NASCAR: Natalie Decker set to return at Kentucky
By Asher Fair
Natalie Decker is set to return to action in Saturday’s NASCAR Truck Series at Kentucky Speedway after missing the race at Pocono Raceway.
Natalie Decker signed with Niece Motorsports ahead of the 2020 NASCAR Truck Series season following a partial season with DGR-Crosley last year, and she was slated to compete in nine races.
She competed in the season opener at Daytona International Speedway and finished in a career-high fifth place, the best ever finish for a female driver at NASCAR’s third highest level of competition, and she competed in the race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and finished in 21st before the season was suspended for 95 days to the coronavirus pandemic.
After competing in the first race back at Charlotte Motor Speedway and finishing in 27th place, Decker did not compete at Atlanta Motor Speedway or Homestead-Miami Speedway. She was slated to return to at Pocono Raceway, but that did not happen.
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Decker was hospitalized due to bile duct complications related to her gallbladder removal back in December, and she spent her 23rd birthday in her hospital bed on Thursday, June 25.
The race at Pocono Raceway was scheduled to take place on Saturday, June 27. While it was pushed back by one day to Sunday, June 28 as a result of rain, the Eagle River, Wisconsin native was still unable to compete due to being in the hospital. Niece Motorsports named Bayley Currey as her replacement behind the wheel of the #44 Chevrolet, and he finished in a solid 16th place.
Now Decker is out of the hospital following a lengthy stay, as she confirmed on Tuesday on social media that she had been released after her last procedure.
She also confirmed that she is set to be back in action this Saturday for the Buckle Up In Your Truck 225 at Kentucky Speedway, a race in which she had originally been slated to compete.
“I had my last procedure today,” she wrote. “I’m home. I’m happy. And my next wristband will say Kentucky on it cause I’m back and racing this weekend!!”
Decker made her first start at the four-turn, 1.5-mile (2.414-kilometer) oval in Sparta, Kentucky last July and finished in 27th place after she was involved in a wreck with Spencer Boyd, after which she infamously ripped his hat off his head, flung it toward the ground and angrily stormed away.
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The Buckle Up In Your Truck 225 is set to be broadcast live on Fox Sports 1 beginning at 6:00 p.m. ET this Saturday, July 11.