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Category: Truck Series

NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series news and information

  • Rhodes ends winless drought at Darlington

    Rhodes ends winless drought at Darlington

    Ben Rhodes and the No. 99 ThorSport Racing team broke through at Darlington Raceway on Sunday afternoon after taking advantage of an overtime restart with two laps to go. Rhodes lined up alongside rookie Derek Kraus, who was the control truck coming to the restart line. However, Kraus got loose off Turn 2 and couldn’t block Rhodes due to the looseness of the No. 19 Truck. From there, the Kentucky native used the high side and held on to snap a two-year winless drought dating back to 2018 at Kentucky.

    “Gosh, that was such a tough win,” Rhodes said. “We weren’t the best truck all day. I was actually really disappointed when the [final] caution flag came out because I thought fourth place is a good finish for us, we’ll get in the Playoffs.

    “But I’m not letting this checkered flag go,” he said grinning at the turn of events. “It’s been a long time coming.”

    For the first time in nine years, the Truck Series returned to the famed Darlington Raceway in Darlington, South Carolina. Most of the drivers have never raced at the track “Too Tough To Tame” with the exception of veterans Matt Crafton and Johnny Sauter. Additionally, Trevor Bayne, Greg Biffle, and David Ragan returned to the Truck Series as well and were among the few who had experience by racing in the Cup or Xfinity Series. Stages 45-45-57 made up the 147-lap event.

    Stage 1: Lap 1 – Lap 45

    The caution flew early on Lap 6 when the No. 33 of Bryant Barnhill slammed the Turn 3 wall and came to a stop. Unfortunately for Barnhill, he would be credited with a last-place finish.

    A few other notable incidents occurred in the early laps of Stage 1, especially for 2016 Truck Series champion Johnny Sauter. He had smoke coming out of the back end of his truck but he was able to keep on going well past the Lap 20 competition caution that was scheduled for Lap 15.

    After the competition caution, 21 laps of green-flag racing ensued and GMS Racing was once again back out front to continue their recent dominance of the Truck Series. However, just five laps before the stage ended, returning competitor Trevor Bayne had suspension issues on his No. 40 Niece Motorsports entry. The handling of the truck continued to get worse throughout the day and he was never able to rebound.

    When the green-checkers flew on Lap 45 for the completion of Stage 1, it was all Brett Moffitt in his Bobby Allison inspired throwback scheme who claimed the stage victory. Austin Hill, Sheldon Creed, Rhodes, Ragan, Crafton, Tyler Ankrum, Raphael Lessard, Christian Eckes, and Zane Smith rounded out the top 10. By winning the stage, Moffitt was able to clinch a playoff spot ahead of the final race of the regular season at Richmond.

    Stage 2: Lap 50 – Lap 90

    Only one minor incident occurred during the second stage when the No. 41 of Dawson Cram bounced off the backstretch wall, causing damage to the right-side of his Chevrolet.

    Miraculously, no yellows were seen for Stage 2, which saw a 40-lap green-flag run with Sheldon Creed collecting the stage win. Moffitt, Austin Hill, Rhodes, Ragan, Lessard, Ankrum, Crafton, Gilliland, and Zane Smith completed the top 10 stage finishers.

    Stage 3: Lap 97 – Lap 152 (Overtime Finish)

    The third and final stage saw numerous cautions on the final run to the checkered flag. In fact, there were three cautions that occurred when the laps began to wind down.

    The fifth yellow was flown on Lap 124 after Tyler Ankrum went spinning sideways through Turn(s) 1 and 2 immediately after he made contact with his teammate Zane Smith. Fortunately for Ankrum, he saved his truck from further contact, but Smith received minimal damage to the No. 21 machine.

    Bad luck continued for rookie Smith as he was involved in the sixth caution when the No. 15 of Tanner Gray made contact with him in Turn 1.

    Despite the two cautions slowing down the action, there was a 16-lap run from Laps 130 – 145. Before the final yellow flew, it looked as though Sheldon Creed was on pace for another dominating victory. However, a wreck on the backstretch that involved Josh Reaume, Matt Crafton, and David Ragan changed the entire complexion of the race for the front runners, Creed and Moffitt.

    When the yellow flew with two laps to go, Creed and Moffitt were left with a tough choice of whether to pit. The two teams eventually made the decision to pit for fresh rubber and fuel, as their tires were worn out. Unfortunately, Creed’s day went from bad to worse, as he was caught with a penalty for too fast entering which ended any chances of him pulling off a consecutive win.

    With Creed and Moffitt out of the picture, there was an overtime restart with Rhodes and Kraus making up the front row. Despite the last attempt with Kraus trying to hold Rhodes off, Rhodes eventually claimed the checkered flag for the third time of his Truck Series career with the rookie Kraus finishing runner up.

    “[Crew chief] Kevin [Bellicourt] up on top of the box made a really good call at the end and I got a good restart and did everything I needed to do, and off of [Turn] two got really loose,” Kraus said about being passed by Rhodes.

    “You’ve got to be aggressive to make the Top 10 and the Playoffs,” Kraus added of his door-to-door racing with Gilliland throughout the day.”

    There were seven cautions for 35 laps with 11 lead changes among five different leaders.

    Official Results following the South Carolina Education Lottery 200 at Darlington Raceway.

    1. Ben Rhodes, led four laps
    2. Derek Kraus, led one lap
    3. Austin Hill
    4. Grant Enfinger
    5. Christian Eckes
    6. Raphael Lessard
    7. Todd Gilliland
    8. Stewart Friesen
    9. Timmy Hill
    10. Brett Moffitt, won Stage 1, led 63 laps
    11. Tyler Ankrum
    12. Bayley Currey
    13. Ty Majeski
    14. Matt Crafton
    15. Tate Fogleman
    16. Zane Smith
    17. Austin Wayne Self
    18. Sheldon Creed, won Stage 1, led 82 laps
    19. Greg Biffle
    20. Danny Bohn
    21. Clay Greenfield
    22. David Ragan
    23. Chandler Smith, 1 lap down
    24. Jordan Anderson, 1 lap down
    25. Codie Rohrbaugh, 2 laps down
    26. Spencer Boyd, 2 laps down
    27. Trevor Bayne, 3 laps down
    28. Josh Reaume, 3 laps down
    29. Tanner Gray, 4 laps down
    30. Jennifer Jo Cobb, 5 laps down
    31. Johnny Sauter, OUT, Engine
    32. Norm Benning, OUT, Handling
    33. Dawson Cram, OUT, Crash
    34. Bryant Barnhill, OUT, Crash

    Playoff Standings with 1 race to go

    1. Sheldon Creed (3 wins), 20 playoff points
    2. Zane Smith (2 wins), 14 playoff points
    3. Grant Enfinger (2 wins), 11 playoff points
    4. Austin Hill (1 win), 7 playoff points
    5. Ben Rhodes (1 win), 5 playoff points
    6. Matt Crafton (1 win), 5 playoff points
    7. Brett Moffitt (Clinched with virtue of Stage 1 victory), 5 playoff points
    8. Christian Eckes (Clinched with virtue of Darlington finish), No playoff playoff points
    9. Tyler Ankrum, +14 above the cut line
    10. Todd Gilliland, +10 above the cut line

      Below the cut line
    11. Derek Kraus, -10
    12. Raphael Lessard, -66
    13. Tanner Gray, -93
    14. Stewart Friesen, -100

      Any driver below the cut line will have to win in order to make the playoffs.

    Up Next: The NASCAR Gander RV and Outdoors Truck Series will head to Richmond International Raceway for a Thursday night event on September 10th live on Fox Sports 1 and MRN Radio. The Richmond event will be the last race of the Truck Series season, before the playoffs begin at Bristol Motor Speedway on Thursday, September 17th.

  • Weekend schedule for Darlington

    Weekend schedule for Darlington

    All three national series will compete at Darlington Raceway Saturday and Sunday for the annual “Throwback Weekend.” It marks the first race in the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs as the top 16 drivers begin the competition for the 2020 championship trophy.

    The Xfinity Series will take on “The Track Too Tough to Tame” Saturday while the Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series is set to race Sunday prior to the Southern 500. It’s the first time the Truck Series has competed at Darlington since 2011.

    All times are Eastern.

    Saturday, Sept. 5
    12:30 p.m.: Xfinity Series Sport Clips Haircuts VFW 200 race (Stages 45/90/147 Laps = 200.1 Miles) NBC/MRN/SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
    2019 Winner: Cole Custer
    Pole: Justin Haley

    Sunday, Sept. 6
    2 p.m.: Truck Series South Carolina Education Lottery 200 race (Stages 45/90/147 Laps = 200.1 Miles) FS1/MRN/SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
    Pole: Brett Moffitt

    6 p.m.: Cup Series Cook Out Southern 500 race (Stages 115/230/367 Laps = 501.3 Miles) NBCSN/MRN/SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
    2019 Winner: Erik Jones
    Pole: Chase Elliott

    Notes:

    A non-Playoff driver has never won the opening race of the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs.

    Trevor Bayne (Niece Motorsports), Greg Biffle and David Ragan are scheduled to compete in the Truck Series race at Darlington.

    This will be Bayne’s first start in the series and his first time back on the track since the end of the 2018 season when he was released from Roush Fenway Racing. Biffle will pilot the GMS Racing No. 24 Chevrolet while David Ragan will team up with DGR-Crosley for his first start in the series since 2006.

    The formula to set the starting lineup has been updated and is based on the following: 15% of fastest lap position in the previous race, 25% of the driver’s finish in the previous race, 25% of the car owners finish in the previous race and 35% of the owner points position.

    Cup Series Playoff Contenders:

     

    1Kevin Harvick2057
    2Denny Hamlin2047
    3Brad Keselowski2029
    4Joey Logano2022
    5Chase Elliott2020
    6Martin Truex Jr.2014
    7Ryan Blaney2013
    8Alex Bowman2009
    9William Byron2007
    10Austin Dillon2005
    11Cole Custer #2005
    12Aric Almirola2005
    13Clint Bowyer2004
    14Kyle Busch2003
    15Kurt Busch2001
    16Matt DiBenedetto2000
  • It’s time to go about crowning a Champion

    It’s time to go about crowning a Champion

    It has been a frantic season. Three, sometimes four races a week were the norm. Now, we are a little over two months away from crowning champions in NASCAR’s three national series. The old show started out with “they said it couldn’t be done.” Well, it was, thanks to NASCAR paying attention to the scientists and proper safeguards. They are to be applauded for that. They did it right from the beginning.

    Saturday night, there was a tremendous elimination race at Daytona. It was a good one, but it saw the retiring Jimmie Johnson, a seven-time Cup champion, be eliminated. Johnson was caught up in a problem, not of his doing, but this is common at what is known as “plate races.” The big question for fans and those in charge amounts to a question about should these plate races, where anyone can win and anyone can crash out, be an elimination race? For many, it is not. Fans love the races at Talladega and Daytona, but this writer does not think it is fair for competitors. Yes, run those tracks, but give them a race to recover. I can only think about the guy who comes in solid in the Playoffs, gets wrecked early in a “Big One” and fails to make the cut, if he had 26 second-place finishes. Yes, that is extreme but possible. Let me know what you think.

    The Cup drivers will be negotiating Darlington, Richmond, Bristol, Las Vegas, Talladega, Charlotte, Kansas, Texas, Martinsville, and Phoenix. Eliminations races will be held at Bristol, the ROVAL at Charlotte and Martinsville. The Final Four race for the championship is at Phoenix.

    Who will win? I have no idea. Kevin Harvick, Denny Hamlin, Martin Truex, Jr., and Brad Keselowski have dominated, but who knows what will happen?

    The biggest surprises for me were wins by Cole Custer and the guy who beat out Johnson for the Playoffs, seven-time champion Jimmie Johnson, so you never know. Watching will be fun. My only fear is a Covid-19 outbreak. So far, so good. So, buckle up let’s see what happens.

  • NASCAR Gander RV and Outdoors Truck Series Power Rankings – Gateway

    NASCAR Gander RV and Outdoors Truck Series Power Rankings – Gateway

    The hunt to the Truck Series Playoffs continued this past Sunday with a trip to World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway. 

    All eyes were on rookie stand-out Zane Smith, who has been strong as of late and is making a considerable bid to be a championship favorite. Meanwhile, his GMS Racing team-mates Sheldon Creed, Brett Moffitt and Tyler Ankrum continue to chase him for wins. 

    Smith shone in the first 45 laps of the event. But it was ultimately his teammate Sheldon Creed who got the victory after some controversial contact with then race leader, Todd Gilliland, who dominated the majority of the event. 

    Things may get tougher for the Californian as things progress late into the season as Creed noted that Gilliland “owes him one,” meaning payback from Gilliland could potentially happen. 

    Nonetheless, Creed scored the victory, and picked up an additional $50,000 thanks to the “Triple Truck Challenge” and now is a threat for the championship with three wins to his name. 

    Yet, there were other drivers who needed a solid run and did just that. 

    We’ll analyze them in this week’s Power Rankings following the CarShield 200 at Gateway. 

    1. Todd Gilliland – It was a great day gone bad for Gilliland after sweeping both stages and leading the most laps in a Truck Series race in his career but then getting together with eventual race winner Sheldon Creed in Turns 1 and 2 when Creed accidentally made Gilliland slide up the track and pound into the wall. The incident left a damaged No. 38 Ford F-150 and dashed Gilliland’s hopes of winning the race. His day got even worse when the Front Row Motorsports driver got caught two laps down as the yellow flew during his pit stop. Despite the negative outcome, there are some positives to take away from this race. Gilliland was on the outside looking in coming to Gateway but with two stage victories, he now sits 10th, the last position in the playoff grid, 15 points above the cut line.

      Previous Week Ranking – Fourth
    2. Brett Moffitt – A solid outing in Moffitt’s No. 23 GMS camp after he came home in the runner-up position. The Iowan placed third in Stage 1 and sixth in Stage 2. It’s still disappointing that Moffitt has not yet won this year when everyone expected him to but he’s got a comfortable points lead, +118, and five playoff points. Should Moffitt avoid any bad mishaps in the next two races, he can easily lock himself into the Playoffs at Darlington this weekend.

      Previous Week Ranking – Third
    3. Sheldon Creed – It went from worst to first in one week for the Californian. The week prior at Dover, he placed 22nd, four laps down. Now, Creed was back in victory lane again just a couple of weeks following his Daytona Road Course win. I would like to see a little more consistency out of this camp as some of his finishes have been up and down. When Creed won at Kentucky earlier in the season, he finished 16th a week later at Texas, a few laps down. In the Kansas doubleheader, he placed eighth in race 1, but wrecked out and was credited with a 26th place finish in the second race. He finished 30th at Michigan, one lap down, won the Daytona Road Course but finished 22nd at Dover. If the No. 2 team can find a little consistency in the Playoffs, there’s no doubt Creed can end up in the Championship 4.

      Previous Week Ranking – Not Ranked
    4. Austin Hill – Hill and the No. 16 Hattori Racing Enterprises seem back on track after scoring finishes inside the top 10 in the past three races. Hill earned a finish of third in Sunday’s race, his best finish since winning at Kansas in July. The Georgian made a bid late in the race to challenge for the win but ultimately settled for his seventh top-five finish of the season.

      Previous Week Ranking – Not Ranked
    5. Ben Rhodes – Overall, it was a quiet day for Rhodes as he finished 11th in the running order. Despite placing outside the top 10, Rhodes earned stage finishes of seventh and ninth, respectively. However, he’ll need to pick it up a notch, if he wants to be a strong contender for the championship.

      Previous Week Ranking – Fifth

    Fell Out 

    1. Matt Crafton – After experiencing an unusual issue in Crafton’s No. 88 Menards Ford F-150, he finished an uncharacteristic 14th place. After finishing fifth in Stage 1, Crafton’s Truck started to have some issues when he came down pit road during the stage break as his truck shut off prior to entering his pit box. There was some radio chatter from the crew that the truck could have run out of gas, but a full diagnosis was not discovered. It was an unfortunate day for Crafton who was strong early.

      Previous Week Ranking – Second 
  • Four Takeaways from the NASCAR Gander RV and Outdoors Truck Series Race at Gateway

    Four Takeaways from the NASCAR Gander RV and Outdoors Truck Series Race at Gateway

    The Truck Series was in town this past weekend at the World Wide Technology Raceway from Gateway for race No. 13 of the 2020 Truck Series season. 

    GMS Racing continued their late-season dominance by scoring another victory Sunday afternoon when team driver Sheldon Creed won for the third time this season. Not only winning, but the victory marked GMS fourth consecutive win of 2020. Now, two drivers (Sheldon Creed and Zane Smith) have victories, while Brett Moffitt and Tyler Ankrum remains winless in the year, but are solidly locked in for a potential championship run. 

    At this point, GMS seems unbeatable, but there is normally at least one team that steps up during the playoffs run. Who that team is yet to be determined, but the playoffs should be interesting to watch with 10 drivers going for one championship. 

    With that storyline out of the way, we’ll take a look at what else we might’ve missed this past weekend in the CarShield 200 at Gateway. 

    1.  Stewart Friesen Gains Top-Five Finish – The 2020 season sure has been a crazy run with the Halmar Racing team, who has been uncharacteristic like. Before Gateway, Friesen only had one top-five finish and seven top 10 finishes, along with two DNF’s that have certainly hurt his playoff chances. However, some light was found at the end of the tunnel, when Friesen brought home the No. 52 Toyota Tundra to a fifth-place finishing position. No stage points for Stage 1, but the Canadian did gain some points in Stage 2 after finishing 10th. Despite the solid run, his season performance has cost the team a lot of points and is now in a must-win situation if Friesen wants to have another shot in the Championship, as he currently sits 14th nearly 100 points below the cut line.
    2. Sam Mayer Has Consistent Run – Sam Mayer is one of the up and coming stars in the NASCAR world, who currently competes in the ARCA series full-time and is on a part-time Truck Series schedule. Through the first four races, the Wisconsin native has struggled to earn a finish inside the top 10. However, Mayer was in contention to win with a late-race restart that came with 13 to go when he lined up alongside his team-mate Sheldon Creed. Unfortunately for Mayer, he spun his tires and fell out of the lead. But, not all was lost as the GMS development driver managed to stay in the top five when he finished fourth after leading 33 laps. Still, if/when Mayer looks back on the race, Gateway could be one of those races on what might’ve been.
    3. New Pit Procedure – NASCAR’s new pit procedure was seen Sunday afternoon for the standalone Truck Series race. The new pit procedure consisted of drivers not being allowed to change tires or add fuel during the green flag run and only allowed under the stage break. In addition, wherever drivers finished in the stages, is where they would line up for the stage restart. There were some mixed reactions from the drivers camp, as some drivers “hated the idea” as they thought the procedure “eliminated strategy.” I would have to agree on the driver’s side for this one, as the pit procedure kind of created for a boring race and eliminated the excitement of what goes in pit stops. I understand NASCAR’s creative thinking by trying to eliminate cost measures for teams, whenever they don’t have their regular pit crew with them, but I’m sure there could be other ways to go about with cost-effective measures without eliminating the strategy that goes on in these races.
    4. Jeff Green Spots – Yes, you read that right. Former NASCAR Busch Series Champion and part-time driver Jeff Green spotted GMS Racing driver Tyler Ankrum on Sunday. Green was on top of the spotter stand helping the young Californian navigate through the field. Things were looking pretty sporty through the first half of the race for Ankrum, after finishing 10th in Stage 1 and seventh in Stage 2. However, he sort of fell back a bit as the laps winded down, and placed 12th in the final running order. 
  • Creed wins the CarShield 200 at World Wide Technology Raceway

    Creed wins the CarShield 200 at World Wide Technology Raceway

    Sheldon Creed scored his third win of the 2020 NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series season on Sunday afternoon at the World Wide Technology Raceway from Gateway. But the CarShield 200 Presented by CK Power victory was a little controversial as Creed made contact with then race leader, Todd Gilliland, after the Stage 3 restart.

    After the incident, Creed had to fend off his teammate Sam Mayer, who spun his tires on the last restart of the race. As Mayer spun his tires, Creed pulled away and eventually claimed the checkered flag, continuing GMS’s late dominance in the Truck Series.

    “The [win] feels great but I want to start by apologizing to the 38 (Gilliland),” Creed said. “It’s so hard to pass here and I got down into his inside and just was really loose getting in. He was really close to my door. They were having such a good day and me and Todd are buddies. I hate doing that to him. They are a strong team. He owes me one.

    “But hats off to my guys. They made great adjustments all day. Came from 17th and had my work cut out for me.”

    Three stages of 55-55-50 made up the 160-lap race. In addition to the stages, the new NASCAR pit stop procedure came into effect for today only which stated that the drivers could not come down pit road during the green flag run. Therefore, drivers and teams could not change tires until the stage break. But, during the pit stop procedure, the driver would not lose track position and would keep the position where they finished in the stages.

    Stage 1: Lap 1 – Lap 55

    Through the first 45 laps of the event, a GMS Racing driver led, rookie standout and two-time Truck Series winner, Zane Smith.

    Smith led until Front Row Motorsports driver Todd Gilliland took the lead at Lap 46 and drove away to take the stage victory. The stage victory was his first in over two years since Talladega in 2018.

    While Smith and Gilliland swapped the lead on-track, 2016 Truck Series Champion Johnny Sauter had to watch from pit road. The Wisconsin native had a broken drive train and was unable to get back out to the track. With Sauter out of the race early on Lap 28, he was credited with a last-place finish. At this point, Sauter is in a must-win situation in the final two races left before the playoffs begin.

    Gilliland took the Stage 1 win followed by Zane Smith, Moffitt, Eckes, Crafton, Mayer, Rhodes, Creed, Majeski, and Akrum as the top 10 finishers.

    During the stage break, some interesting developments took place on pit road.

    Kansas winner Matt Crafton had his hood up as the team was checking for a potential issue with his No. 88 Menards Ford F-150. Crafton’s truck had shut off prior to coming to his pit box. There were reports from the team that the truck could have run out of fuel but the issue was not thoroughly diagnosed. Nonetheless, Crafton was able to continue on in the race.

    Stage 2: Lap 61 – Lap 110

    Gilliland would dominate the second stage by leading all the laps. However, one caution slowed his efforts.

    On Lap 78, the caution flew for rookie Chandler Smith who got loose under the No. 99 of Ben Rhodes, slid up the track and hit the Turn 2 wall. Smith received major left-side damage to his No. 51 JBL Toyota Tundra.

    Despite the caution flag, Gilliland took Stage 2 with Eckes, Zane Smith, Mayer, Creed, Moffitt, Ankrum, Rhodes, Lessard, and Friesen completing the top 10.

    Stage 3: Lap 116 – Lap 160

    Several incidents occurred throughout the final stage of the race.

    With 39 to go, Christian Eckes bounced off the Turn 2 wall after having a tire go down on his No. 18 Toyota Tundra. Unfortunately for Eckes, his day was done early and he was credited with a 32nd place finish.

    A few moments later, the pivotal moment of the race came when Creed drove down into the middle of Turns 1 and 2 and accidentally shoved Gilliland up the track, causing him to hit the wall. After the mishap, Gilliland’s chance of winning the race was done, as he fell to the back of the pack, and came to pit road to fix his damage.

    The fourth yellow would fly on Lap 128 when Jennifer Jo Cobb pounded the Turn 2 wall after a right-front tire went flat. During that same yellow, Gilliland was still on pit road fixing the damage and went two laps down due to the untimely yellow.

    It seemed as though Turn 2 would continue to be the trouble spot as the final yellow flew with 18 to go when Austin Wayne Self was wrecked after Niece Motorsports driver Carson Hocevar made contact with him.

    The late-race yellow set up a 13-lap run to the finish, with rookie Sam Mayer looking for his first-ever Truck Series win and Creed on the front row.

    Unfortunately for Mayer, he spun his tires on the restart which allowed Creed to go right on by and prevail with his third checkered flag of the season.

    Not only did Creed win again, but he also collected another $50,000 in the “Triple Truck Challenge.”

    Creed led twice for 15 laps and picked up five playoff points following his victory. There were five cautions for 23 laps and five lead changes among six different leaders.

    Official Results following the CarShield 200 at Gateway:

    1. Sheldon Creed, led 15 laps
    2. Brett Moffitt
    3. Austin Hill
    4. Sam Mayer, led 24 laps
    5. Stewart Friesen
    6. Raphael Lessard
    7. Zane Smith, led 45 laps
    8. Grant Enfinger
    9. Ty Majeski
    10. Tanner Gray
    11. Ben Rhodes
    12. Tyler Ankrum
    13. Derek Kraus
    14. Matt Crafton
    15. Carson Hocevar
    16. Danny Bohn
    17. Jordan Anderson
    18. Tate Fogleman
    19. Clay Greenfield
    20. Kyle Donahue
    21. Tyler Hill, 1 lap down
    22. Todd Gilliland, 2 laps down, won both stages, led 76 laps
    23. Dawson Cram, 2 laps down
    24. Chandler Smith, 3 laps down
    25. Spencer Boyd, 3 laps down
    26. Bryant Barnhill, 4 laps down
    27. Roger Reuse, 9 laps down
    28. Natalie Decker, 10 laps down
    29. Norm Benning, 12 laps down
    30. Austin Wayne Self, OUT, Damage Vehicle Policy
    31. Jennifer Jo Cobb, OUT, Accident
    32. Christian Eckes, OUT, Driveshaft
    33. Johnny Sauter, OUT, Vibration

    Playoff Standings

    1. Sheldon Creed (3 wins), 19 playoff points
    2. Zane Smith (2 wins), 14 playoff points
    3. Grant Enfinger (2 wins), 11 playoff points
    4. Austin Hill (1 win), 7 playoff points
    5. Matt Crafton (1 win), 5 playoff points
    6. Brett Moffitt, 4 playoff points, +118 above the cut line
    7. Ben Rhodes, +85 above the cut line
    8. Christian Eckes, +73 above the cut line
    9. Tyler Ankrum, +15 above the cut line
    10. Todd Gilliland, 2 playoff points, +15 above the cut line
      Below the cut line
    11. Derek Kruas, -15
    12. Tanner Gray, -71
    13. Raphael Lessard, -75
    14. Stewart Friesen, -99

    Up Next: The NASCAR Gander RV and Outdoors Truck Series will visit Darlington Raceway for the first time in nine-years, on Sunday September 5th, live on Fox Sports 1 and MRN Radio at 2 p.m./ET.

  • Weekend schedule for Daytona and Gateway

    Weekend schedule for Daytona and Gateway

    This weekend the NASCAR Cup Series and the Xfinity Series head to Daytona International Speedway in Florida while the Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series and the ARCA Menards Series travel to World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway in Illinois.

    The Cup Series race at Daytona will serve as the regular season finale with the start of the postseason Playoffs set to begin on Sept. 6 at Darlington Raceway.

    There are 13 drivers who have already earned a spot in the Cup Series 16-driver Playoff field. They include Kevin Harvick, Denny Hamlin, Brad Keselowski, Martin Truex Jr., Joey Logano, Ryan Blaney, Chase Elliott, Aric Almirola, Kyle Busch, Kurt Busch, Alex Bowman, Austin Dillon and Cole Custer.

    All times are Eastern.

    Friday, August 28, 2020

    7:30 p.m.: NASCAR Xfinity Series Wawa 250 Powered by Coca-Cola at Daytona (Stages 30/60/100 Laps = 250 Miles) NBCSN/MRN/SiriusXM NASCAR Radio

    Saturday, Aug. 29, 2020

    11:30 a.m.: ARCA Menards Series final practice at Gateway – No TV

    6:15 p.m.: ARCA Menards Series Dutch Boy 150 at Gateway (120 Laps, 150 Miles) TrackPass/MRN

    7:30 p.m.: Cup Series Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona NBC/MRN/SiriusXM NASCAR Radio (Stages 50/100/160 Laps = 400 Miles) Pole: Kevin Harvick

    Sunday, Aug. 30, 2020

    Noon: Truck Series CarShield 200 Presented by CK Power at Gateway (Stages 55/110/160 Laps = 200 Miles) FS1/MRN/SiriusXM NASCAR Radio

  • Four Takeaways from the NASCAR Truck Series race at Dover

    Four Takeaways from the NASCAR Truck Series race at Dover

    The NASCAR Gander RV and Outdoors Truck Series continued their march to the Playoffs last Friday at Dover International Speedway.

    Surprisingly, there is just three races left in the regular Truck Series season. It’s a little hard to believe the season is starting to wind down considering all that has happened this year with the COVID-19 pandemic at the beginning of the year. But, NASCAR has made a solid effort by getting most of the races in and just 10 Truck Series races left in the 2020 season.

    GMS Racing is currently the team to beat with rookie Zane Smith winning again for the second time this year. The team has a combined four wins with Sheldon Creed and Smith having a pair of victories. Remarkably, 2018 Truck Series champion Brett Moffitt and another rookie Tyler Ankrum, currently don’t have wins but have been close multiple times.

    Even though GMS has been the talk of the garage as of late, there are other story lines that are worth mentioning following Dover.

    Here are this week’s Four Takeaways.

    1. Johnny Sauter Has Solid Run – It’s been a dismal couple of weeks for Johnny Sauter’s No. 13 ThorSport team. An engine failure at Texas and a crash at Michigan has put the Wisconsin native in a must-win situation with three races left. A 71 point deficit is just too much to make up in over those races, so Sauter will need a victory if he wants to make the Playoffs. Nonetheless, he scored a respectable finish of sixth at one of his favorite racetracks.
    2. Carson Hocevar Gains Career Day – Coming into the Dover race, Hocevar’s best finish in the Truck Series was 23rd last year at Phoenix. On Friday, the Niece Motorsports driver cut that in half and earned a career-best of 12th. Not a bad outing in his fourth series start.
    3. Teammate Battles – A heated battle occurred between Kyle Busch Motorsports drivers on Lap 89 caused a multi-truck incident. Chandler Smith who was back in the No. 51 was underneath his teammate Christian Eckes in the No. 18 and they made contact with each other. Unfortunately for the Georgia native, Smith received the worst of the damage and as a result, he finished 20th two laps down after having a strong truck earlier in the race and leading 50 laps.
    4. Playoffs – The season has gone by in a hurry, but the playoffs are inching ever so closley. Currently, five drivers are locked in based on wins, but three additional drivers (Brett Moffitt, Eckes, and Ben Rhodes) are safely locked in on points if they have clean races. Where it really gets interesting is ninth to 11th. Tyler Ankrum is ninth with nine points above the cut line and Todd Gilliland is sitting in the last playoff position in 10th, four points in. Realistically, Derek Kraus would be the only driver outside the cut line that could point his way in. Kraus is sitting 11th, just four points out. Every other driver including Tanner Gray, Johnny Sauter, and Raphael Lessard are too far back to even have a chance. The only thing those three drivers could do is win, but only one driver will be the winner. One thing’s for sure, the points battle will be an interesting story to follow at the final race of the regular season.
  • NASCAR Gander RV and Outdoors Truck Series Power Rankings – Dover

    NASCAR Gander RV and Outdoors Truck Series Power Rankings – Dover

    The Truck Series continued their 2020 season momentum last Friday night by visiting Dover International Speedway for race No. 13.

    Rookie Zane Smith grabbed another victory when the checkered flag flew after 200 laps at the “Monster Mile.” The victory marked his second of the year and slowly, but surely, he is starting to become a championship favorite for the Playoffs. Aside from the Daytona Road Course, Smith has been able to either win or finish inside the top 10. With his late momentum, Smith has upped his average finish to a solid 10.9 and has only one DNF, which is really impressive for a rookie.

    While Smith enjoyed the Dover victory, the top 10 finishing order saw a mixed bag of drivers seeing their best finishes to date.

    Here are this week’s Power Rankings following Race No. 13.

    1. Zane Smith – After finishing 13th the week last week at Daytona, Smith was back on top at Dover claiming the victory and leading 50 laps. On top of winning Friday’s race, Smith finished fourth in Stage 1 and won the second stage. All in all, not a bad day for the Californian who picked up 57 points and six playoff points. With the victory, Smith tied his GMS teammate Sheldon Creed in the playoff picture with 14 playoff points.

      Previous Week Ranking – Not Ranked
    2. Matt Crafton – Crafton found himself with a shot to win when a late-race restart came with three to go. He maneuvered his way to second following the restart and tried to chase down Smith in the process. Ultimately, the ThorSport driver fell .989 seconds short but did gain stage finishes of second and 10th, respectively. Crafton’s second-place finish was his seventh of the 2020 season.

      Previous Week Ranking – Third
    3. Brett Moffitt – Moffitt started on the pole, led 50 laps, and came home to a podium finish of third. In both stages, the Iowan ended up fifth and gained a total of 46 points. Surprisingly, with just one race left before the playoffs are set, Moffitt does not have a win but currently is 94 points above the cut line. Barring any circumstances at Gateway, he could easily lock himself in after one of the stages. Though, he’ll have to pick it up a notch in the Playoffs and start winning a lot more often.

      Previous Week Ranking – Fifth
    4. Todd Gilliland – It was a bounce-back race in Gilliland’s camp after finishing 33rd at Daytona Road Course due to an electrical problem. This past weekend at Dover, the Front Row Motorsports Ford Performance team came home with a top-five after finishing fourth. It’s the first time he has finished fourth since Pocono back in June. Gilliland sits 10th on the bubble, +4 above the cut line without a win. If he finishes where he usually does next weekend at Gateway, Gilliland will be in the Playoffs. But, the No. 38 team will have to avoid any issues in order to make it in on points or can get help if there is no new winner.

      Previous Week Ranking – Not Ranked
    5. Ben Rhodes – A much needed fifth place at Dover after finishing outside the top 10 the last two weeks and getting involved in a couple of incidents. Rhodes had a clean race and placed sixth in Stage 2. The fifth-place outing gained the Kentucky native his fifth of the year.

      Previous Week Ranking – Not Ranked

    Fell Out

    1. Sheldon Creed – A forgettable 22nd place (four laps down) outing at Dover for Creed after winning Daytona the week prior. The only highlight of the day was Creed finishing sixth in Stage 1 and fourth in Stage 2.

      Previous Week Ranking – First
    2. Grant Enfinger – Enfinger had a quiet day finishing outside the top 10 in 13th, one lap down.

      Previous Week Ranking – Second
  • Zane Smith conquers the Monster Mile

    Zane Smith conquers the Monster Mile

    Rookie of the Year contender Zane Smith won his second NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series victory of the 2020 season Friday afternoon at Dover International Speedway. Smith was almost picture-perfect throughout the 200 lap event, finishing fourth in Stage 1 and winning the second stage. Smith led the final 33 laps that included one late-race restart en route to victory.

    ““What an awesome truck,” Smith said. “I think we all know that I suck at restarts, but I picked a good time to have a good one. Man, two wins. This is by far the most fun I’ve ever had racing in my career. I’m just so blessed to be here.”

    Three stages split the 200-mile race with the first ending on Lap 45, the second on Lap 90, and the final on Lap 200. Brett Moffitt was on the pole as the starting lineup was determined based on finishing position from the previous race (50%), ranking in team owner points (35%) and the fastest lap from the previous race (15%).

    Stage 1: Lap 1 – Lap 45

    It didn’t take long for yellows to start flying, especially early on. Tate Fogleman in the No. 02 brought out the first yellow on Lap 6 when he went sideways off Turn 4 but avoided any major damage. The second caution was the scheduled competition caution on Lap 20 to check tire wear.

    Moffitt was strong through the first 27 laps of the race, but Georgia native Austin Hill swiped the lead and held on to the top spot for the remainder of Stage 1. Crafton, Ankrum, Smith, Moffitt, Creed, Eckes, Enfinger, Lessard, and Gilliland rounded out the top 10.

    Stage 2: Lap 52 – Lap 90

    Stage 2 only saw minor incidents, but there were many close moments that could have prompted more cautions.

    One of those moments came for Johnny Sauter, as his No. 13 ThorSport machine got loose and high in Turns 1 and 2 after the restart.

    Another close call came on Lap 56 when Grant Enfinger and Tanner Gray slid up the track in Turn 4. Both went on without any major contact.

    There was a lead change during the remaining laps of Stage 2 when Derek Kraus in the Bill McAnally machine took the lead from Kyle Busch Motorsports driver Chandler Smith on Lap 79.

    Ten laps later, the fourth yellow flew when Kyle Busch Motorsports teammates Christian Eckes and Smith make slight contact with each other in Turn 4. Unfortunately for Smith, he would be on the receiving end, and wound up spinning out Also collected in the process was Sheldon Creed and Ben Rhodes, who received some damage.

    With the yellow coming out so late in the stage, the stage ended under caution, giving Stage 2 to Zane Smith. Kraus, Eckes, Creed, Moffitt, Rhodes, Gilliland, Sauter, Ankrum, and Crafton completed the top 10.

    Stage 3: Lap 97 – Lap 200

    When Stage 3 got underway, NASCAR officials reviewed a restart when it looked liked Eckes got a jump on the leader, but it was later determined that the restart was all clear as it appeared Smith could not get going.

    Eckes and Moffitt traded the lead and both led for multiple laps, before Smith grabbed the lead again with 46 to go, a few laps until the final round of green-flag pit stops began.

    Those final pit stops would come with less than 40 to go, with Moffitt being the first to start the cycle of stops. A few drivers had troubles during pit stops, as Raphael Lessard and Tanner Gray would be penalized for a commitment line violation. Creed also received a penalty for pitting outside the box.

    California native, Smith, however, cycled back out into the lead with 32 to go.

    It looked as though Smith would run away with the victory at first, keeping his teammate Moffitt at bay. But a late-race yellow occurred with eight laps to go for Stewart Friesen spinning in Turns 1 and 2.

    Despite the late restart, Smith was able to fend off Matt Crafton for the victory and GMS Racing’s fifth win overall as a team.

    There were five cautions for 27 laps and 13 lead changes among 10 drivers. Smith led three times for 50 laps and picked up six playoff points. In addition, Smith picks up $50,000 due to the “Triple Truck Challenge.”

    Official Results following the KDI Office Technology 200 at Dover.

    1. Zane Smith, won Stage 2, led 50 laps
    2. Matt Crafton, led one lap
    3. Brett Moffitt, led 50 laps
    4. Todd Gilliland, led two laps
    5. Ben Rhodes
    6. Johnny Sauter
    7. Tyler Ankrum
    8. Austin Hill, won Stage 1, led 21 laps
    9. Stewart Friesen
    10. Derek Kraus, led nine laps
    11. Christian Eckes, led 34 laps
    12. Carson Hocevar, 1 lap down
    13. Grant Enfinger, 1 lap down
    14. Ty Majeski, 1 lap down
    15. Sam Mayer, 1 lap down
    16. Spencer Davis, 1 lap down
    17. Tanner Gray, 2 laps down, led one lap
    18. Bayley Currey, 2 laps down
    19. Raphael Lessard, 2 laps down
    20. Chandler Smith, 2 laps down, led 31 laps
    21. Timmy Hill, 3 laps down
    22. Sheldon Creed, 4 laps down, led one lap
    23. Austin Wayne Self, 4 laps down
    24. Jordan Anderson, 4 laps down
    25. Dawson Cram, 5 laps down
    26. JJ Yeley, 6 laps down
    27. Tate Fogleman, 7 laps down
    28. Spencer Boyd, 7 laps down
    29. Jennifer Jo Cobb, 11 laps down
    30. Tyler Hill, 12 laps down
    31. Tim Viens, 20 laps down
    32. Clay Greenfield, OUT, Suspension
    33. Bryant Barnhill, OUT, Ignition
    34. Parker Kligerman, OUT, Engine
    35. Norm Benning, OUT, Brakes

    Playoff Points

    1. Zane Smith, 2 wins, 14 points
    2. Sheldon Creed, 2 wins, 14 points
    3. Grant Enfinger, 2 wins, 11 points
    4. Austin Hill, 1 win, 7 points
    5. Matt Crafton, 1 win, 5 points
    6. Brett Moffitt, +94, 4 points
    7. Christian Eckes, +76
    8. Ben Rhodes, +76
    9. Tyler Ankrum, +9
    10. Todd Gilliland, +4

      Below the cut line
    11. Derek Kraus, -4
    12. Tanner Gray, -63
    13. Johnny Sauter, -71
    14. Raphael Lessard, -73

    Up Next: The NASCAR Gander RV and Outdoors Truck Series heads to World Wide Technology Raceway Sunday, Aug. 30 live on Fox Sports 1.