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Perryman to Join Hendrick Motorsports
August 06, 2015 02:24 PM | Wrestling
At first glance, there may not be much in common between a Division I wrestler and a NASCAR tire changer. However, former Mountaineer Roman Perryman has found that the skills he learned on and off the mat while at WVU helped him transition into a new opportunity with the Hendrick Motorsports pit crew.
Hendrick Motorsports has long recruited former NCAA student-athletes to join its pit crews and has annually held pit crew tryouts in late spring. A recruiter for one of the tryouts got in touch with WVU strength and conditioning coach Tanner Kolb, who passed along Perryman’s name. Along with a number of former football players, baseball players and fellow wrestlers, the Springfield, Virginia, native headed to Charlotte this May to compete for one of eight spots on the Hendricks’ team.
First Perryman was put through a workout similar to the NFL combine, where participants demonstrated their athletic abilities through a series of physical tests – vertical jump, bench press, sprints and the like. A few days after the combine, Perryman was invited back to a two-day camp that put participants in the garage.
“We started with specific individual drills and finished together doing a full, four-tire pit stop,” said Perryman. “Prior to this opportunity, my main experience with cars was riding shotgun. I’m essentially going from no car to NASCAR. I think it might work to my advantage. With no predispositions, they can mold me into exactly what they’re look for.”
Following the tryout, Perryman was offered a five-year contract as a tire changer, one of just eight people to do so. He will re-locate to the Charlotte area this fall and embark on his new journey in January.
“First, I have to learn my trade,” said Perryman. “Once Hendrick feels that I’m ready, my first time over the wall in a race will be in the NASCAR Truck Series. As I continue to become faster and more efficient, I’ll have the opportunity to work my way into the Xfinity Series and ultimately to the Sprint Cup, which is the pinnacle of NASCAR.”
Perryman is no stranger to making adjustments through hard work. He spent most of his career wrestling at 157 pounds before the Mountaineers needed to fill a spot in the lineup at 149 pounds. Coach Sammie Henson asked Perryman to drop the weight and step in, which he did. The change paid off. Perryman qualified for the finals of the 2015 Big 12 Championship this past March in Ames, Iowa. He dropped a heartbreaking 8-6 bout to Shane Tucker of Oklahoma, finishing as the Big 12 runner-up.
“Being a collegiate athlete taught me to always work hard and be ready for anything,” said Perryman. “In college, I was juggling school, wrestling and all of the extracurricular activities that go along with that. NASCAR is so new to me that I’ll have to become a diligent student of the sport and be ready to work under any circumstances. I’m sure I’ll be put into situations that I’m not familiar with, so I have to be all-terrain and give it my all each and every time.”
For Henson, there’s no one better than Perryman to represent his first class of seniors.
“Roman epitomizes what WVU wrestling is about,” said Henson. “Sacrifice, dedication and commitment to the process of being the best. He is a true team player, and I have no doubt he will be a rock star for Hendrick Motorsports.”
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