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NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series news and information

Weekend schedule for Pocono-2 and Iowa-2

The Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series and the Gander Outdoors Truck Series travel to Pocono Raceway this weekend while the Xfinity Series heads to Iowa Speedway.

Kyle Busch is the defending Cup Series race winner and has won three of the last four races at the 2.5-mile triangular track, including this season’s June race. Another victory would put him in an elite group that includes Hall of Famer Bobby Allison (1982-83) and Tim Richmond (1986-87), the only drivers to win three consecutive races at Pocono.

Christopher Bell returns to defend his Xfinity win. Busch also won the 2018 Truck Series event.

All times are Eastern.

Friday, July 26th

Pocono:
10:35 a.m.–11:25 a.m.: Truck Series First Practice – No TV
12:35 p.m.–1:25 p.m.: Truck Series Final Practice – No TV
6:05 p.m.: Truck Series Qualifying – Impound/Single Vehicle/One Lap All Positions – FS1

Iowa:
5:05 p.m.-5:55 p.m.: Xfinity Series First Practice – NBCSN
7 p.m.-7:50 p.m.: Xfinity Series Final Practice – NBC Sports App

Saturday, July 27th

Pocono:
9:05 a.m.–9:55 a.m.: Cup Series First Practice – NBCSN/MRN
11:05 a.m.–11:55 a.m.: Cup Series Final Practice – NBCSN/MRN
1 p.m.: Truck Series Gander RV 150 – Stages 15/30/60 Laps – FOX/MRN/SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
4:05 p.m.: Cup Series Qualifying – Impound/Single Vehicle/One Lap All Positions -NBCSN/MRN

Iowa:
12:05 p.m.: Xfinity Qualifying – Impound/Single Vehicle/One Lap All Positions -NBCSN
5 p.m.: Xfinity Series US Cellular 250 – Stages 60/120/250 – NBCSN/MRN/SiriusXM NASCAR Radio

Sunday, July 28th

Pocono:
3 p.m.: Cup Series Gander RV 400 – Stages 50/100/160 Laps – NBCSN/MRN/SiriusXM NASCAR Radio

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

July 25, 2019
NASCAR announces change to uncontrolled tire penalties
On Wednesday, NASCAR redefined specifics in the rule book to clarify adjustments with how officials will declare an uncontrolled tire violation during pit stops.

“After discussions internally and with competitors and teams, NASCAR will adjust how we officiate the uncontrolled tire rule to focus on preventing a safety hazard rather than concentrating on the subjective ‘arm’s length’ criteria,” NASCAR said in a statement.

The original judgment call of “arm’s length” will no longer apply, and is set around three cornerstone evaluations.
- Tire(s) cannot roll into traffic lanes of pit road outside of the designated team’s pit box;
- Removed tire(s) do not return to the outside half of the pit box;
- Tire(s) are handled in a safe manner, avoiding instances of bouncing or throwing tires.
NASCAR also made additional clarifications that any tires removed from the car during pit stops may not exceed the “proximity limits” to other pit boxes as noted in the NASCAR Rule Book. This new rule will take effect immediately, applying to the upcoming races at Pocono Raceway and Iowa Speedway for NASCAR’s top three national touring series.

“This is something we’ve been looking at for some time over the last year or two,” said Elton Sawyer, NASCAR’s Vice President of officiating and technical inspection. “The evolution of the pit stop has changed over time. There was a time when we needed to officiate that call based on an arm’s length.

“We have reviewed that numerous times and looked at it and feel like, in coordination with working with the teams, the timing is right to go ahead and remove that part of the rule from the rule book. We will continue to officiate uncontrolled tires. They still have to be controlled from the outside half of the pit box to the inside half.”

Another concern NASCAR addressed and made changes to was mandating outside tires to be changed first. Watkins Glen is quickly approaching the schedule, and since teams usually change the right side tires first at 37 races throughout the year, one race was the exception with pit wall on the opposite side. One strategy teams were considering was to continue changing right side tires first, which would then become the “inside” tire during pit stops at the New York road course.

For safety reasons, NASCAR regulated this and informed teams that if they elect to change four tires, the pit crew must change the outside tires first.

“This is something we’ve been working with the teams on,” Sawyer said. “They came to us and they had been looking at changing the inside tires first, and Watkins Glen would have been the first event that they would have been trying to do that.

“Through the collaboration, through some additional conversations, we felt like that going forward starting at Watkins Glen, for all four-tire stops you’d have to change the outside tires first. That’ll go into effect across all three national series and at every event starting at Watkins Glen next week.”

The penalty for uncontrolled tires remains the same: a pass-through penalty during green-flag runs or dropping to the rear of the field when under caution.
July 25, 2019
Four Takeaways from the NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series- Kentucky
Kentucky Speedway saw its 19th annual Truck Series race last Thursday night and what a wild night it was. The Buckle Up In Your Truck 225 saw some wild moments, tempers flare and drivers on the outside looking in to make the Playoffs.

With three races remaining and the playoff action heating up, so is the on-track action.

Here’s a look at Four Takeaways from the 13th race of the Truck Series season.
1. Tempers Flare – It’s been an exhilarating Truck Series season so far and quite possibly, the most exciting in quite a while and the action continued Thursday night. On-track tempers began to flare when Spencer Boyd accidentally made contact with Natalie Decker, who has had a rough season. Boyd and Decker had a slight confrontation back in the garage area. Decker took Boyd’s hat off, threw it on the ground and then walked away. Boyd made a positive out of it and joked on Twitter, “The hat has been checked and released from the infield care center.” Boyd even made T-shirts with the hat upside down and will donate the profits to Trinity Oaks, “a non-profit that uses hunting, fishing, and outdoor activities to give back and make a difference in others lives.” Boyd’s goal is to reach $10,000. Fans can visit the Spencer Boyd Racing site to purchase a shirt.
  
  The next on-track incident came with Ben Rhodes and Brennan Poole had a small scuffle on pit road. You can tell the Playoffs are lurking as the on-track action is heating up.
2. Ankrum delivers DGR-Crosley First Series Win – DGR-Crosley got their first ever Truck Series win on Thursday night when Ankrum brought home the No. 17 Toyota to victory lane. DGR-Crosley has been in the Truck Series since 2018 and is a relatively young team. Ankrum raced for David Gilliland previously and competed in two races in 2018 at Martinsville and Phoenix, earning a best finish of sixth in those two races. Prior to Ankrum’s win on Thursday night, DGR-Crosley’s best finish was second by Kyle Benjamin at Martinsville last year. It was a great night for the California native. Now that he is potentially chasing for the championship, Ankrum will have to hope this win brings some more sponsorship in order to run the rest of the season.
3. PJ1 Not Really Impressive – The PJ1 substance never really came into play during Thursday night’s Truck Series race. There were only 10 lead changes among seven leaders. Once someone got out front, they would run away with the lead. Sheldon Creed led the opening 36 laps, while Grant Enfinger led 22 laps, Brandon Jones five laps, Matt Crafton eight laps, Brett Moffitt 35 laps and race winner Tyler Ankrum led 40 laps. If anything, it created a lot of crashes and accidents. Every time you looked, there was a caution flag waving. In fact, there were five cautions for 33 laps including a vicious wreck with Enfinger and Jones. Without the fuel mileage and a first time winner, the race could have been lackluster.
4. Sheldon Creed Finishes Disappointing 21st – In what looked liked it was going to be Creed’s race to win, instead, it turned out to be his race to lose. He started second alongside Enfinger on the front row. The Alpine, California native even went on to lead the first 36 laps and won the first stage, while finishing ninth in the second stage. Unfortunately, during the final stage, Creed’s truck snapped loose and made contact with the wall. This relegated the GMS Racing driver to a disappointing 21st place finish.
July 17, 2019
NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series Power Rankings-Kentucky
The NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series came to Kentucky Speedway for race No. 13 of the 2019 season and what an exciting race it was.

The NASCAR Truck Series saw another first-time winner Thursday night just days after Justin Haley scored his first victory at Daytona. This time, it was Tyler Ankrum for DGR-Crosley who took home the checkered flag and earned his first career win.

Ankrum took the lead from Brett Moffitt with a lap and a half to go, as Moffitt ran out of gas on the backstretch, and Ankrum claimed what was a popular win across the NASCAR community.

While it was a great night for Ankrum and his team who put themselves in a possible playoff spot, there are still potential sponsorship woes for the youngster who hopes to be fighting for the championship at Homestead-Miami.

The 17-year-old got his first win in only his 12th start.

Here’s a look at this weeks power rankings.
1. Stewart Friesen – Friesen delivered another top-five finish for his No. 52 Halmar Racing team. The Canadian finished second for his eighth top-five finish of the year. It was a wild day for Friesen, however, as NASCAR confiscated his primary truck for a firewall issue which could have been a potential competitive advantage. Friesen would have to start last, but it didn’t take him long to get up front and contend for the win. He finished sixth in Stage 2. And as others were running out of gas, Friesen ran out of time and finished 7.373 seconds behind Ankrum. Friesen matched his second-place finish from Texas earlier this season.
  
  Previous Week Ranking – Third
2. Ross Chastain – While many other drivers had trouble, Chastain did not, despite racing in an unsponsored truck. He qualified fifth and finished fifth, and second in both stages, respectively. Chastain didn’t lead any laps but by finishing inside the top-10 for both stages, he earned a playoff spot and is now in the top-20 in the point standings. Things continue to look up for the Floridian, as he continues to chase the Truck Series championship. Hopefully, it’s the only time Chastain is an unsponsored truck.
  
  Previous Week Ranking – Second
3. Harrison Burton – Burton got himself another top-five finish for the 2019 Truck Series season. The No. 18 Safelite driver qualified sixth and stayed there for most of the night. Burton finished sixth in Stage 1 but found trouble in Stage 2 as he went sideways after a restart and received minor damage. Due to the incident and being off strategy from everyone else, Burton would only finish 16th in the second stage. He made the most of it, however, and climbed up to fourth as the final stage began. At the end of the night, the 18-year old wound up third for his sixth top five of the season. Unfortunately, despite earning a third-place finish, Burton is in danger of missing the playoffs as he sits ninth in the standings with only three races left until the playoffs began.
  
  Previous Week Ranking – Fourth
4. Brett Moffitt – Moffitt came oh so close to taking home his second consecutive win of the season Thursday night in Kentucky. But the No. 24 GMS Racing driver pushed his truck too far, as he fell a lap and a half short of victory when his truck ran out of gas. Before then, it wasn’t until lap 110 when Moffitt took the lead. In his first stint, he would only lead 11 laps before taking the lead again on Lap 125. From there, the Grimes, Iowa native led for 24 laps until running out of fuel. Moffitt finished a disappointing seventh after leading a combined 35 laps. For his efforts, he finished seventh in Stage 1. Moffitt leads the playoff points standings.
  
  Previous Week Ranking – First
5. Austin Wayne Self – A driver who benefited from other drivers running out of gas late was Texan, Austin Wayne Self, who finished sixth. Surprisingly, it was his first top-10 finish since the season opener at Daytona. Self also finished eighth in the second stage. It was a great outing for his family owned No. 22 team.
  
  Previous Week Ranking – Not Ranked
  
  Unranked
  
  1. Grant Enfinger – Enfinger had a great day going, qualifying on the pole, his second of the year. The Alabama native finished second in Stage 1, but bad luck hit in Stage 2 when Enfinger got loose in Turn 4 and went up the track and taking Brandon Jones with him, smacking the wall hard. Enfinger’s night would be cut short early on Lap 66 after leading 22 laps.
  
  Previous Week Ranking – Fifth
  
  Honorable Mention
  
  1. Spencer Davis – In just his third Truck Series start of the season, Davis finished eighth after starting 21st. The Georgia native even finished fifth in the second stage. It was his first top-10 finish since Texas of 2018.
  
  2. Tyler Hill – Hill is making the most out of his first Truck Series season. It was his third start of 2019 with a still new team. Hill, the brother of Timmy Hill, finished 11th, one spot outside the top-10. It’s the best finish that the No. 56 Truck has seen so far in its short career.
July 16, 2019
Brett Moffitt so close yet so far away

Brett Moffitt was just inches away from going back-to-back this year but he ran out of gas on the backstretch with just a half lap to go Thursday night at Kentucky Speedway.

Moffitt tried to play the fuel mileage game, but fell short and finished in the seventh position.

“It’s a heartbreak for sure,” Moffitt said to MRN Radio. “Jerry (Baxter, Crew Chief) and everyone on this 24 did a great job tonight. I’ve never ran strong at Kentucky, so had one of the best trucks out here tonight. At the end of the race, we probably had the most speed which was great. But it’s definitely a heartbreak to lose them like that, unfortunately, we handed away another playoff spot to another manufacturer which is a Chevy team. It’s not great, but I thank them for their support and the Gallagher family, and everyone involved in this team. We were just one lap short, you gotta push it and we just pushed it a little too hard.”

Moffitt and his GMS No. 24 team qualified seventh and finished seventh in Stage 1. Moffitt did not record a top-10 finish in Stage 2, as he finished one spot short in 11th. He led twice for 35 laps.

It was Moffitt’s ninth top-10 of the year. He continues to lead the playoff points standings over Ross Chastain.

July 12, 2019
Ross Chastain clinches playoff spot with third place finish

Niece Motorsports driver and recent Xfinity Series winner, Ross Chastain came into Thursday night’s race just 10 points out of the top 20. Chastain needed to earn at least 10 more points in order to be playoff eligible and compete for the championship.

With a strong qualifying effort of fifth, Chastain was solid all night long. He never took the lead but had finishes of fifth and second in both stages.

Despite running in an unsponsored truck, Chastain put on a show for the fans. He ran as low as 10th in the final laps of the race. But thanks to pit strategy and a few drivers running out of fuel, Chastain found himself in the top five. Eventually, the Niece Motorsports driver would finish there with a fourth-place outing.

The strong stage efforts and the top five finish was just enough for Chastain and his crew to clinch a spot in the 2019 Truck Series Playoffs. However, even with the great news, the Florida native was somewhat disappointed with the outcome.

“It’s pretty cool to be upset with fourth,” Chastain said to MRN Radio. “Really, really loose all night, just behind from the beginning this weekend. We unloaded really tight and just never been here as a group. So just learning as we go and building a notebook for further down the road, but at the end of the day, it’s really cool to be disappointed with fourth with an unsponsored race truck.”

The fourth place finish earned him his fifth top five of the season and he currently sits second in the playoff standings.

July 12, 2019
Tyler Ankrum scores first career win at Kentucky

Former NASCAR K&N Pro Series East Series champion Tyler Ankrum earned his first career Gander Outdoors Truck Series win at Kentucky Speedway after passing Brett Moffitt with two laps to go.

“I can’t even describe it,” Ankrum explained to MRN Radio in his post-race interview about the last laps. “I don’t know if anything was going through my head honestly, I was just trying to drive as hard as I could. This DGR-Crosley Railblaza/Academy Toyota, it was on fire. I just can’t believe that we did this!

Coming into the Buckle Up in Your Truck 225, Grant Enfinger won the pole earlier in the day, his second of the season. Stages were broken up into 35/35/80 laps to make up the 150-lap race.

It was clean and green without any major incidents in the first stage. As a matter of fact, the stage would remain caution free. There were some notable incidents, however, as Austin Hill came down pit road on Lap 28 with possible engine issues. Just a few laps later on Lap 33, he went behind the wall for the rest of the night and wound up with a disappointing 31st place finish.

Sheldon Creed and the No.2 GMS Racing team took home the first stage after leading all 35 laps.

The action picked up, especially on pit road when Johnny Sauter and Matt Crafton were each caught with a commitment line violation and had to serve a penalty.

Stage 2 began on Lap 41 and saw a lot of incidents ramp up. The first incident took place right after the restart when Spencer Boyd and Natalie Decker made contact with each other and were sent viciously into the wall, destroying both trucks. The incident also collected Jordan Anderson and a little bit of Sauter’s truck as well.

On Lap 56, the third caution was brought out for the No. 42 of Chad Finley, when his truck just snapped loose and wound up hitting the wall off Turn 4. Finley would wind up 26th after starting 12th.

More action occurred under caution when the No. 4 of Todd Gilliland come down pit road with the hood up. It appeared there were engine issues, possibly a plug wire or it was down a cylinder. But there was no confirmation from the team on the issues for the No. 4 truck.

The next caution flew on Lap 60 when Harrison Burton got loose in Turns 1 and 2, eventually going sideways. Burton brought two other trucks with him in the incident, Gus Dean and Josh Bilicki. Sauter once again barely escaped the wreck without any major damage.

Five laps later, the No. 98 of Grant Enfinger hit a bump in Turn 4 with Brandon Jones to his outside. The two would make hard contact with each other, slamming Jones in the wall with his truck eventually catching on fire. Both Jones and Enfinger would be done for the night.

With the wreck taking place so close to the end of Stage 2, the second stage ended under caution and with the No. 88 of Matt Crafton taking the stage win and earning 10 Playoff points.

The third and final stage began on Lap 76 and saw a long green flag run toward the finish line.

A few notable incidents occurred in the stage as well. Stage 1 winner, Sheldon Creed, wound up having a flat right front tire shortly after the stage restarted.

Later on, as the stage began to wind down, Tyler Ankrum took the lead on Lap 73. Despite a hard-charge from Ben Rhodes, he could not take the lead from Ankrum and Chicago winner Brett Moffitt took second place.

Pit stops began to take place shortly after lap 100. Even with the pit stops, it appeared most drivers did not have enough to make it on fuel to the end, which saw the race become a fuel mileage game.

Moffitt tried outsmarting Ankrum on his pit stop, while Ankrum had a somewhat longer stop. Moffitt would still be the leader after his final round of pit stops.

With about 20 to go, Rhodes and Brennan Poole made contact with each other. This left Rhodes with a left rear tire to go down, while Pool had a right front tire go down late in the going.

Just 10 laps later with 10 to go, the race leaders, including Moffitt, were told to start saving a little bit of fuel in case of caution. During that run, other drivers like Matt Crafton and Todd Gilliland fell short and ran out of gas. Moffitt continued running thinking he had enough to make it on fuel. Unfortunately, he ran out of gas just half a lap away from taking the white flag. Ankrum, who just turned 18-years-old, went on by to take the lead and eventually his first ever career win.

“I accidentally put a ice bag down my chest, ripped my right side ear mold out,” Ankrum told MRN Radio. “So half the time, all I could understand was inside or outside. I honestly did not hear a whole lot, so I’m so proud. Man, that’s all I got, I don’t know. This goes to show that youngsters and underdogs can still win. You know, I don’t think DGR has been viewed as a GMS, KBM, or ThorSport team but they will be now. I’m honestly so proud of that, that’s what I’ve been wanting to do. I’m all about improvement, improving every single week trying to get better and that’s what we did, we finished it!”

It was Ankrum’s first Truck Series win in just 12 starts. His previous best finish was third at Texas in June. Ankrum led three times for 40 laps and has currently earned a spot in the Playoffs.

There were five cautions for 33 laps, with 10 lead changes among seven drivers.

Playoff Watch
1. Brett Moffitt, Two wins
2. Ross Chastain, One win, Clinched playoff spot
3. Johnny Sauter, One win
4. Austin Hill, One win
5. Tyler Ankrum, One win
6. Grant Enfinger, +73
7. Stewart Friesen, +61
8. Matt Crafton, +40
Below the cut line
9. Harrison Burton, -40
10. Ben Rhodes, -60
11. Todd Gilliland, -110

Up Next: The Truck Series will take another week off before heading to “The Tricky Triangle” of Pocono Raceway on Saturday, July 27.

July 11, 2019
Stewart Friesen takes second at Kentucky after wild day

You could say that Stewart Friesen had one of the wildest days as a Truck Series regular aside from Ross Chastain’s disqualification at Iowa.

When Friesen’s No. 52 Halmar Racing team unloaded his primary truck this morning for the two practice sessions, he was unable to use it. NASCAR confiscated his truck due to a firewall issue and the team was forced to bring out the backup truck.

Despite the issue, Friesen was able to get out in the first practice to make some laps and participated in the second practice as well. With the backup truck being pulled out, no matter where Friesen qualified, he had to start in the back of the field.

Friesen started last but when the race began, he was a man on a mission. In the first stage, he went from 32nd to finish 17th. In the second stage, Friesen placed the No. 52 Halmar Racing truck in the sixth position.

A long green flag run broke out in the third and final stage, that saw some fuel mileage strategy take place. Friesen, among other drivers, pitted to make their final round of green flag pit stops. After the stops, drivers were told to save fuel with a 74 lap run to the finish shaping up.

With fuel, a concern, drivers like Matt Crafton, Todd Gilliland and race leader Brett Moffitt ran out of gas. This saw Friesen move up to second with his eyes set on Tyler Ankrum who was the leader at the time. Hoping for a late race caution, Friesen never caught the break he needed, but still wound up second after the long day since practice.

“It’s been a whirl day,” Friesen said to MRN Radio in his post-race interview. “It’s racing man, the crew never gave up on me all day. It was sketchy at the beginning, we worked on it, got me track position and it was just weird. The PJ1 had grip then it didn’t, guys were sketchy and sliding, I know Ross (Chastain) was struggling just as bad as I was.”

“The restarts I couldn’t do anything. Thanks to Chevrolet for all they do for us, really appreciate those guys, they’re a great group and it’s awesome to represent them.”

With the second place finish, it was Friesen’s eighth top five of the year. He currently sits seventh in the playoff standings, 61 points above the cut line.

July 11, 2019
Weekend Schedule for Kentucky Speedway

NASCAR heads to Kentucky Speedway this weekend as all three national series compete on the 1.5-mile track. The Monster Energy Cup Series will close out the activities Saturday evening with the Quaker State 400.

Ben Rhodes is the defending Truck Series winner, Christopher Bell won last year’s Xfinity Series race and Martin Truex Jr. returns to defend his Cup Series victory.

Please see the complete weekend schedule below.

All times are Eastern

Thursday, July 11

9:35 a.m.-10:25 a.m.: Gander Outdoors Truck Series First Practice – No TV

11:05 a.m.-11:55 a.m.: Gander Outdoors Truck Series Final Practice – No TV

3:05 p.m.-3:55 p.m.: Xfinity Series First Practice – NBC Sports App

4:05 p.m.: Gander Outdoors Truck Series Qualifying (Impound-Single Vehicle/One Lap-All Positions) – FS1

6:00 p.m.-6:50 p.m.: Xfinity Series Final Practice – – NBC Sports App

7:30 p.m.: Gander Outdoors Truck Series Buckle Up In Your Truck 225 – (Stages 35/70/150 Laps = 225 Miles) FS1/MRN

Friday, July 12

11:35 a.m.-12:25 p.m.: Monster Energy Cup Series First Practice – NBCSN

1:35 p.m.-2:25 p.m.: Monster Energy Cup Series Final Practice – NBCSN

4:15 p.m.: Xfinity Series Qualifying – NBCSN

6:05 p.m.: Monster Energy Cup Series Qualifying – NBCSN

7:30 p.m.: Xfinity Series Alsco 300 – (Stages 45/90/200 Laps = 300 Miles) – NBCSN/PRN

Saturday, July 13

7:30 p.m.: Monster Energy Cup Series Quaker State 400 – (Stages 80/160/267 Laps = 400.5 Miles) – NBCSN/PRN

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

July 11, 2019
NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series Preview-Kentucky
After a week off for the Fourth of July holiday, the real fireworks get back on track Thursday night for the Buckle Up in Your Truck 225 at Kentucky Speedway.

The Truck Series was at Chicagoland Speedway two weeks ago where we saw last year’s champion take home the trophy. It was Moffitt’s second win of the 2019 season, which occurred on the 1.5-mile speedway, the same as Kentucky.

The Playoffs continue to be on the horizon and with five races left, there are some drivers who continue to be winless in the series. Believe it or not, only four series regulars have taken home a trophy. Other than Moffitt, Austin Hill won at Daytona and Johnny Sauter won at Dover. Ross Chastain had victories at Kansas and Gateway but sits 10 points out of the top-20. Chastain should easily make it into the Playoffs, but we’ve seen crazier things happen.

Despite only having four series regulars winning this year, there are other big names who have not won yet. Those include series points leader Grant Enfinger, Stewart Friesen, Matt Crafton, Ben Rhodes, Harrison Burton, Todd Gilliland and Sheldon Creed, who are all on the outside looking in. With that said, however, those names could break through at Kentucky this Thursday night.

There are currently 34 Trucks entered on the preliminary entry list for 32 spots.

Here are five drivers to keep an eye on in Thursday night’s Buckle Up in Your Truck 225.
1. Matt Crafton – Kentucky could be the place where Crafton breaks his long two-year winless streak. He is the most experienced driver with the most active starts at 20, ever since the first race here in 2001. The No. 88 ThorSport Racing driver has just one win here that occurred in 2015 when he started on the pole and led 43 laps that night. Otherwise, he has six top fives and 15 top-10 finishes with one DNF. Crafton’s average finish is 9.9 with 79 laps led overall. The Tulare, California driver has finishes of third in 2018, eighth in 2017 and 2016, a win in 2015 and sixth in 2014. He doesn’t have any stage wins, but Crafton finished sixth in Stage 1 and ninth in Stage 2 in the 2018 race. Keep an eye on the No. 88 Menards driver who hopes to snap his winless streak Thursday night.
2. Ben Rhodes – The ThorSport train continues with Ben Rhodes. Rhodes is the previous race winner at Kentucky after leading 38 laps last year. It was a hometown win for Rhodes, as he resides in Louisville, Kentucky just 57 minutes away from Kentucky Speedway. However, prior to his win, Kentucky Speedway had not been too kind to Rhodes. He crashed out of the race in 2017, finishing 27th, and finished 13th in his first race in 2016. The Kentucky native has an average finish of 13.7 with an average start of 5.7. It will mark one year since Rhodes has not won a race in the Truck Series. He currently sits somewhat comfortable in the standings, in fifth, 98 points behind first. He’ll need a win or a finish in the top 10, or top five, to contend in the Playoffs.
3. Stewart Friesen – Speaking of being close to winning, Friesen has a decent chance of getting his first win Thursday night. He finished second to Rhodes in last year’s race after leading 37 laps. He has Stage finishes of seventh and fourth in the 2018 race, but no stage top-10 finishes in 2017. The Canadian finished 12th in his first outing two years ago. Look for Friesen and his No. 52 Halmar Racing team to be a contender in Thursday night’s race at Kentucky.
4. Brandon Jones – The Joe Gibbs Racing Xfinity Series regular returns to the famed No. 51 Kyle Busch Motorsports truck this week. The Atlanta, Georgia native has four starts at Kentucky Speedway and has finished in the top-10 in every start since 2015. Jones has had great results with a best finish of second in 2017. His other finishes include fourth in 2018, seventh in 2016 and 10th in 2015, which equal an average finish of 5.8. The No. 51 truck has not seen victory lane since Texas last month when Greg Biffle earned a popular victory. At Kentucky, the truck has not been to victory lane since 2014 when team owner Kyle Busch brought it to victory lane. Jones will try to put that No. 51 truck back in the winner circle this weekend.
5. Todd Gilliland – Gilliland has just one start which came in last year’s race. The No. 4 KBM driver finished seventh after starting second and led just one lap. Gilliland has a stage finish of third and sixth in both stages that came in the 2018 race.
Other drivers on the entry list include Codie Rohrbaugh in the No. 9, Spencer Davis in the No. 11, Dylan Lupton in the No. 15, Tyler Ankrum in the No. 17 and Brennan Poole returns with his No. 30 machine. Josh Bilicki will compete in the No. 34, Chad Finley returns to the track in the No. 42, Jeb Burton in the No. 44, Ray Ciccarelli in the No. 49, Tyler Hill in the No. 56 and Clay Greenfield in the No. 68.

Ben Rhodes and Noah Gragson are the only stage winners since 2017.

Kentucky Speedway has seen 21 races and counting since their first race back in 2000. A list of winners include Greg Biffle who won the first race 19 years ago, Scott Riggs, Mike Bliss, Carl Edwards, Bobby Hamilton, Dennis Setzer, Ron Hornaday Jr (2006, 2009, 2011), Mike Skinner, Johnny Benson Jr, Todd Bodine, James Buescher (2012 and 2013), Ty Dillon, Kyle Busch, William Byron and Christopher Bell.

The race winner has come from the pole three times set by Matt Crafton in 2015, Kyle Busch in 2014 and Ron Hornaday Jr in 2009. The lowest a race winner has ever come from was 22nd by Ty Dillon in 2013 and Hornaday Jr in 2006.

It will be an all-day show for the Truck Series with first practice at 9:35 a.m. ET and final practice at 11:05 a.m. ET with no TV coverage. Qualifying is scheduled to take place at 4:05 p.m. ET live on Fox Sports 1.

The Buckle Up in Your Truck 225 can be seen live on Fox Sports 1 and MRN Radio with the green flag flying shortly after 7:30 p.m. ET. Stages will be broken up into 35/70/150 laps to make up the 225-mile race.
July 10, 2019