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NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series Power Rankings-Eldora
Last Thursday, the NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series visited Eldora Speedway for their 15th race of the season and saw an unfamiliar face in victory lane.

While some have criticized the race for not being as exciting as it has been in years past, some drivers earned a much-needed points day, others had a disappointing night and one finally got to victory lane.

Here’s a look at this week’s power rankings.
1. Stewart Friesen – Worst to first for Friesen in one week as he finally earned his first career win in four years and 63 starts after being so close multiple times. With the win, he finally locks himself into the Playoffs and could potentially be a threat in the postseason if he keeps this pace up. Friesen dominated the race leading 57 of the 150 laps, despite not winning any stages. It will be interesting to see if the Canadian can keep this run going and start to heat up when it counts. He can’t afford any more finishes like he had at Pocono the week before.
  
  Previous Week Ranking – Not Ranked
2. Grant Enfinger – Enfinger came close to getting that elusive win on Thursday night after falling short in a close battle the year before. The No. 98 team placed third after starting 15th. While he didn’t lead any laps, Enfinger had a decent finish of fifth in the second stage. Coming out of Eldora, he still remains the regular-season points leader over teammate Matt Crafton by 52 points. With Michigan being the season finale this weekend, something catastrophic will have to happen to Enfinger in order for him not to win the regular title.
  
  Previous Week Ranking – Not Ranked
3. Sheldon Creed – Creed almost became a wild card in last week’s race by coming up one spot short. He worked hard all night, finishing fourth in Stage 1 while not earning any stage points in Stage 2. Now, Creed will have to win on Saturday at Michigan in order to put himself in the Playoffs. The second-place finish was his first top-five of the season.
  
  Previous Week Ranking- Not Ranked
4. Todd Gilliland – A much needed fourth place for Gilliland who came close to winning the Dirt Derby last Thursday. Still, it’s not going to be enough to point his way into the Playoffs without a lot of help. In the race, Gilliland started eighth, finished second in Stage 1 and seventh in Stage 2 while he finished fifth overall. He will have to have a great run on Saturday with some help from others to fight for the championship.
  
  Previous Week Ranking – Not Ranked
5. Tyler Dippel – A somewhat surprising eighth-place finish for Dippel, who is really not a dirt expert. He bested last year’s finish of 13th to have his career-best finish last Thursday. Dippel finished ninth in Stage 2 before earning his second top-10 of the year. Unfortunately, it’s win or go home for Dippel and the No. 02 Youngs Motorsports team this week at Michigan.
  
  Previous Week Ranking – Not Ranked
  
  Fell Out
  
  1. Ross Chastain – A difficult night for Chastain and his No. 45 Niece Motorsports team who finished 12th after being in the top five at one point in the race. The Floridian lead no laps and finished ninth, and sixth in both stages, respectively. It was a different week for Chastain after coming off a strong dominant win at Pocono the week before. However, he is locked into the Playoffs at this point sitting 14th in the regular-season standings with three wins.
  
  Previous Week Ranking – First
  
  2. Harrison Burton- Speaking of disappointing nights, it was one for Burton and his No. 18 Kyle Busch Motorsports team. Burton caused a caution on Lap 57 when he spun on the backstretch collecting some damage to his truck. After the incident, Burton could never really rebound from it and wound up 31st.
  
  Previous Week Ranking – Second
  
  3. Brett Moffitt – A struggle for Moffitt and his No. 24 GMS Racing team after being involved in a big wreck in Turn 1 on Lap 65. Like Burton, Moffitt never had the chance to have a better finish and finished 29th after starting third. On the bright side, the Grimes, Iowa native did finish third in Stage 1 but did not earn any stage points in Stage 2. Moffitt looks forward to Michigan, the site where he won in a thrilling finish last year against Johnny Sauter making a last-lap pass.
  
  Previous Week Ranking – Third
  
  4. Tyler Ankrum- It was a ninth-place finish for Ankrum and the No. 17 DGR-Crosley team after starting 26th. The No. 17 team did not win any stage points despite their top-10 effort.
  
  Previous Week Ranking – Fourth
  
  5. Matt Crafton- Hard to believe, it’s been two years now without a win for Crafton and his No. 88 ThorSport Racing team. The California native started the night well on the outside pole but wound up with a 10th place finish. Crafton finished fifth and third in both stages, respectively. Still, the finish could probably have been somewhat better for the No. 88 team who is facing pressure to get into the Playoffs with just one race remaining.
  
  Honorable Mention
  
  1. Mike Marlar – Marlar earned a fourth-place finish in his first-ever career Truck Series start at Eldora after qualifying in the 23rd position. It’s the same truck that Josh Reaume owns and got them the publicity the team deserves. At one point, Marlar found himself contending for the lead but had to settle for a top five finish. He was able to finish eighth in Stage 2. It shouldn’t be surprising to dirt fans, however, as he competes regularly in the Super Late Model Racing Series. In fact, Marlar went to victory lane in Tennessee in the series just a few days after his Truck Series debut.
August 5, 2019
Friesen survives, wins his first career race at Eldora

It took 437 laps led and 63 starts but finally, Stewart Friesen is a winner in the Gander Outdoors Truck Series. Friesen had to hold off Sheldon Creed and company to win the Dirt Derby at Eldora Speedway.

“Thank you to all the race fans that stuck with us, that kept pulling for us,” Friesen said after he got out of his truck in Victory Lane. “Everybody that came to my hauler and thought that this is the week. Today, this is the day. This is part of it!”

“Just thanks to all these race fans. This was meant to be.”

Friesen was on the last spot in the Truck championship but with the win, he is locked into the field of eight for the Truck Series Playoffs that will start in Bristol.

Sheldon Creed came home with a career-best finish of second followed by Grant Enfinger and Mike Marlar, a dirt regular, who came home fourth. Kyle Bisch Motorsports driver Todd Gilliland came home in fifth.

Chase Briscoe and Matt Crafton started on the front row and they are no strangers to being up front on the dirt. Briscoe won this race last year with Crafton winning the year before. Briscoe led from wire to wire even though the stage was slowed by two quick cautions. Landon Huffman who is subbing for Spencer Boyd spun it around. Then Jake Griffin spun it around as well right after the green flag waved from the Huffman spin. When it was all said and done it was Briscoe winning the stage followed by Gilliland, Brett Moffitt, Creed and Crafton to round out the top five.

Stage 2:

Most of the leaders decided to stay out after the stage break with the exception of Gilliland and Moffitt while Briscoe continued to dominate as he did in the first stage. Also like the first stage, some yellows disrupted the flow of the action. Harrison Burton spun his truck around on Lap 57 and the dirt version of “The Big One” happened on Lap 65 which involved Austin Hill, Burton, Christian Eckes, Carson Hocevar, Colt Gilliam and more. Many were able to continue but for Hill and Gilliam, their nights were over.

The action and the yellows did not stop though as the No. 34 of Mason Massey spun it around on Lap 76 when he got a cut tire. Creed spun it after they went back to green after the Massey spin but there was no yellow waved.

Like the first stage though it was all Briscoe as he went wire to wire to win the stage.

Final Stage:

Friesen stayed out while Briscoe and Crafton, among others, went in to pit after the stage ended. With going in to pit Briscoe restarted 12th while Friesen led the field to green to start the final stage. Friesen started to pull away but it was all for nothing due to the No. 45 of Chastain spinning right in front of the field. But somehow, someway, all of the field escaped without hitting Chastain’s truck.

There were a few more incidents after this one including a yellow that featured three wrecks in one. First, the No. 54 of Kyle Strickler spun trying to navigate the high side and before that the No. 32 of Devin Dodson and the No. 10 of Jennifer Jo Cobb. Last but not least Johnny Sauter and Briscoe got connected after the Strickler spin. Norm Benning spun with 31 laps to go after they went back to green following the multiple trucks that spun in the previous caution. The fun didn’t stop there as Dodson spun it around again with 17 laps to go.

Briscoe was a man on a mission but he tried a little bit too hard and spun out with nine laps to go while battling Creed for fifth. Briscoe went on to finish seventh.

There is only one race left to make the field of eight for the Gander Outdoors Truck Series Championship and that will be determined by the race in Michigan, a week from Saturday (August 3), on FS1.

August 1, 2019
NASCAR Schedule for Eldora and Watkins Glen

The NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series heads to Eldora Speedway this week for the Eldora Dirt Derby. This will be the seventh race at the half-mile dirt track for the series. Chase Briscoe, coming off an Xfinity Series victory last weekend at Iowa Speedway, will return to Eldora with ThorSport Racing in his first start in the Truck Series this season to defend last year’s win.

The Monster Energy Cup Series and the Xfinity Series travel to Watkins Glen this weekend. Chase Elliott will return to defend his Cup Series win. Joey Logano won last year’s Zippo 200 at the Glen but will not be competing in this year’s Xfinity race.

All times are Eastern.

Wednesday, July 31 – Eldora Speedway

7:05 p.m.: Truck Series First Practice – No TV
9:05 p.m.: Truck Series Final Practice – No TV

Thursday, August 1 – Eldora Speedway

7 p.m.: Truck Series Qualifying – Five qualifying races, 10 laps each – Last Chance Race, 15 laps – FS1 (caution laps do not count)

The top five trucks in each heat race will transfer into the Dirt Derby. Those that did not advance to the feature will compete in the Last Chance Race to determine the remaining positions in the lineup.

9 p.m.: Eldora Dirt Derby Truck Series Race – Stages 40/90/150 Laps = 75 Miles – FS1/MRN/ SiriusXM NASCAR Radio

Friday, August 2 – Watkins Glen

12:35 p.m.: Xfinity Series First Practice – No TV
2:05 p.m.: Xfinity Series Final Practice – No TV

Saturday, August 3 – Watkins Glen

10:35 a.m.: Cup Series First Practice – NBCSN/MRN
11:40 A.M.: Xfinity Series Qualifying – Multi-Vehicle/Two Rounds – NBCSN
1:05 p.m.: Cup Series Final Practice – NBCSN/MRN
3 p.m.: Xfinity Series Zippo 200 Race – NBC/MRN/SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
6:40 P.M.: Cup Series Qualifying – Multi-Vehicle/Two Rounds – NBCSN/MRN

Sunday, August 4 – Watkins Glen

3 p.m.: Cup Series Go Bowling at the Glen Race – NBCSN/MRN/SiriusXM NASCAR Radio

Follow @angiecampbell_ for the latest NASCAR news and feature stories.

July 31, 2019
NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series Preview-Eldora
The time has come for one of the Truck Series most popular races of the year, The Eldora Dirt Derby. It will mark the 15th race of the 2019 Truck Series season as the race to the Playoffs heats up. We will also see some dirt regulars mixing it up with the big boys on the dirt track.

Flashing back, Ross Chastain won this past weekend at Pocono for his third win of the year. He sits 18th in the regular-season standings and more than likely will compete in the Truck Series Playoffs when they began in a couple of weeks at Bristol. However, Chastain doesn’t have much dirt experience and does not have any starts at Eldora.

With that said, Eldora may be a curveball to his Niece Motorsports crew but with practice time ahead of Thursday night’s race, Chastain and his No. 45 team will hopefully have time to figure it out.

While Chastain pretty much has a championship spot locked up, other drivers are still on the outside looking in. With Eldora being a bit of a wildcard race, the Truck Series regulars will be hoping to have a smooth race and clinch their spot in the playoffs Thursday night.

Here’s a look at who might win Thursday night’s Eldora Dirt Derby 150.
1. Matt Crafton – Hard to believe, but it’s been two years since Crafton last won a race in the Truck Series but Eldora just might be the place where he can snap that long winless streak that began two years ago. The California native has six starts at Eldora, winning the 2017 race and finishing fourth in last year’s race. Other finishes include a 10th in 2016, ninth twice in 2015 and 2014, and eighth in the first race here in 2013. The Menards driver has two top-fives and six top-10 finishes along with 24 laps led, with zero DNFs. Crafton has also been racing his dirt modified recently to gain practice for the Truck Series race at Eldora. Look for the two-time champion to be hungry for a win on Thursday night.
2. Chase Briscoe – You can’t count out last year’s winner Briscoe, who returns for another start at Eldora with ThorSport Racing piloting the No. 27 Ford. Briscoe won in a thriller last year with his teammate Grant Enfinger. The Mitchell, Indiana native is a stand out on dirt having competed in 410 sprint cars before making a career jump to stock cars. Briscoe also competed in the 2017 race for Brad Keselowski, finishing third. In 2017, he finished fourth in Stage 1. In 2018, he finished third in Stage 1 and won the second stage. Despite winning in a thriller, Briscoe was dominant leading 54 laps. Never count out the dirt stand out that is seeking another win in a one-off.
3. Stewart Friesen – When you’re talking about dirt racing, you can’t exclude another dirt star Friesen. While not competing in the Truck Series on a regular basis, Friesen is busy racing his big-block modified in the Northeast, particularly in the Super DIRTcar Series. The Canadian native has more than 260 wins on dirt and is normally racing every night at a dirt track. Eldora is also a special place for Friesen, as it was the site of his Truck Series debut in 2016. Since that time span, he has amassed 62 starts, 19 top-fives and 30 top-10 finishes with 437 laps led, and has been a perennial runner up multiple times. After having wrecked out on the first lap in last weekend’s race at Pocono, Friesen will look to turn it around Thursday night with a win. At Eldora, he has three starts with a best finish of second in 2017 after starting on the pole. Other stats include 94 laps led and two top-five finishes with one DNF. Keep an eye out on Friesen who will try to get his first win Thursday night.
4. Kyle Strickler – Despite finishing 31st in last years race, Strickler returns for another start in the Truck Series with the DGR-Crosley team driving the No. 54 Toyota. Strickler has all kinds of dirt racing experience competing in Super Late Models, Dirt Modifieds, Big Block Modifieds and has countless wins on dirt tracks across the country. In the Truck Series, however, Strickler only has one start which came in last year’s race for the late Mike Mittler. Unfortunately, his night was cut short due to a crash on Lap 145. This year, Strickler will have a great chance for a shot at the win. The No. 54 truck finished fourth and fifth in both stages, respectively, in the 2018 race. Don’t be surprised if Strickler has a great run or perhaps even steals the show Thursday night.
5. Sheldon Creed – Someone that might surprise the field Thursday night is GMS Racing driver Sheldon Creed. Creed is on the outside looking in and is paired with his ARCA championship-winning crew chief again. The California native has some dirt experience competing on the tracks like DuQuoin State Fairgrounds and Illinois State Fairgrounds in the ARCA Racing Series. In 2017, Creed finished fourth at Springfield and second at DuQuoin after leading 33 laps in that race. In 2018, he finished second at Springfield after leading 28 laps and 10th at DuQuoin after starting on the pole and leading 44 laps. At Eldora, Creed’s results have been unremarkable with finishes outside the top-10; his best finish was 15th after starting sixth in last year’s race. Creed will have some work to do, but he has been on fire as of late and could use that ARCA dirt track exposure and find his way into victory lane in Thursday night’s race.
Playoff Bubble:
1. Harrison Burton – Burton only has one start at Eldora, which came in 2017. He finished 15th in that race driving for Kyle Busch Motorsports.
2. Todd Gilliland – Like Burton, Gilliland has one start with a finish of 22nd, but he did earn a sixth place in Stage 2. Gilliland will have to win the race Thursday night in order to have a shot at competing in the Playoffs.
3. Ben Rhodes – Also on the outside looking in is the No. 99 ThorSport Racing driver Ben Rhodes. Rhodes has three starts at Eldora with no finishes inside the top-10. His best finish was 23rd in his first outing, two years ago. Rhodes did start on the pole last year and led 44 laps, and winning Stage 1 before finishing 29th.
4. Tyler Dippel – Dippel has one start with a best finish of 17th.
5. Austin Wayne Self – Self has two starts at Eldora with a best finish of ninth in 2016. Last year he finished 18th after finishing 10th and fourth in both stages, respectively.
6. Gus Dean – Dean is a bit of a long shot who sits 16th in the regular-season standings. He has no starts at Eldora but does have ARCA starts at the dirt tracks of Springfield and DuQuoin. In 2017, Dean has finishes of 11th in Springfield and third at DuQuoin. In 2018, he finished seventh in Springfield after starting on the pole and leading six laps and finished 18th at DuQuoin due to a crash.
Other notables on the entry list include Jake Griffin in the No. 03 for Mike Affarano, ARCA standout Carson Hocevar making his Truck Series debut filling in for Jordan Anderson, Tim Ward in the No. 08, Colt Gilliam in the No. 8 for NEMCO Motorsports, Mike Marlar in the No. 33 for Reaume Brothers Racing and Devin Dodson in the No. 34 for Reaume Brothers Racing. Mark Smith will pilot the No. 38 for Niece Motorsports, Jeffrey Abbey will be in the No. 44 for Niece Motorsports, Christian Eckes returns again in the No. 51 for Kyle Busch Motorsports and Justin Shipley will drive the No. 80 for Jacob Wallace. The No. 74, owned by Lou Goss, has yet to be announced.

Eldora Speedway has hosted six Truck Series races since its first in 2013. Since then, there have been six different drivers that have gone on to victory lane. Those include Austin Dillon who won its first outing, Bubba Wallace, Christopher Bell, Kyle Larson, Matt Crafton and Chase Briscoe.

Qualifying will be important at Eldora as the race winner has come from inside the top five for the most part with the exception of two that came outside the top five. Dillon came from the 19th starting position in 2013, with Wallace coming from sixth in 2014 and Larson from seventh in 2016.

Toyota has the most victories in the Eldora Dirt Derby with three in 2014, 2015 and 2017. Chevrolet follows in second with two victories in 2013 and 2016. Ford only has one victory with Briscoe in 2018.

With Eldora being on a Thursday this year, there will be two Truck Series practice on Wednesday evening. First practice is scheduled for 7:05 p.m. ET with final practice set for 9:05 p.m. ET, both lasting an hour with no live TV coverage.

Qualifying will be a little different with heat races replacing the normal qualifying format. There will be five qualifying heat races Thursday, each lasting 10 laps. The first heat race is slated for 7 p.m. ET live on Fox Sports 1. Last chance qualifying, with 15 laps, takes place at 8:15 p.m. ET.

The seventh annual Eldora Dirt Derby 150 will take the green flag a little after 9 p.m. ET live on Fox Sports 1 and MRN Radio. Stages will be broken into 40/90/150 laps to make up the 75 miles distance.
July 31, 2019
NASCAR Rookie Rundown following Pocono/Iowa

With NASCAR’s national touring divisions edging closer toward their respective Playoffs, the top rookies in each division are clamoring to stake their spots in their championship races. The rookie race in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series is contained among three drivers (Ryan Preece, Daniel Hemric, and Matt Tifft) who are racing more among themselves, while Xfinity Series rookies have finally broken into the win column following Chase Briscoe’s win at Iowa.

The same can be said for the Gander Outdoors Truck Series, as Tyler Ankrum scored his first win at Kentucky, highlighting what has been an up-and-down season for the 18-year-old Californian. The win definitely gives momentum over fellow Truck standouts Sheldon Creed and Harrison Burton.

MENCS – Richard Childress Racing driver Hemric has started to come around as the season has progressed, as evidenced by his Pocono finish on Sunday where he finished seventh. His second top-10 of 2019 comes ahead of some stout runs in recent weeks where, with the exception of Kentucky and Loudon, he’s been lingering in the top-20. This includes a streak from the June Pocono race to Daytona where he finished as high as 12th, but no lower than 19th.

The No. 8 Luke Lambert-led team has had speed on the mile-and-a-half speedways, as Hemric qualified third at Chicago, but now it’s a matter of connecting the dots for Hemric as the team is still in its building phase.

Meanwhile, performance in Preece’s JTG-Daugherty Racing camp has remained a constant, running in the top-25 unless sidetracked with issues both on-track and mechanical. He’s shown that his primary strength lies in superspeedways, although his third-best finish of 2019 was a 16th at Martinsville. Other than that, it’s that consistency that might keep him from a Rookie of the Year victory. Still, being a rookie is about learning and growing, and given time Preece may become a contender. But there’s a ceiling at JTG-Daugherty, and he may be hitting it right now with Tristan Smith.

Meanwhile, at Front Row Motorsports, there is definite improvement for Tifft. He’s made it easy on his team, only being slowed by two DNFs in 21 starts, and as a result, he was able to boost his career-best finish from a 20th at Phoenix to a ninth-place run at Daytona. A recent Crew Chief swap with teammate David Ragan sent season-long CC Mike Kelley to the 34 while Seth Barbour helped lead Tifft’s No. 36 to one of its better outings of the season as they finished 23rd at Pocono, a week after the team finished 24th at Loudon.

The No. 36 Mustang has been finishing in the top-30 every race since Michigan, and although that isn’t saying much when compared to the other rookies on this, for a completely new team that was formed before the season began it’s definitely a step forward. At this rate, it isn’t unreasonable to expect regular top-25s out of that camp in the near future.

Chase Briscoe, driver of the No. 98 Ford Performance Ford, celebrates after winning the NASCAR Xfinity Series U.S. Cellular 250 at Iowa Speedway on July 27, 2019 in Newton, Iowa. Photo by Jeff Curry/Getty Images.

Xfinity – The Xfinity Series rookie race has now yielded a race winner, as Briscoe joined his Stewart-Haas Racing teammate Cole Custer as a winner this season when he won at Iowa. Briscoe is not only a weekly contender; he’s also a championship favorite now as he’s scored a win, eight top-fives, and 14 top-10s in 19 starts. He isn’t just consistent; he’s strong. He’s been in or among the leaders weekly, and there’s little doubt that Iowa will be his only win this season.

Meanwhile, the best result JR Motorsports rookie Noah Gragson has been able to put together was a second at Michigan, but considering JRM has gone from division powerhouse to not breaking into the win column yet this season isn’t Gragson’s fault. Still, four top-fives and 11 top-10s in 19 starts is nothing to frown at as a rookie. He’s only finished off of the lead lap in four races, but one of those was a sixth at Kentucky, so it isn’t for lack of effort. He’s been consistent, but the JRM strength isn’t there.

It’ll be interesting to see where the No. 11 of Justin Haley goes from this point on this season. He’s been as strong as the top rookies in the division this season, but following the death of Crew Chief Nick Harrison, the team will no doubt be faced with a firmer resolve to succeed in his honor. He’s currently ninth in points with two top-fives and 14 top-10s in 19 starts this season, including an eighth at Iowa with Interim CC Alex Yontz (who also led the team to a 10th at Michigan).

Haley came close to victory at Daytona, proving the No. 11 Kaulig Racing team has the strength and resolve to contend for wins, and as good as Haley is with his equipment (zero DNFs in 2019), it’ll be no surprise when he does score a win.

John Hunter Nemechek has had a roller coaster rookie campaign in 2019. He has three top-fives (including a second at Las Vegas) and 11 top-10s in 19 starts but sits in 10th in the standings as he’s been sidelined with three crash DNFs. He placed third at Iowa, and considering he knows what it takes to win in the series and run near the front, he’ll post more strong finishes this season.

However there’s a catch: GMS Racing’s Xfinity effort isn’t as strong as Ganassi Racing’s 2018 Xfinity effort was, as Nemechek was a Ganassi development driver when he won at Kansas last year. He can get a win, and GMS has an Xfinity Series win, and he’s come close this season to Victory Lane, but it’ll take a little more luck than it did last season to seal the deal.

Harrison Burton goes inside of GMS Racing driver Brett Moffitt at Pocono. Photo by Kirk Schroll

NGOTS – Harrison Burton still continues to lead the Truck Series rookie class with seven top-fives and nine top-10s in 14 starts, which currently leaves him fifth in points with his No. 18 Kyle Busch Motorsports team. Despite the strong showings, though, he can’t seem to finish any higher than third-place, a feat he’s accomplished four times this season.

It’s granted that Burton feels a bit of pressure in his role as a full-time rookie; he’s with a championship-winning organization that has yielded some of the hottest names in NASCAR in recent memory. There’s also pressure considering that the No. 18 is the flagship entry in an organization that has put it in Victory Lane countless times. But unlike his snake-bitten teammate Todd Gilliland, Burton stands a higher chance of placing strongly in the Playoffs and even scoring a win.

Sheldon Creed, however, is not too far behind Burton; with four top-10s he’s currently ninth in points. There’s still pressure on him as he is with a championship-winning organization as well, not to mention his teammate, defending champion Brett Moffitt, has already won twice this year. But Creed needs to exercise a modicum of balance. He’s aggressive behind the wheel, and although it’s nice that there’s a driver who is up on the wheel and ready to get the job done, he’s put himself in situations that have left him with a wrecked truck.

He’s been up front a lot in 2019 and led a lot of laps, so it’s not entirely impossible he parks it in Victory Lane by the end of the season.

Tyler Dippel has definitely been on the underdog side of things, as he’s managed to put himself in the top-15 more often than not. His season highlight so far was when he finished eighth in the first Texas race of 2019, but aside from that his No. 02 Young’s Motorsports entry has only finished outside the top-25 once this season (a crash at Daytona left him in 29th). He’s quietly consistent, and although his equipment may not be top-notch, he’s posting good, solid results that could land him a ride with a solid team down the road.

Tyler Ankrum, on the other hand, got a late start on the season driving for DGR-Crosley Racing, and he’s making up for it in spades. Despite losing a sponsor and being relegated to a couple of appearances in Joe Nemechek’s No. 87, he’s scored a win at Kentucky as well as three top-fives and five top-10s. At Pocono on Saturday he put his No. 17 Toyota in the runner-up spot to Ross Chastain, scoring his second-straight top-two finish, thus showing that the young Californian means business.

Ankrum keeps his equipment together and stays out of wrecks (his save at Texas in June was nothing short of legendary), and considering the No. 17 has momentum he could very well win again this season. If their sponsorship issues can get squared up soon, he could post some more strong results when the Playoffs come around.

July 30, 2019
Four Takeaways from the NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series
The NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series visited Pocono Raceway in Long Pond, Pennsylvania this past weekend. Some might say it was an exciting race in regards to track position while others think that it might have been the least exciting race of the season. Despite that, a few drivers who don’t run the series full time earned great finishes, quite possibly their career-best for some.

This week the Truck Series heads to the famous Eldora Speedway on Thursday where the regulars will compete with the dirt track invaders, who normally have a good shot at winning, thanks to their dirt racing backgrounds. But let’s not get too far ahead of ourselves for the Thursday night Truck Series race.

Here are four takeaways from the Gander RV 150 at Pocono.
1. Ross Chastain Championship Favorite – Chastain picked up his third win of the 2019 season this past Saturday, collecting another popular win among the fans. He has quickly become a rising star over the past year. For those fans who don’t have a favorite driver in the series, Chastain is someone that those fans can cheer for. After doing a burnout, the Florida native got out of his truck and grabbed an inflatable watermelon, tossing it to the fans in the stands, showing his appreciation for them. Chastain is also a championship favorite now with three wins in the series. It will be interesting to see if he can continue this momentum into the playoffs.
2. Too Short Of A Race – I’ve said this again and I’ll state it again, it was too short of a race. Sixty laps does not give the drivers much time to get to the front in order to make something happen. It’s especially true when you have short stages of only 15 laps each for the first two stages, even when the first stage saw only seven green flag laps. That’s not much action for the fans to see. Stage 2 was a little better as we saw no cautions, but still, defending series champion Brett Moffitt noted that it was difficult to pass and it was all about track position. The PJ1 never really was a factor either. Hopefully, with the new schedule announcement this past weekend and the newly adjusted amount of laps, it will give next year’s race more action.
3. TV Coverage – I’m normally not one to complain about the TV coverage, but Saturday’s race broadcast was not the best. Don’t get me wrong, I am thankful we have someone covering the whole Truck Series season in what is quite possibly the most exciting series in NASCAR right now. However, the telecast from this past weekend was somewhat disappointing. Whenever there is a race on FOX, it helps give these guys the exposure they need and attracts fans as well, such as those who don’t normally get Fox Sports 1. Unfortunately, we were flooded with commercials, especially late in the going and even missed two restarts. I’m not saying Saturday’s telecast was unwatchable, but there is room for improvement.
4. ThorSport Racing Salvages A Great Day – In what looked liked it was going to be a disastrous day for ThorSport Racing, they were able to turn it around by the time the checkered flag flew. Johnny Sauter had some damage after his contact with Bayley Currey on a restart and had to pit to repair it. Sauter made the best of his situation to finish eighth after starting 16th. Matt Crafton was the highest finisher out of the group, finishing sixth despite at one point running as high as third and having a shot to snap his long winless streak. Ben Rhodes started 15th could only finish fourth in Stage 2, before winding up ninth in his sporty No. 99 Havoline Ford. Regular series points leader Grant Enfinger finished sixth and third in both stages, respectively only to come home to finish 10th. Not the best day for the Ohio based group, but they were still able to make the most out of it.
July 29, 2019
NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series Power Rankings- Pocono
The NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series came to Pocono Raceway on Saturday afternoon for their 14th race of the 2019 season with just three races remaining until the Playoffs begin at Bristol Motor Speedway in a few weeks.

Drivers like Harrison Burton, Ben Rhodes, Todd Gilliland, Sheldon Creed, Tyler Dippel, Spencer Boyd, Jordan Anderson and Stewart Friesen were hoping to have a good points day or perhaps grab a win at “The Tricky Triangle” to solidify their spot in the Playoffs.

It was action-packed from the start, as we saw most of Stage 1 run under yellow with two cautions. There was even an accident between Friesen and Anthony Alfredo on the first lap. Friesen was unfortunately done for the day after the incident and finished last.

After those two incidents, it was clean and green for the remainder of the race barring the two stage cautions that took place. Fan-favorite Ross Chastain was able to take home the win after completely dominating the race.

Drivers who were coming into the Gander RV 150 on the bubble, still find themselves on the outside looking in. Now the series heads to one of its most popular races of the year, Eldora Speedway, Thursday night.

Before we get there, however, it’s time to take a look at this week’s power rankings following Pocono.
1. Ross Chastain – No surprise here with Chastain taking home the win for the third time this season. The Florida native put a butt whopping on the field leading twice for 54 of the 60 laps. The only time he was never out front was Stage 2, where Chastain made a pit stop in that stage in order to restart out front for the final stage. He is more than likely locked in at this point but the team is searching for some additional sponsorship for the rest of the year. However, Chastain also stated they are good for the Playoffs and just need some help.
  
  Previous Week Ranking – Second
2. Harrison Burton – Burton was able to grab a much-needed points day at Pocono, facing possible elimination for the Playoffs. The Kyle Busch Motorsports driver qualified sixth on Friday afternoon. From there, Burton finished third in Stage 1 and won Stage 2. He was able to lead six laps before finishing third. Burton will face some challenges this week as he heads to Eldora for the first time since 2017, where he finished 15th.
  
  Previous Week Ranking – Third
3. Brett Moffitt – While disappointed with his fifth-place finish Saturday afternoon, Moffitt was able to up his finish from his disappointing outing at Kentucky a few weeks back. The Grimes, Iowa native started fourth, finished fifth and second in both stages, respectively. Still, Moffitt was frustrated with not being able to pass. It was his sixth top-five of the season.
  
  Previous Week Ranking – Fourth
4. Tyler Ankrum – The Kentucky winner followed up with a second-place finish and was close to winning again. Ankrum finished 10th in Stage 1 while not earning any stage points in Stage 2. While the race was winding down, Ankrum found himself chasing down race leader Chastain with less than 15 to go. Chastain started to save a little bit of fuel, which allowed the DGR-Crosley driver to close in. Ankrum then had to save fuel and back off until he was clear to chase after Chastain. Despite his efforts, Ankrum fell one second short of the win. It was Ankrum’s third top-five of the season.
  
  Previous Week Ranking – Not Ranked
5. Matt Crafton – Speaking of much-needed points day, Crafton finished sixth in his No. 88 Menards Ford F-150 after running as high as third late. The California native qualified eighth, finished 11th in Stage 1 and fifth in Stage 2. With help of track position, Crafton was close to taking the lead of the race. However, he’ll have to wait until Eldora on Thursday night for another chance, where it will mark one year since his last win in the series.
  
  Previous Week Ranking – Not Ranked
  
  Fell Out
  
  1. Stewart Friesen – Tough day for Friesen and his No. 52 Halmar Racing team who didn’t even make a lap in the race. It all started on Lap 1 when Friesen got loose and went crashing up the hill, receiving major damage to his truck. The damage was too extensive to repair and he finished last, not even being able to complete one lap. Friesen will have to hope his dirt racing background pays off in Thursday’s night race at Eldora.
  
  Previous Week Ranking- First
  
  2. Austin Wayne Self – There is not much to be said for the Texan coming out of this race. Wayne Self competed in the ARCA race Friday afternoon in preparation for Saturday’s Truck race. He qualified 18th, finished 10th in Stage 2 and then wound up with a disappointing 15th place outing.
  
  Previous Week Ranking – Fifth
  
  Honorable Mention
  
  1. Christian Eckes – Eckes won the ARCA race Friday afternoon, dominating the event. Shortly after, he jumped straight into a Kyle Busch Motorsports truck to qualify 13th. The nearby New York native finished seventh in Stage 1 and 22nd in Stage 2 after making a pit stop in the stage. In the end, Eckes wound up fourth.
  
  2. Tony Mrakovich – Looking down the running order, Truck Series fans will see the Pennsylvania native finishing 12th for NEMCO Motorsports. It was just the second Truck Series race of the year for the young 20-year-old and his best finish yet. Mrakovich competed in his family-owned team at Martinsville and Dover earlier this season but failed to qualify. His only other finish was 26th at Fort Worth.
  
  3. Tyler Dippel – Dippel came close to earning his second career top-10 finish Saturday afternoon. He finished ninth in Stage 1 and seventh in Stage 2. Ultimately, the Youngs Motorsports driver came home 11th, just one spot short of the top-10. Dippel is one of the drivers that will have to win in the next two races in order to make the Playoffs.
July 29, 2019
Ross Chastain puts on clinic at Pocono, takes home popular win
With fuel no longer a concern when it came to crunch time, fan-favorite Ross Chastain was able to take home his third checkered flag of the 2019 season and becomes more of a threat for the championship.

“This thing was “Haulin Ballz” all day. Nick Harrison, I miss that guy,” Chastain said in his post-race interview. “These guys brought a flawless truck. The only time we didn’t lead laps was when we pitted to keep our track position. Flawless day, flawless weekend. These guys set up the fastest truck, they get to drive home because we’re not on the budget today. We came and we won, so it’s a dream come true.”

Austin Hill won the pole during qualifying Friday afternoon with Ross Chastain on the outside pole.

Stage 1 Lap 1- Lap 15

The Gander RV 150 got off to an eventful start on the first lap, as Stewart Friesen’s truck snapped loose, wrecking and hit the Turn 1 wall. Friesen would wind up in last place.

Friesen commented added, “Not really sure (regarding the incident), spun around and made contact with the wall. We had a lot of family out here today and we are really disappointed. I’m usually optimistic, but not really sure right now.”

Just as soon as the race restarted on Lap 5, another caution flag flew for the No. 28 of Bryan Dauzat who spun in Turn 1. Bayley Currey also spun around after the Lap 8 restart but no caution was flown as the race remained green. Johnny Sauter would have to make a pit stop due to contact with Currey after the restart.

These were the only three incidents that took place in the first stage. Stage 1 eventually saw Florida native Ross Chastain take the stage win.

Stage 2 Lap 19- Lap 30

With some pit strategy, Harrison Burton stayed out along with Chastain, Sheldon Creed, Brett Moffitt, Christian Eckes and Todd Gilliland.

The second stage was not as eventful as Stage 1 but still had some notable incidents. Right after the green flag dropped for Stage 2, Creed hit the wall on the backstretch after slight contact with Eckes and Creed had to make a pit stop for right front damage.

Pole sitter Austin Hill also had his own issues, as clutch problems would eventually take him out of the race on Lap 22. More strategy broke out just a few laps later, that saw Chastain pitting from the lead along with Eckes and Tyler Ankrum.

By staying out, Burton collected a much-needed Stage win in hopes of making it into the playoffs, earning 10 playoff points.

Stage 3 Lap 34- Lap 60

Chastain was able to recycle as the race leader when the race went back green, as other drivers pitted under the Stage break. From that point on, even with saving a little bit of fuel in case of a green-white-checkered overtime, the Niece Motorsports driver had enough in the tank to take home his third checkered flag of the season, his first since Gateway.

“It all starts with the top of our team,” Chastain added in his post-race interview with MRN Radio describing the victory. “Al Niece (Team Owner), his motto is “Press The Attack”, he is a marine vet. He has done more in his life than I ever could imagine. This whole country could never thank a guy like him enough. But that’s what he instills in us. After everything happened in Iowa, we came back mad and won again. We were mad this week, losing Nick Harrison. Honestly, it’s not fair. Everyone goes to the lord when it’s their time.”

“But man it feels good (to win), yes it’s hard. I’ve had dominant trucks and not won, so to put it all together, it’s so tough. I’m just living my dream.”

With this win, Chastain earned the third victory of his Truck Series career. Chastain led twice for 54 laps and earned six playoff points.
1. Ross Chastain
2. Tyler Ankrum
3. Harrison Burton
4. Christian Eckes
5. Brett Moffitt
6. Matt Crafton
7. Todd Gilliland
8. Johnny Sauter
9. Ben Rhodes
10. Grant Enfinger
11. Tyler Dippel
12. Tony Mrakovich
13. Jordan Anderson
14. Gus Dean
15. Austin Wayne Self
16. Natalie Decker
17. Mason Massey IV
18. Spencer Boyd
19. Ray Ciccarelli, One Lap Down
20. Josh Reaume, One Lap Down
21. Jennifer Jo Cobb, One Lap Down
22. Norm Benning, Two Laps Down
23. Bayley Currey, Two Laps Down
24. Bryan Dauzat, Two Laps Down
25. Sheldon Creed, Four Laps Down
26. TJ Bell, 27 Laps Down
27. Bryant Barnhill, 34 Laps Down
28. Joe Nemechek, 36 Laps Down
29. Daniel Sasnett, 39 Laps Down
30. Austin Hill, 39 Laps Down, OUT
31. Anthony Alfredo OUT
32. Stewart Friesen OUT
Up Next: The NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series inches closer to the start of their Playoffs by heading to one of their most famous races of the year, The Eldora Dirt Derby on Thursday, August 1.
July 27, 2019
Ankrum, Burton round out top three finishers at Pocono

Coming off a big win at Kentucky a couple of weeks ago, DGR-Crosley driver Tyler Ankrum was hoping to carry that momentum to Pocono Raceway, a track he has never raced on before Friday.

Ankrum qualified his No. 17 Truck in the ninth position after Friday’s qualifying session, giving him some decent track position. From there, all Ankrum and the DGR-Crosley team could do is hope to move forward and they did just that.

After an eventful first couple of laps, the California native was able to miss all the drama that took place early. In fact, Ankrum avoided all the turmoil throughout the race, finishing 10th in Stage 1 and 21st in Stage 2 after pitting to gain track position for the third and final stage.

Ankrum restarted on the front row alongside eventual race winner Ross Chastain. He was able to get close to Chastain with 13 to go, with the leader saving a little bit of fuel in case of a caution. But ultimately, Ankrum wound up finishing second. Still, it was an impressive performance at a track he had never raced on before.

“I fought myself there at the beginning of the race,” Ankrum said to MRN Radio in his post-race interview. “I was just kind of stepping on my own toes, overdriving the racecar. That’s really easy to do here (at Pocono). You know, you don’t really feel over driving the truck, but the lap times show it. As soon as I could fix myself, it was smooth sailing from there. I burned my tires up trying to chase Ross (Chastain) down, couldn’t get close enough to him in the draft, but just kind of ping-ponged right there.”

“You know, awesome Toyota Tundra, gotta thank Railblaza, DGR-Crosley and all the people who helped me get here.”

With the second-place finish, it gave Ankrum his second top-five of the season.

For Harrison Burton and company, it was a much-needed finish and a great points day for the No. 18 Kyle Busch Motorsports team who is facing the possibility of missing the Playoffs. (Photo by Kirk Schroll/SpeedwayMedia.com.)

Burton came into Pocono sitting right outside the cutoff line and was hoping to have a good day, and he did indeed have just that.

Burton finished third in Stage 1 and after staying out for Stage 2, he was able to win that stage by not pitting under the first stage break and gained some playoff points.

For Stage 3, Burton restarted ninth and had to really work his way up to the front without any cautions. The No. 18 KBM driver was able to do so, finishing in the third position.

“We had a really good truck, we were really fast,” Burton explained to MRN Radio. “It was fun, we had to charge through the field there. We started ninth on the last restart and just had to go. Just ran out of time there at the end, just frustrating. Those guys had good strategy and we were cutting it close there on fuel. I knew they were riding around a little bit, thinking I could get to them. Driving as hard as I could there at the end and driving my butt off at the end, just couldn’t come our way.”

It was Burton’s seventh top five of the season.

July 27, 2019
Eckes and Moffitt content with top-five finish at Pocono

After winning the ARCA race Friday afternoon at Pocono, Christian Eckes had to jump straight into the famed No.51 Kyle Busch Motorsports to compete in the Truck Series.

With the ARCA Menards Series win, the nearby Middletown, New York native was hoping to take the sweep at “The Tricky Triangle.”

Eckes started 13th at Pocono Raceway and eventually made his way up to the front. In Stage 1, he finished seventh while finishing outside the top-10 in Stage 2 after making a pit stop late in the stage to gain some track position in hopes of winning the race.

After pitting, Eckes restarted fourth for the final stage after staying out under the stage break.

It was clean and green for the rest of the way, and with fuel being somewhat of a concern for the race leaders, Eckes came home fourth.

“You know, it was a pretty good weekend overall,” Eckes said to MRN in his post-race interview. “I wish we could have swept the weekend a little bit, but you know, as a whole, the race was pretty exciting. It was a great weekend and it’s something we can build on for the next two races at KBM.”

Although Eckes was happy with his top-five finish, GMS Racing driver, Brett Moffitt was frustrated after finishing fifth.

Photo by Kirk Schroll for SpeedwayMedia.com.

Moffitt was hoping to put the Kentucky race behind him after running out of gas on the last lap in hopes of taking the checkered flag at Pocono.

The GMS Racing driver qualified his No. 24 Chevy in the fourth spot and placed fifth in Stage 1 and second in Stage 2.

He would restart seventh for the final stage but never could catch the lucky break or caution he needed in order to have a shot at the win. In the end, he finished fifth, earning his eighth top-five of the season.

“Very uneventful day here at Pocono,” Moffitt said to MRN Radio. “It’s frustrating, it’s so spread out, the PJ1 didn’t really come into play at all which was unfortunate. I applaud NASCAR on trying something, but we need to do something to make the racing better here. It’s just all about track position, getting out front and staying out front.”

“All in all, we had a pretty good No. 24 Chevy Accessories GMS Silverado. Jerry (Baxter, Crew Chief) and everyone did a great job working on what we had. It felt like we were fighting on some type of engine issue or driveline issue, where I couldn’t make runs on guys like they could get on me. It just plagued us all race on, I wasn’t able to be aggressive.”

July 27, 2019