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Brandon Jones Wins Pocono Thriller
The Truck Series race took 29 caution laps and one day to complete, but the finish was well worth the wait. Atlanta, Georgia native Brandon Jones finally nabbed his first career Truck Series win at Pocono Raceway.

“That was a heck of a battle,” said Jones, a full-time NASCAR Xfinity competitor who has won twice in that series. “I know it was fun to watch on TV-it was really fun for me there.”

“It’s not really that much pressure, honestly,” Jones said. “There’s so much they provide for us. We were all on a call with him (owner Kyle Busch) last night after the Cup race. He gave us so much information that led to this win today.”

In what was originally scheduled to be a Saturday event, weather forced the series officials to postpone the Truck Series event to early Sunday morning and in some aspects, the race did not disappoint.

On the pole was, Johnny Sauter in the No. 13 Ford F-150 via a random draw from earlier in the week. Jones and the No. 51 Kyle Busch Motorsports group, drew 10th.

Stages 15-15-30 made up the 60 lap event.

Stage 1 Lap 1- Lap 15

The Pocono Organics was action packed from the get-go, especially on the first lap of the race, and the first turn. Austin Wayne Self in the No. 22, got loose and climbed up the track, which caused the No. 9 of Codie Rohrbaugh to get into the No. 88 of Matt Crafton. Rohrbaugh and Crafton collided with each other and made hard contact with the wall. Unfortunately, their day was cut short, and was credited with 39th and 40th.

Two more cautions slowed the stage again. One on lap 5, as Wayne Self was involved in another incident, this time with the No. 4 of Raphael Lessard. Lessard got into the grass going into Turn 3, which then made his Truck loose. It was unfortunate timing for Wayne Self, as he was right there when Lessard spun. Like Rohrbaugh and Crafton, Lessard’s and Wayne Self’s day were done early. They would end up finishing 37th and 38th, respectively in the running order.

Then on lap 11, Niece Motorsports Ty Majeski, pounded the inside wall going into Turn 1. This left the No. 45 Toyota heavily damaged. The Wisconsin native was unable to return to the event and forced to retire.

A two lap dash to the finish of Stage 1 was taken by Sheldon Creed and the No. 2 GMS Racing team. Austin Hill, Tyler Ankrum, Brandon Jones, Todd Gilliland, Grant Enfinger, Johnny Sauter, Zane Smith, Ross Chastain, and Ben Rhodes completed the top 10.

Stage 2 Lap 19- Lap 30

Like Stage 1, the second stage was filled with numerous accidents.

On lap 21, the No. 30 of Brennan Poole scraped the wall on the fronstretch. Moments later, Poole would cut down a tire and slam the wall in Turn 3 bringing out the fourth caution. There was some strategy played under caution, as Chastain, Derek Kraus, and Zane Smith were among the ones who pitted.

A restart was seen with four to go in the stage. However, another yellow flew, due to the No. 3 of Jordan Anderson spinning in Turn 1. A few laps before the yellow, Sauter, Enfinger, Gilliland, Jones pitted to get adjustments to their truck. During the stop, Enfinger was penalized after being too fast on pit road.

With the caution coming out so late in the stage and not enough time to get back going, the stage ended yellow and Creed once again picked up the stage victory. Eckes, Rhodes, Friesen, Tanner Gray, Ankrum, Smith, Moffitt, Bayley Currey, and Spencer Davis were the top 10 for Stage 2.

On pit road, Clay Greenfield and Tyler Ankrum, were penalized for having a crew member over the wall too soon. Christian Eckes and Chase Purdy also made slight contact on pit road as well.

Stage 3 Lap 33 – Lap 60

Off the restart for the final stage, rookie Zane Smith, grabbed the lead and led for a short while. Unfortunately, a few laps later with 25 to go, the No. 02 of Tate Fogleman hit the wall in Turn 3 after contact from Tanner Gray.

Finally after an early caution filled race, we saw a short green flag run of 11 laps. During those 11 laps, Brandon Jones and Christian Eckes traded the lead a couple of times, before Eckes pulled away from his teammate Jones. Looking for his first Truck Series win as well, the Kyle Busch Motorsports driver had a right-rear tire go down, which caused him to spin out in the tunnel turn and crash. Eckes would wind up 33rd in the overall results.

Before we could get to the thrilling finish, the final yellow was flown with six laps to go. Tim Viens in the No. 83 spun around in Turn 1. With the late race yellow, a restart would come with two laps to go.

There were multiple battles for the lead between Austin Hill, Sheldon Creed and Brandon Jones. Jones split the middle right before the entry off the tunnel turn. Eventually, Jones took the checkers ahead of Creed by .864 seconds for his first career Truck Series win.

There were nine cautions for 29 laps and eight lead changes among five different leaders.

Jones twice for 11 laps en route to the victory circle.

Official Results
1. Brandon Jones, led 11 laps
2. Austin Hill
3. Sheldon Creed, led 31 laps, won both stages
4. Todd Gilliland
5. Ben Rhodes
6. Ross Chastain, led 1 lap
7. Brett Moffitt
8. Stewart Friesen
9. Tyler Ankrum
10. Derek Kraus
11. Grant Enfinger
12. Tanner Gray
13. Johnny Sauter
14. Zane Smith, led 7 laps
15. Parker Kligerman
16. Bayley Currey
17. Jordan Anderson
18. Spencer Davis
19. Tyler Hill
20. Robby Lyons
21. Chase Purdy
22. Spencer Boyd
23. Josh Reaume
24. Korbin Forrister
25. Cory Roper
26. Bryan Dauzat
27. Ray Ciccarelli
28. Jesse Iwuji
29. Tim Viens, 1 lap down
30. Norm Benning, 1 lap down
31. Clay Greenfield, 2 laps down
32. Jennifer Jo Cobb, 6 laps down
33. Christian Eckes, OUT, Crash
34. Tate Fogleman, OUT, Crash
35. Brennan Poole, OUT, Damage Vehicle Policy
36. Ty Majeski, OUT, Crash
37. Raphael Lessard, OUT, Crash
38. Austin Wayne Self, OUT, Crash
39. Codie Rohrbaugh, OUT, Crash
40. Matt Crafton, OUT, Crash
Up Next: The NASCAR Gander RV and Outdoors Truck Series will take the Fourth of July weekend off, before heading to Kentucky Speedway on Saturday July 11.
June 28, 2020
NASCAR Gander RV and Outdoors Truck Series Preview – Pocono
With a week off, the NASCAR Truck Series drivers were able to collects their thoughts and get energized ahead of their next race on the 2020 calendar which is “The Tricky Triangle” Pocono Raceway.

The 2020 Pocono event will mark the 10th race in the tracks history, that dates back to the first inaugural event in 2010, which was won by former NASCAR driver Elliott Sadler.

Since then, the Pocono Truck race has seen nine different winners with the exception of Kyle Busch who won twice in 2015 and again in 2018. However it is likely that there will be a new or different Pocono winner this weekend. The only winner entered in this event was last years victor, Ross Chastain.

In fact, we will most likely have a new winner at the 2.5 mile speedway located in Long Pond Pennsylvania on Saturday afternoon.

With that in mind, here are five drivers who might be the new victor in Saturday’s, Pocono Organics 150 to Benefit Farm Aid.

Currently, there are 40 Trucks entered on the preliminary entry list and are scheduled to compete.
1. Johnny Sauter- Sauter is riding on a one-year winless streak dating back to Dover of last year. However, that might just come to an end this weekend. The Wisconsin native had made all 10 starts at “The Tricky Triangle” and has a best finish of second, which came in 2014. His first few starts at the track were not that great and pretty scary numbers. However, since 2014 Sauter has managed to finish inside the top-10 in every outing. In the 2017 race, he was able to led 12 laps. He’s never been able to win a stage, but the ThorSport driver just might be a good value pick for your fantasy lineup. For a notable, Sauter finished eighth in last years race.
2. Brett Moffitt- Moffitt’s finishes has been up and down over the last three Pocono starts. In his GMS debut last year, the Iowan native started fourth and placed fifth for a top five finish. Overall, he’s been unable to lead any laps over three starts, but finished fifth in Stage 1 and second in Stage 2 in the 2019 event. Four years ago, driving for Red Horse Racing, Moffitt placed the No. 7 Toyota Tundra in the third position. His only bad finish came in 2018, where Moffitt finished 26th, seven laps down. If last year was any indication for this years event, Moffitt finishing in the top five or perhaps winning, shouldn’t come to a surprise.
3. Ross Chastain- It may be pretty obvious to pick the recent winner of this race, but it’s kind of hard not too. In three starts, Chastain has finished inside the top-10, especially in his first outing in 2012. Placed fifth in 2013 for Brad Keselowski and won last year with Niece Motorsports. Not competing in a truck for six years at Pocono and going out to win is pretty impressive. Especially, considering how different the trucks are now, compared to what they were in 2013. Also for some more nuggets, Chastain led all but six laps en route to victory last year and won Stage 1. If the team does not suffer any mechanical issues and brings back another strong truck, Chastain will be tough to beat.
4. Tyler Ankrum- One start is hard to go off sometimes, but Tyler Ankrum and the GMS crew will look to lean off that one start with the No. 26 team from last year and previous years notes. Ankrum placed the No. 26 Chevrolet runner up to eventual winner Ross Chastain in the 2019 outing. The Californian also scored a stage point, placing 10th in Stage 1. GMS has been pretty solid at Pocono in years past and I can’t imagine they will contend again on Saturday.
5. Christian Eckes- Eckes has decent chance for an impressive showing on Saturday afternoon and here’s why. He’s made one start in the Truck Series and four starts in the ARCA Menards Series. The New York native won last years ARCA event driving for Venturini Motorsports. Excluding his 2018 ARCA finishes (where Eckes finished 18th and 13th), he picked up his average finish in both races last year, finishing third in the ARCA summer race and of course winning later in the year after leading 26 laps, and starting second. The ARCA experience obviously paid off for the Truck event, as Eckes started 13th and finished fourth in the overall running order. He also placed the Kyle Busch Motorsports entry, seventh in Stage 1.
As mentioned, there have been 10 races dating back to 2010. Elliott Sadler, Kevin Harvick, Joey Coulter, Ryan Blaney, Austin Dillon, Kyle Busch, William Byron, Christopher Bell, and Ross Chastain all have won here. Busch is the only driver to have won twice but he is not set to compete this weekend. Brandon Jones will be taking his place.

The most amount cautions in this event have been nine for 27 laps, which occurred in 2016. That race was won by William Byron. While, the least amount of cautions seen was two for eight laps set back in 2018, won by Kyle Busch.

As for lead changes, the most occurred 10 that came back in 2014. The race was won by Austin Dillon. The fewest amount of lead changes was two in 2011, won by Kevin Harvick.

Chevrolet has the most manufacturer victories with five (Elliott Sadler, Kevin Harvick, Joey Coulter, Austin Dillon, and Ross Chastain). Toyota has four a piece (Kyle Busch, William Byron, and Christopher Bell). Ford only has one lone win (Ryan Blaney in 2013). Chevrolet won three in a row from 2010 to 2013, while Toyota has four wins in a row, the most of any manufacturer consecutively.

Qualifying will be important at “The Tricky Triangle.” There has never been a winner outside the top 10 in the history of this event. In fact, the lowest a winner started was sixth, which came in 2013 by Blaney. Four times the winner came from the pole position, which was achieved by Sadler, Harvick, Byron, and Busch. The top pole speed is 171.347 mph set by Ross Chastain in 2019. However, there will be no qualifying this year due to COVID-19 to limit overexposure.

Ever since stages were implemented in 2017, Kyle Busch, Todd Gilliland, Stewart Friesen, Ross Chastain, and Harrison Burton have managed to win at least one stage.

The Pocono Organics 150 will be a short race on Saturday. Just 60 laps make up the 150 mile distance, as 15/30/60 will make up the three stages.

The race can be seen live on Fox Sports 1 at 12:30 p.m./ET and heard on MRN Radio.
June 25, 2020
NASCAR Gander RV and Outdoors Truck Series Power Rankings-Homestead
Coming off a thriller at Atlanta Motor Speedway, the NASCAR Gander RV and Outdoors Truck Series visited Southern Florida and Homestead Miami Speedway, another 1.5 mile track.

Last week’s winner, Grant Enfingerhad had momentum on his side rolling into Homestead and looked to capture a victory at a track that he had not won at. Austin Hill, who was runner-up at Atlanta, knew Homestead would be his best shot as the team won there the last two trips.

However, “Rowdy” (Kyle Busch) was back in the field, and after a few weeks of rough races of not finishing where he normally does, it was going to be hard to bet against Busch. After prerace troubles in tech, serving a pass through penalty at the start, Busch rallied his way through the field and took home the victory for the second time this season.

Busch dominated the majority of the race, but there were plenty of other series regulars who shined as well.

Here are this week’s Power Rankings following the Baptist Health 200.
1. Austin Hill- It shouldn’t be a surprise that Hill comes at the top spot again. Sure, he didn’t dominate the race like the others do, but remained consistent in the 134 lap event to stay in the top 10. There were really no issues on the No. 16 team, other than a tight truck that pursued throughout the night. Despite the handling issue, Hill had a good enough truck to lead all but one lap in Stage 1 and finished third after a late pass for the lead. The Georgia native also finished third in the second stage. Hill did lead laps, but just 29 of them occurred in the first stage. By finishing seventh, Hill has not finished outside the top 10 through the first five races.
  
  Previous Week Ranking- First
2. Tyler Ankrum- Ankrum had a quiet Homestead race, but got his best finish of 2020 so far when he finished second. The GMS driver was never really a contender until the last portion of the race, when late race yellows occurred and bunched everyone back up again for restarts. Ankrum was unable to gain stage points or lead any laps, but he gets an atta boy for placing the No. 26 Chevy second, after not having the greatest luck to start the first four races. Here’s hoping this gives some momentum to the team and get some good finishes to carry that momentum throughout the rest of the season.
  
  Previous Week Ranking- Not Ranked
3. Todd Gilliland- Another solid week for the No. 38 Front Row Motorsports Team, who finished sixth after drawing 18th in qualifying. Gilliland also piloted the No. 38 Ford to a sixth place finish in Stage 1 and a fifth place in Stage 2. While the North Carolina native didn’t get to challenge for the lead or victory, Gilliland has been consistent over the last couple of weeks, which could be a boost for the team as we get closer toward the playoffs.
  
  Previous Week Ranking- Third
4. Johnny Sauter- Johnny Sauter sure has had a wild week with the No. 13 ThorSport team. From being disqualified at Atlanta for tire infringement, Sauter and the crew came back for redemption at Homestead, a place where the Wisconsin native has enjoyed success before. Sauter started 10th based on a draw and had a decent race. He barely missed out on getting stage points, finishing 12th in Stage 1 and 13th in Stage 2, but rallied in the top 10 late in the race. Sauter managed his pace and kept the Ford F-150 out of trouble, and brought home a fifth place finish. A nice rebound for Sauter and the No. 13 team at Homestead.
  
  Previous Week Ranking- Not Ranked
5. Matt Crafton- Crafton had an up and down night at the 1.5 mile track, but mainly resulting in up. First, he was able to get stage points when he finished fifth in Stage 1. However, things somewhat went downhill through the majority of Stage 2. During the second stage, Crafton had suffered a flat tire and had to come to pit road under green to fix the issue, which put him a lap down and eventually finishing 31st in Stage 2. But, the California native got a lucky break when a caution was thrown and received the free pass. Ultimately, Crafton earned a ninth place finish Saturday night in Southern Florida.
  
  Previous Week Ranking- Fourth
Fell Out
1. Christian Eckes- Saturday night could be a disappointment if your Christian Eckes. At Atlanta, he got his best finish of the season so far, finishing third. At Homestead, the Kyle Busch Motorsports driver finished eighth after drawing fourth for a starting position. Eckes did manage to finish seventh in Stage 1 and fourth in Stage 2. But, Eckes finished in the eighth position for a top 10 finish. It is a better result than what the finishes looked liked earlier in the season, but could be a potential disappointing result after getting some momentum on your side the previous week.
  
  Previous Week Ranking- Fifth
2. Grant Enfinger- Enfinger had a good race going until a slow late race pit stop, which saw him restart mid-pack. This saw the ThorSport driver finish 17th after placing fourth in Stage 1 and ninth in Stage 2.
  
  Previous Week Ranking- Second
June 15, 2020
Kyle Busch victorious again at Homestead
After a rough stretch of races, Kyle Busch piloted his No. 51 Kyle Busch Motorsports Toyota Tundra back to victory lane again at Homestead Miami Speedway, but it wasn’t all that easy for the Las Vegas native.

Prior to the event going green, Busch had prerace inspection issues and had to drop to the rear and serve a pass-through penalty. It wasn’t until Lap 39 when the KBM driver would get back to the front to take the lead which he held for 58 laps, taking the Stage 2 victory. In the end, Busch had to persevere through a red flag and a late-race restart to take home his second victory of the year.

“You’re always concerned about tires being better and having the opportunity to out-show you, but I felt like six laps was just the right amount, any more than that and it probably would have been a different outcome,” said Busch.

“I knew the Cessna Beechcraft Toyota Tundra here was going to be awesome. Thanks to TRD and Rowdy Energy, everybody that helps us here and makes us so fast and want to say thanks to Big Machine Hand Sanitizer as well, they were on the quarter panel the last two weeks and we didn’t win and now they’re not here and we won.”

Stage 1: Lap 1 – Lap 30

When the race went green, not only the drivers were racing to the checkered flag, but NASCAR was as well due to potential impending weather in the area. With weather in the area, there was a lot of thrilling action from the start.

Sheldon Creed would make slight contact with the wall early on, while the leaders battled with each other. Despite Creed hitting the wall, there would be no caution and last week’s runner-up Austin Hill led the field to the mandatory competition caution on Lap 15.

After the caution, five laps later, another one ensued as a major wreck broke loose between Brett Moffitt and Zane Smith. Brennan Poole and Chase Elliott were also involved, albeit with slight damage to their vehicles. Unfortunately for Moffitt and Smith, their night was done early for too much damage and they were relegated to finishing 36th and 37th.

A late-stage restart was seen and Niece Motorsports driver, Ross Chastain, passed Hill just before the stage completed. Chastain would end up winning the stage with Ben Rhodes, Hill, Grant Enfinger, Matt Crafton, Todd Gilliland, Christian Eckes, Raphael Lessard, Stewart Friesen, and Creed the top-10 finishers.

Under the stage caution, several trucks stayed out including Eckes, Majeski, Ankrum, Poole, Kraus, Greenfield, Fogleman, Elliott, and Busch. Dawson Cram was too fast on pit road.

Stage 2: Lap 35 – Lap 60

Once Stage 2 began, Busch took the lead on Lap 39, which was the first time in the race for Busch to be out front.

Other than a piece of debris out of the racing groove, Matt Crafton in the wall in Turn 4 with five to go in the stage and losing a tire, Stage 2 was caution free.

With Stage 2 going caution free, Busch would take his first stage win of the night. Chastain, Hill, Eckes, Gilliland, Rhodes, Elliott, Kraus, Enfinger, and Lessard rounded out the top-10

Stage 3: Lap 66 – Lap 134

The third and final stage saw more action than the other previous stages.

Beginning with Lap 69, Poole had a tire go down which brought out the caution. Charlotte winner, Elliott, was in the wall slightly but no caution.

As a green flag run took place, green flag pit stops began with 39 to go. Eckes, Crafton and Poole played pit strategy during the normal cycle of stops. In order for the strategy to work, a caution had to be flown within their pit window. Alas, a caution was flown with 30 to go for Korbin Forrister who had problems with his No. 7 machine. Under the yellow, Eckes, Busch, Crafton and Rhodes among a few others came on to pit road to pit.

During the pit stops, we saw a bizarre incident that occurred when Sheldon Creed in the No. 2 got called to pit road at the last second. However, it was too late for Creed to make a left-hand turn to pit road, which caused him to hit the water/sand barriers. As water and sand went everywhere, a 15-minute red flag was displayed.

Once the red was lifted, a restart came with 24 to go. Busch would eventually take the lead a lap later and set the pace. But, the last caution flew with 12 to go for the No. 3 of Jordan Anderson, which set up a seven-lap dash to the finish.

It only took Busch a couple of laps before he cleared the field and once he did so, he set sail to his 58th career victory in the Truck Series, and his third victory at Homestead, the first time in seven years.

When asked if Busch would retire from the Truck Series as he approaches 100 in that series, he said it wouldn’t be that easy to kick him out.

“If my name is on the door, I’ll run as many as I’ll possibly can,” Busch said. “You can’t get rid of me that easily. Maybe one day, they’ll fix the rules where I will run more or I can be like Mark Martin and run Trucks full time (after I retire from Cup). Perhaps one day, I’ll go Trucks full time and run for a championship. Who knows?”

There were seven caution for 34 laps and six leaders among eight lead changes. Busch led twice for 82 laps.

Official Results
1. Kyle Busch, led 82 laps, won Stage 2
2. Tyler Ankrum
3. Ross Chastain, won Stage 1
4. Chase Elliott
5. Johnny Sauter
6. Todd Gilliland
7. Austin Hill
8. Christian Eckes
9. Matt Crafton
10. Ty Majeski
11. Raphael Lessard
12. Tanner Gray
13. Spencer Davis
14. Stewart Friesen
15. Derek Kraus
16. Austin Wayne Self
17. Grant Enfinger
18. Ben Rhodes
19. Brennan Poole
20. Sheldon Creed
21. Cory Roper
22. Spencer Boyd
23. Tate Fogleman
24. Angela Ruch
25. Tyler Hill, one lap down
26. Gray Gaulding, one lap down
27. Jennifer Jo Cobb, two laps down
28. Codie Rohrbaugh, two laps down
29. Ray Ciccareli, three laps down
30. Clay Greenfield, 12 laps down
31. Jordan Anderson, OUT, Crash
32. Dawson Cram, OUT, Transmission
33. Korbin Forrister, OUT, Crash
34. Norm Benning, OUT, Handling
35. T.J. Bell, OUT, Crash
36. Brett Moffitt, OUT, Crash
37. Zane Smith, OUT, Crash
38. Bryant Barnhill, OUT, Transmission
Up Next: The NASCAR Gander RV and Outdoors Truck Series will take a few weeks off before returning to action at Pocono Raceway Saturday, June 27.
June 14, 2020
Together we stand

As a journalist, we are taught to always remain objective and to report the news without injecting our personal opinion.

Today I am breaking that rule.

It has taken me some time to absorb everything that has transpired in recent weeks precipitated with the killing of George Floyd. And even more time to understand that this wasn’t an isolated incident but rather an indication of a much deeper problem in our country.

I struggled to understand how we as a society have continued to ignore the continued trend of violence and racial inequality that is still pervasive in our society. And on a more personal level, how had I become blinded to the reality of it?

As someone who grew up in the south, I am no stranger to stereotypes. We are often perceived as ignorant rednecks and closeted racists with a naïve view of the world. But as with most stereotypes, there is only a small grain of truth in these assumptions.

Though I am a southerner my closest ties to my heritage are with my Native American ancestors. If anyone should understand the realities of persecution and injustice, it should be me.

I had to ask myself again, how had I become so blind?

As many have come forward lately with their stories, particularly Bubba Wallace, the answer suddenly dawned on me. When others look at me, they don’t see a southerner or a Native American. All they see is a white person.

From that point on, it became clear that there is no way that I could understand the reality of being Black. I can never fully grasp the complexities of their lives. All I can do now is listen and learn.

That is my promise. I will listen to their stories and learn from their experiences. I will look at the world from their viewpoint, not my own.

If we stand together as one, there is nothing that we can’t accomplish.

June 12, 2020
NASCAR Gander RV and Outdoors Truck Series Preview-Homestead
Coming off a thrilling finish last Saturday at Atlanta Motor Speedway, the NASCAR Gander RV and Outdoors Truck Series heads back to South Florida and Homestead-Miami Speedway carrying some momentum.

It’s an unusual trip for not only the Truck Series but the other two series, as this will be the first time in quite some time, the series will be racing in the middle of the summer compared to racing in November. For the longest time, the Truck Series finale was slated at Homestead dating back to 2002. You have to go back 19 years ago in the year 2001 when the series did not compete in November. In ’01, the Truck Series competed in March. The earliest the series ever competed at the track was February of 2000. So yes, there have been races at Homestead where it was not scheduled for November, but a very long time ago.

Coming back to the present, racing in the middle of summer will create some very hot and slick conditions at the 1.5-mile speedway, which, for some drivers, will play into their favor.

Last week, ThorSport Racing driver, Grant Enfinger, in slick conditions, scored the victory for the second time this year and now comes to Homestead hoping to click off another victory. Though there will be 38 other drivers competing for the victory and one of them hopes to keep Enfinger’s momentum in the rearview by getting a victory for themselves.

Here is this week’s preview for the Baptist Health 200.
1. Austin Hill – This may be an obvious pick to some of you but hear me out. After falling short by a matter of seconds last Saturday, the Georgia native is hungry for a race win and has the truck/team capable to do it. Last November, the No. 16 Hattori Racing Team scored the victory by sweeping both of the stages, leading the majority of the race (56 laps) and taking the checkered flag. Not only does Hill have a good chance from a statistical standpoint, but HRE will bring back the race-winning truck, hoping to do the same thing they did in November, which is to win. Hill was solid last November and crew chief, Scott Zipadelli, has been with three different drivers going back to 2017. Zipadelli also won the race/championship with former team driver Brett Moffitt back in November of 2018. This team and driver will be tough to beat come Saturday. Hill also is starting on the pole.
2. Brett Moffitt – Moffitt has had solid success in the past two races at Homestead, including a victory and winning the championship back in 2018. In the 2019 event, Moffitt competed with his new team, GMS Racing. The Iowan native started fourth and nabbed a fifth-place finish back in November. Moffitt also was able to lead three laps and placed the truck fourth in both stages. When Moffitt won the ’18 race, he led 59 laps en route to victory in just his first Truck start at the track. Despite having limited Truck experience, Moffitt does have other series starts, such as competing in the Cup Series several years ago. With that in mind, it’ll be hard to stop the momentum of Moffitt at Homestead. The team is still searching for their first victory of the year. and that just might come Saturday night.
3. Matt Crafton – Speaking of experience, Matt Crafton has the most starts of all active drivers, with 13 dating back to 2001. Since that debut, Crafton has had a mixed bag of results at the 1.5-mile speedway but has also enjoyed recent success. Homestead has been the site where the California native has collected three Truck Series championships. The first one was in 2013 and he went back to back in 2014. Crafton also took the title home in last year’s event after placing runner up and leading nine laps. It wasn’t until 2015 however, when the ThorSport driver scored his first victory at Homestead. In total, Crafton has scored four top fives and 11 top-10 finishes with 154 laps led which has produced an average finish of 10.4. In the 2019 event, Crafton finished sixth in Stage 1 and second in Stage 2. Should Crafton pull off the win, it would be a special victory, as he celebrated a birthday Thursday.
4. Christian Eckes – By finally scoring a top-five finish last week at Atlanta in 2020, Eckes is rolling into Homestead hoping to grab another top-five finish. The Kyle Busch Motorsports driver does have one start at the 1.5-mile speedway, which came a few months ago in November. Eckes started second and finished third after leading 26 laps in his first outing. He was unable to score any stage points, but finishing second was a goal achieved for that night. This time around, it wouldn’t be shocking should Eckes pull off the victory this Saturday. The No. 18 team will be using a chassis that Noah Gragson used to score his first victory at Kansas in 2018. Cup Series regulars William Byron and Christopher Bell have also won with this truck. Eckes will roll off in the fourth position on the starting grid.
5. Sheldon Creed – After having a couple of rough results at Las Vegas and last week at Atlanta, Creed and the No. 2 GMS Racing team will hope to turn things around with a great finish this weekend. The Alpine, California native has made two starts with finishes of fifth and ninth. Not only has Creed been able to finish inside the top-10 in both races, but he has also piloted the No. 2 Chevy to stage finishes in both races as well, with an average finish of 7.0. Creed starts eighth on Saturday and has a decent chance to win.
Since 1996, Homestead-Miami Speedway has been host to 24 Truck Series races with many different winners. Some of those winners include Dave Rezendes, Kenny Irwin Jr, Mike Wallace, Andy Houston, Ted Musgrave, Ron Hornaday Jr, Bobby Hamilton, Kasey Kahne, Todd Bodine Mark Martin, Johnny Benson Jr, Kevin Harvick, Kyle Busch, Johnny Sauter, Cale Gale, Bubba Wallace, Matt Crafton, William Byron, Chase Briscoe, Brett Moffitt and Austin Hill.

Kyle Busch and Todd Bodine have the most victories with two apiece. This weekend, Sauter, Crafton, Moffitt, and Hill have a chance to tie that feat set by Busch and Bodine.

Toyota has 10 victories, Ford 6 victories, Chevrolet 5 wins and Dodge has just two wins.

Caution flags have been hit or miss at Homestead for a Truck Series race. The most ever flown was back in 1997 when 11 cautions flew for 52 laps. The fewest amount of cautions ever seen was one caution for four laps in 2002. The most ever lead changes was 17, three times, in ’97, ’99, and ’10. The fewest ever lead changes were five also set in the 2002 race.

In addition, the race winner has come from the pole four times (2003, 2015, 2016, and 2017). The lowest a race winner has ever started to win was 18th set by Bodine in 2008.

Since stages were implemented in 2017, Christopher Bell, Ben Rhodes, Grant Enfinger, Brett Moffitt, and Austin Hill have all won stages. Hill has been the only driver who has swept both stages, which occurred in last year’s event.

Stages will be broken into 30/60/134 to make up the 201-mile race.

The Baptist Health 200 can be seen on Fox Sports 1 and heard on MRN Radio Saturday, June 13 at 6 p.m. ET.
June 12, 2020
Weekend Schedule for Homestead-Miami Speedway

This weekend NASCAR travels to Homestead-Miami Speedway for a full weekend of completion that includes a double-header for the Xfinity Series, a Gander RV and Outdoors Truck Series race and the Dixie Vodka 400 Cup Series event Sunday afternoon.

Denny Hamlin will start on the pole for the Dixie Vodka 400 and Harrison Burton scored the pole for Saturday’s Xfinity Series Hooters 250, both based on a random draw. The Xfinity pole for Sunday’s Contender Boats 250 will be based on the race results of the Hooters 250 with an inverted top-15. The pole winner for the Truck Series was chosen by a random draw as well, based on the owners’ point standings, with Austin Hill claiming the top spot.

All times are Eastern.

Saturday June 13

3:30 p.m.: Xfinity Series Hooters 250 (Stages 40/80/167 Laps = 250.5 miles) FOX/MRN/SiriusXM NASCAR Radio

7:30 p.m.: Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series Baptist Health 200 (Stages 30/60/134 Laps = 201 Miles) FS1/MRN/SiriusXM NASCAR Radio

Sunday June 14

Noon: Xfinity Series Contender Boats 250 (Stages 40/80/167 Laps = 250.5 miles) FS1/MRN/SiriusXM NASCAR Radio

3:30 p.m.: NASCAR Cup Series Dixie Vodka 400 (Stages 80/160/267 Laps = 400.5 Miles) FOX/MRN/SiriusXM NASCAR Radio

June 11, 2020
NASCAR Gander RV and Outdoors Truck Series Power Rankings – Atlanta
The NASCAR Gander RV and Outdoors Truck Series continued their momentum with another consecutive race following Charlotte Motor Speedway and sped to Atlanta Motor Speedway for the VetTix/Camping World 200 in what would be another thrilling race in typical Truck Series fashion.

After winning the season opener at Daytona, Grant Enfinger had high hopes of continuing his early-season momentum and march toward another playoff run later in the year. Meanwhile, Georgia native, Austin Hill had great motivation as he entered his hometown racetrack.

While Kyle Busch was dominant in the early and middle portions of the race, it was Austin Hill and Enfinger who battled for the checkered flag. Enfinger managed to get Hill loose and take the checkered for his first Atlanta victory.

With Enfinger and Hill taking the top two spots, other Truck Series regulars also had a strong, but quiet day at Atlanta. We’ll detail Enfinger’s race along with Hill and check out the others to see how they fared in the fourth race of the 2020 season.
1. Austin Hill- Yes. While Hill did not win the race and the last lap dash to the finish with Enfinger, the Georgia native had the best Truck late in the going, especially on the longer runs. The No. 16 Hattori Racing team was nearly flawless all day, having great pit stops and keeping the truck in contention, should the opportunity present itself. Hill’s time to shine came during the final round of green-flag pit stops when race leader Kyle Busch was penalized twice for speeding. The Hattori driver took over the lead on Lap 99 and all the way up to Lap 134 (the original final lap of the race) before the Charlotte winner, Chase Elliott, spun and brought out a late-race caution. Hill did get a good restart but it wasn’t enough to keep Enfinger behind him. However, you can’t discount the effort of Hill’s team, who came up just a tad short in a disappointing loss. But this should give them some motivation heading into Homestead, as Hill won that race last year. In addition, he placed the No. 16 team fifth in Stage 1 and 10th in Stage 2 and gained the fourth top-10 in a row for the year.
  
  Previous Week Ranking – Third
2. Grant Enfinger – Flipping the roles, Enfinger also had a solid No. 98 Ford F-150 before he took the checkered flag. It took all race to get up in position to have the opportunity to win but the Alabaman led the laps that counted the most after getting Hill loose coming to the last lap. Enfinger also had some solid stage finishes, finishing ninth in Stage 1 and second in Stage 2. So far, the No. 98 team is on a roll early and could be a sleeper in the championship.
  
  Previous Week Ranking – Not Ranked
3. Todd Gilliland – After a disappointing Charlotte outing a week prior, Gilliland and the No. 38 Front Row Motorsports team looked to put that behind them. The No. 38 team started 12th, finished 10th in Stage 1 and fifth in Stage 2. Gilliland spent 130 laps in the top 15 throughout the majority of the race, before a timely caution came with a few laps left. He restarted in the top five and had a chance to win the race. Ultimately, Gilliland and company placed fourth for his first top-five finish of the year.
  
  Previous Week Ranking – Fell Out
4. Matt Crafton – Crafton and the No. 88 Menards F-150 had an up and down day but managed to fight back to a respectable 12th place finish. However, during the competition caution, there was a major check-up on pit road. Unfortunately, Crafton was on the receiving end and had some front-end damage to the hood of his truck. This set the team back a bit and they finished 20th in the first stage. In the second stage, he fought back to a 10th place finish. Crafton continued to make the best out of his day and brought the truck to a salvageable top-15 finish.
  
  Previous Week Ranking – Fourth
5. Christian Eckes – Eckes finally brought home his first top-five finish of the 2020 season in the No. 18 Safelite Tundra. The first three races weren’t so kind to Eckes who has finished outside the top-10 and had only a best finish of 14th the week prior in Charlotte. He did note during the week that Eckes and the team had a come to Jesus meeting about what they could improve on and gave him some motivation. Obviously, that meeting worked as Eckes finished third in Stage 1 and sixth in Stage 2. At the end of the day, he finished third for the first top-five of his Truck Series career.
  
  Previous Week Ranking – Not Ranked
Fell Out
1. Brett Moffitt – Moffitt and his GMS Racing Chevy was a quiet contender all day long. He was up at the front during certain parts of the race but never challenged for the lead or victory. The Iowan did manage to finish sixth in Stage 1, but received no stage points for Stage 2. Moffitt eventually brought the No. 23 to an eighth-place finish. It was somewhat disappointing after a strong finish of fourth at Charlotte.
  
  Previous Week Ranking – Second
2. Johnny Sauter – It was a crazy turn of events for Sauter on Saturday afternoon. The No. 13 driver had respectable finishes in both the stages, placing ninth and seventh, respectively. Troubles arose post-race when series officials disqualified Sauter’s finishing position of 17th. The officials found a tire modification violation after one of the tires was tested in what is called a dunk test, which will indicate any changes with the tire. Unfortunately, a penalty is expected later in the week, as this is an L2 penalty. This mean the driver could be penalized 75 points with the crew chief serving a four-race suspension along with a $25,000-$75,000 fine. It was a disappointing ending for Sauter, who had originally finished 17th.
  
  Previous Week Ranking – Fifth
June 8, 2020
Four Takeaways From The VetTix/Camping World 200 At Atlanta Motor Speedway
Three months ago the Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series was originally scheduled to visit Atlanta Motor Speedway but the event was postponed when racing was halted due to the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak, interrupting the series schedule. Looking back it’s hard to believe that Atlanta Motor Speedway was the next stop for the Truck Series schedule after previously visiting Charlotte Motor Speedway as they were originally supposed to race that Friday night. But that’s when NASCAR changed the weekend plans as more news broke and businesses began shutting down, events were canceled including motorsport leagues and NASCAR canceled the race weekend which included the Truck Series event.

The Truck Series returned to Atlanta, only this time in June, and brought some great moments of escape for race fans. The highlight was a last-lap pass for the win while there were other exciting moments during the race as well.

Here are this week’s Four Takeaways in what we might have missed following Round No. 4 at Atlanta.
1. Enfinger Carries Momentum – In what is quite possibly one of the best seasons early on for Grant Enfinger as he and the No. 98 team continues to carry their early season momentum as the series inches closer to the playoffs. It seems as though once Enfinger won at Daytona, the victory brought added motivation to the team to try new things and go for victories more often. There were a couple of disappointing finishes at Las Vegas (31st, crash) and Charlotte (12th), but that didn’t seem to bring the team down a bit. Heading into Atlanta, Enfinger is normally strong on 1.5-mile tracks, especially if he is in prime position. The 35-year-old once again grabbed victory for win number two of the year after a thrilling finish with Austin Hill. Not only did Enfinger bring home the victory, but he also brought home a $25,000 bonus to his team that was set up by Camping World and Gander RV CEO Marcus Lemonis. After getting that victory and the added bonus, the team looks to be unstoppable right now.
2. Difficult Outing For Rowdy – When Kyle Busch is entered in a Truck race, he most certainly has a chance to win any race, especially at tracks like Atlanta where he has multiple wins. The Kyle Busch Motorsports Team owner did not dominate like he normally does but did sweep both stages again as he did in 2019. It looked as though this was going to be another victory in the win books for Busch but it all went south with late-race pit stops. The No. 51 driver was nabbed for speeding on his last stop and got caught for speeding again when he was serving his previous penalty. After serving those two penalties, Busch was caught up in an incident with Jordan Anderson and incurred damage to the No. 51 Truck. Atlanta was a forgettable race for Rowdy, as he would finish 21st, one lap down, an uncharacteristic race for Busch.
3. Ben Rhodes Makes 100th Career Start – Saturday afternoon when the engines fired was a special moment for Ben Rhodes as the Kentucky native made his 100th career start in the Truck Series in a span of six years. Rhodes went on to finish in the top-10, quietly finishing ninth. It was a milestone moment for Rhodes who has been a part of the series since making his debut at the age of 17 at Martinsville Speedway.
4. Wild Moment For Austin Wayne Self – There was a close call between AM Racing’s Austin Wayne Self and the No. 00 of Angela Ruch. It occurred when Self spun to a stop off the exit of Turn 4. This created havoc for the leaders, Busch and Chase Elliott, who had to maneuver around the No. 22 machine. However, what could have been a big moment, was avoided when Ruch, who was coming at full speed, thankfully missed the sitting vehicle of the No. 22 and went on to finish the race. Unfortunately for Self, he would wind up with a 30th place finish.
June 8, 2020
Grant Enfinger wins in overtime thriller at Atlanta
In typical Atlanta Motor Speedway fashion, there was a last-lap dash and pass to the finish in the NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series Vet Tix Camping World 200 race. This time, however, it was between Grant Enfinger and Hattori Racing Enterprises’ Austin Hill.

Hill had led up until a late caution that flew with four laps to go when Chase Elliott spun off Turn 4. When the event went back green, Hill got a good jump on the restart, but it was eventually ThorSport Racing’s Enfinger who took home the win over Hill by 0.215 seconds.

“It was definitely wild, that’s for sure,” Enfinger said. “We didn’t lead too many laps, but we led the ones that counted. It was just a unbelievable, Farmpaint Ford F-150 on the short run. We didn’t have everything that we needed to make a real run at those guys, to keep up with Chase (Elliott) and Kyle (Busch) on the long run. We were decent on the long run, but we weren’t great. On the short run, I knew if it came down to it, we could make it happen if we had a good restart.”

“Fortunately, we got a good restart,” he continued. “Austin (Hill) blocked me on the backstretch and I felt like we could probably clear him either way but I was kind of glad he went to the bottom. I never used that move, but I (had) seen Kyle (Busch) and Johnny (Sauter) be successful with that same move. From there, it was just a matter of holding him (Hill) off and we had the speed to do that.”

Stages 30-30-70 made up the 130 lapper for the fourth race of the season with a competition caution on lap 15. Kyle Busch Motorsports driver, Christian Eckes, drew the pole earlier in the week while Tyler Ankrum of GMS Racing drew outside pole.

Stage 1: Lap 1 – Lap 30

Eckes led early on but the race was slowed a couple of times by the No. 28 of Bryan Dauzat. Dauzat spun around twice, once on Lap 2, and a second time on Lap 12. Eventually, Dauzat would be out of the race, due to the damaged vehicle policy.

Before the competition yellow, KBM teammates, Eckes and Kyle Busch traded the lead. When the yellow flew, Johnny Sauter, Zane Smith, Brennan Poole, Stewart Friesen, and Ankrum were among the drivers to pit under yellow.

As the race went back green on Lap 16, Eckes got ahead for the lead but Busch took the top spot on Lap 24. KBM Team Owner Busch went on to win Stage 1 with Elliott, Eckes, Smith, Hill, Brett Moffitt, Sheldon Creed, Ross Chastain, Sauter, and Enfinger rounding out the top-10.

When the leaders pitted, there was a log jam on pit road and a collision. Ryan Truex, who was ahead of John Hunter Nemechek, checked up which caused Nemechek to run into the back of the No. 40 truck. Seasoned veteran, Matt Crafton also received front-end damage to his No. 88 machine after the incident and Nemechek had left-rear quarter panel damage to his Truck as well.

However, Sauter and Chastain were too fast on pit road and Angela Ruch was penalized for pitting outside the box. TJ Bell was also penalized for improper fueling. Zane Smith did not elect to pit, stayed out and was deemed the new leader for the Stage 2 restart.

Stage 2: Lap 36 – Lap 60

After staying out hoping for track position, Smith fell back and was almost run over by drivers with fresher tires in the back.

Last week’s winner, Elliott, took the lead on Lap 38 and held it until Lap 51 when Busch once again made his way to the top of the leaderboard. The two traded positions before a caution halted the field when Austin Wayne Self in the No. 22 was stopped sideways off Turn 4. A few drivers, including Ruch, had to make some extra moves to avoid the sitting truck.

When the stage restarted with four to go, there wasn’t much of a challenge for Busch and he took the stage win. Enfinger, Kraus, Chastain, Gilliland, Eckes, Sauter, Raphael Lessard, Crafton, and Hill completed the top-10 finishers in the second stage.

Stage 3: Lap 66 – Lap 136

The final stage saw the longest green-flag run of the day with 62 laps. Busch took the lead from Niece Motorsports’ Chastain with 44 to go and it looked as though he would set sail.

The final round of green-flag pit stops began with 35 to go with Chastain the first to start the sequence. Busch pitted from the lead one lap later. Meanwhile, Elliott had troubles slowing when he tried to pit and was forced to make an extra lap.

When Busch pitted, he was too fast on pit road and was given a penalty. As Busch re-entered the track, he nearly got into the No. 3 of Jordan Anderson in Turns 3 and 4. However, the No. 51 Cessna Tundra, was too fast again on pit road when Busch served the initial penalty. Receiving two penalties in a row would eventually end Busch’s chances of winning the race.

After that, Georgia native Hill was in prime position as he inherited the lead during the pit stop cycle. He appeared to be on his way to score the big victory until Elliott went spinning around in the No. 24 Hooters machine off Turn 4 with four to go, setting up an overtime restart.

There were some questions as to whether Hill would pit and everyone else would stay out or if Hill stayed out and everyone else would pit. However, all the lead lap trucks pitted under the final yellow.

Eventually, a two-lap dash to the finish ensued and anybody inside the top five had a chance to win. But when it came down to it, Enfinger and Hill were the two trying to get to the finish line first. Enfinger was on the outside while Hill was on the inside. Enfinger was able to get Hill loose just enough to take the lead and would score the first Atlanta victory of his career.

In 2020, Enfinger has earned two wins early in the season.

“Obviously, it started at Daytona,” he said. “Superspeedways can be so crazy and hit and miss. It’s something I like though. The fact we won at Daytona and I shouldn’t say this, but shouldn’t be the reason we won today. That, however, changes our mindset at the shop even before we get here. Like my spotter, Chris Lambert said, ‘we won this race at the shop.’ Some of those guys can’t even celebrate with me right now, so we won this for the shop. We might not have made the same move, had we not won (at Daytona) and we would be points racing. Thankfully, we get to take some of Marcus Lemonis’ (CEO of Gander RV and Camping World) money home to those who deserve it.”

Enfinger led twice for seven laps and now has four career victories. Not only did the Alabama native score his fourth career victory, he and the team picked up the $25,000 bonus from Marcus Lemonis.

There were six cautions for 28 laps and 14 lead changes among seven different drivers.

Note: Following the post-race inspection, Sauter’s 17th place finish was disqualified due to an unspecified tire modification. He was relegated to last place in the finishing order. This moves everyone who finished after him up one spot in the results.

Official Results
1. Grant Enfinger, led seven laps
2. Austin Hill, led 36 laps
3. Christian Eckes, 18 laps
4. Todd Gilliland
5. Zane Smith, led five laps
6. Ross Chastain, led 17 laps
7. Derek Kraus
8. Brett Moffitt
9. Ben Rhodes
10. Stewart Friesen
11. Tanner Gray
12. Matt Crafton
13. Ryan Truex
14. Sheldon Creed
15. Tyler Ankrum
16. Jeb Burton
17. Johnny Sauter – DQ – Officially scored in last place
18. Brennan Poole
19. Raphael Lessard
20. Ty Majeski, one lap down
21. Chase Elliott, one lap down
22. Kyle Busch, one lap down
23. Timmy Hill, one lap down
24. Cory Roper, one lap down
25. John Hunter Nemechek, one lap down
26. Spencer Davis, two laps down
27. Clay Greenfield, two laps down
28. Spencer Boyd, two laps down
29. Angela Ruch, two laps down
30. Korbin Forrister, two laps down
31. Austin Wayne Self, four laps down
32. Tate Fogleman, four laps down
33. Bayley Currey, five laps down
34. Codie Rohrbaugh, six laps down
35. Gray Gaulding, seven laps down
36. Jesse Little, nine laps down
37. Jennifer Jo Cobb, OUT, Too Slow
38. Jordan Anderson, OUT, Crash
39. TJ Bell, OUT, Clutch
40. Bryan Dauzat, OUT, Damage Vehicle Policy
June 6, 2020