Decker sisters qualify for Truck race at Martinsville – Nascar

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MARTINSVILLE, Va. — Successful late model drivers Claire and Paige Decker, along with cousin Natalie Decker, all hoped to take the green flag in Saturday’s Alpha Energy Solutions 250 (2:30 p.m. ET, FS1, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race at Martinsville Speedway.

Claire, 21, and Paige, 23, are sisters from Eagle River, Wisconsin, and both made the field, qualifying 31st (92.038 mph) and 30th (92.389 mph) respectively.

They are only the second pair of sisters ever to compete in the same Truck Series race, joining twins Amber and Angela Cope.

Claire, a former NASCAR Drive for Diversity competitor, is driving the No. 10 Chevrolet owned by Jennifer Jo Cobb. Paige is behind the wheel of Mike Harmon’s No. 74 RAM, having finished 30th in Harmon’s truck in her series debut at Martinsville last fall.

Cousin Natalie, 18, also a D4D alumna, was driving the No. 14 Chevrolet owned by Bob Newberry but did not make the field after qualifying in 38th place.

All told, 18 female drivers have competed in Truck Series races, led by Cobb, who has 117 starts. Cobb also boasts the best finish by a female in series history — sixth at Daytona in 2011. The highest finish by a female at Martinsville belongs to Deborah Renshaw, 15th in 2004.

Only once in NASCAR national series history have more than three women competed in the same race. That happened in the Truck Series at Martinsville in 2010, when the Cope twins, Cobb and Johanna Long all took the green flag.

On nine other occasions, three women have raced in the same NASCAR national series event: twice in Sprint Cup, four times in the XFINITY Series and four times in the Truck Series.