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NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series news and information

  • Full weekend schedule for Pocono and Iowa

    Full weekend schedule for Pocono and Iowa

    Staff Report | NASCAR.com

    The Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series and the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series will both be in action at Pocono Raceway this week and the NASCAR Xfinity Series will be at Iowa Speedway. Check out the full schedule below, which is subject to change.

    Note: All times are ET

    POCONO
    Friday, July 27
    Noon-12:55 p.m.: NASCAR Camping World Truck Series practice, No TV (Follow live)
    2-2:55 p.m.: NASCAR Camping World Truck Series final practice, No TV (Follow live)

    PRESS PASS (Watch live)
    11 a.m.: Kids Drive NASCAR
    11:15 a.m.: Grant Enfinger, Justin Haley and Brett Moffitt

    IOWA
    Friday, July 27
    5:05-5:55 p.m.: NASCAR Xfinity Series first practice, NBCSN/NBC Sports App (Follow live)
    6:35-7:25 p.m.: NASCAR Xfinity Series final practice, NBCSN/NBC Sports App (Follow live)

    POCONO
    Saturday, July 28
    9-9:50 a.m.: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series first practice, CNBC/NBC Sports App (Follow live)
    10 a.m.: NASCAR Camping World Truck Series qualifying, FS1 (Follow live)
    11:40 a.m.-12:30 p.m.: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series final practice, CNBC/NBC Sports App (Follow live)
    1 p.m.: NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Gander Outdoors 150 (60 laps, 150 miles), FS1 (Follow live)
    4:10 p.m.: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Busch Pole Qualifying, NBCSN/NBC Sports App (Follow live)

    PRESS PASS (Watch live)
    8:15 a.m.: Jimmie Johnson
    8:30 a.m.: Aric Almirola
    10:30 a.m.: Bubba Wallace and Richard Petty
    10:45 a.m.: Jeffrey Earnhardt
    2:30 p.m.: Post-NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race
    5 p.m.: Post-Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series qualifying

    IOWA
    Saturday, July 28
    3:05 p.m.: NASCAR Xfinity Series qualifying, NBCSN/NBC Sports App (Follow live)
    5:20 p.m.: NASCAR Xfinity Series U.S. Cellular 250 presented by The Rasmussen Group (250 laps, 218.75 miles), NBCSN/NBC Sports App (Follow live)

    POCONO
    Sunday, July 29
    2:30 p.m.: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Gander Outdoors 400 (160 laps, 400 miles), NBCSN/NBC Sports App (Follow live)

    PRESS PASS (Watch live) 
    11:30 a.m.: Gander Outdoors
    5:30 p.m.: Post-Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race

    MORE: How to find NBCSN 

  • NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Preview-Pocono

    NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Preview-Pocono

    With just three races until the Playoffs begin at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park on Aug. 26, the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series continues their exciting season this weekend at Pocono Raceway.

    With five drivers locked in by virtue of wins, three drivers find themselves on the bubble of not making it. From this weekend until Bristol could make the difference and provide the opportunity to lock themselves into the Playoffs.

    Currently, there are 32 trucks on the preliminary entry list.

    Here’s a look at who to expect that might end up in victory lane Saturday afternoon in The Tricky Triangle.

    1. Kyle Busch – Busch will be back in the series for the first time since Charlotte in May. He’ll be looking to make history on Saturday afternoon as he’ll be searching to tie Ron Hornaday’s all-time Truck Series wins list at 51. Busch has been close this season to tying or surpassing the record. Aside from the tire issue at Atlanta, Busch won at Las Vegas and finished second twice at Kansas and Charlotte. We could already be talking about a different story if he had won at those racetracks, but Busch will be more hungry than ever to get back to victory lane in the Truck Series. Pocono could be the track he could tie Hornaday’s records due to recent past success. He has only competed in three races at The Tricky Triangle and has had so-so finishes. In his first race in 2011, Busch finished second to race winner Kevin Harvick. He never competed again until 2015 where he won the race after starting second. In the previous race, Busch was involved in an accident on lap 36 thus ending his shot at a win. He’s led 85 laps and has an average finish of 9.3 with an average start of 2.0. He’ll be looking for the weekend sweep at Pocono this weekend.
    2. Johnny Sauter – After a dismal week at Eldora last week, Sauter is glad to be out of Ohio and back on the normal series circuit. Like Busch, Sauter is looking to get back to victory lane after a couple of bad finishes. Sauter hasn’t won since Texas in June and hasn’t had a top-five finish since Chicago where he finished third. Since then, however, he’s had finishes of 15th at Kentucky and 16th at Eldora. At Pocono, Sauter will try to find victory lane. In eight races, he has three top fives and five top-10 finishes, along with 16 laps led. En route to his 2016 championship, he started 11th and finished eighth. In the previous outing at Pocono, Sauter finished fifth after starting seventh. His best finish at the 1.5-mile raceway was second back in 2014. Whether it will be Saturday afternoon or later on in his career, Sauter will cross Pocono off the tracks where he hasn’t won. It’s only a matter of time for the No. 21 GMS Racing Chevy driver.
    3. Todd Gilliland – It will be a learning curve for Gilliland this weekend at Pocono, as he will be making his first ever Truck Series start. However, if past history has told us anything, nothing is new for the Kyle Busch Motorsports driver. In his first ever 1.5 mile start at Charlotte, he finished 10th after starting third but had late-race contact that settled him back a little bit in the finishing order. He’ll be competing in the ARCA Racing Series Friday afternoon to gain more practice and knowledge about Pocono. The truck Gilliland will be driving has finished second and ran at Texas and Chicago. This truck has led 62 laps.
    4. Ben Rhodes – After a tough outing at Eldora last week, Rhodes will be looking to get back in victory lane since Kentucky and this weekend could be his chance to do it. He only has two starts at the 1.5-mile racetrack dating back to 2016, where he finished 11th. His best finish was second in last years race after starting on the pole. He has an average start of 2.0 and an average finish of 6.5. In the two stages last year, Rhodes finished third and fourth respectively en route to his second-place finish.
    5. Brett Moffitt – Moffitt will be back racing at Pocono this weekend for the first time since 2016. In his only race here, he competed for Red Horse Racing driving the No. 11 where he finished third after starting 15th. Moffitt has had success at 1.5-mile tracks this year, however. His first success was back in February when he won at Atlanta. A third-place finish at Las Vegas, fourth at Charlotte and a win at Chicago were his best finishes at those 1.5-mile tracks this season. It’ll be interesting to see how Moffitt performs for the first time since 2016.

    Since the first event in 2010, there have been eight different winners in eight races. The winners include Elliott Sadler, Kevin Harvick, Joey Coulter, Ryan Blaney, Austin Dillon, Kyle Busch, William Byron, and Christopher Bell.

    The lowest a race winner has ever come was sixth back in 2013 and was won by Ryan Blaney. The race winner has won from the pole three times with Elliott Sadler, Kevin Harvick, and William Byron.

    There are two practice sessions scheduled for Friday afternoon with the first one taking place at noon ET with the final practice at 2 p.m. ET, with no live TV coverage. Qualifying is slated for Saturday morning at 10 a.m. ET on Fox Sports 1.

    Race coverage begins at 1 p.m. ET Saturday with an approximate green flag at 1:15 p.m. ET and will be live on Fox Sports 1 and MRN Radio. The first stage ends on Lap 15, with the second stage ending on Lap 30 and the checkered flag flying on Lap 60.

  • Austin Wayne Self – Gander Outdoors 150 Race Advance

    Austin Wayne Self – Gander Outdoors 150 Race Advance

    Gander Outdoors 150 | Pocono Raceway Race Advance
    Team: No. 22 GO TEXAN | AM Technical Solutions Chevrolet Silverado
    Driver: Austin Wayne Self
    Follow the Team: @NieceMotorsport; @AustinWSelf

    Self on Racing at Pocono: “Pocono is one of those places I just keep getting better with more laps,” said Self.

    “It’s a fun place – but it’s a track where you have to be on your game every lap. You have some recovery time if you make a mistake, but it’s a track you can lose a lot of time.

    “It’s almost like every lap is a qualifying lap. You have to hit your marks every lap.

    “Sixty laps go by quick at Pocono, believe it or not. We have to play the strategy right. The stages will go by quick and depending on how the race is playing out – we might play our cards a little different to get some stage points – but more importantly, put ourselves in contention for a top-10 finish.

    “As we get into this summer stretch, it sure would be great to put a top-10 on the board for our team and our partners.”

    Self at Pocono: Self has two NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS) starts at Pocono Raceway to his credit. His best finish of 16th came in 2017.

    In addition to his two NCWTS starts at the track, Self also has four ARCA Racing Series starts at the ‘Tricky Triangle’. In those four starts, Self never started outside of the top-15. He also earned three top-15 finishes, with his best finish of seventh in 2015.

    Recapping Eldora: Self and the No. 22 team utilized pit strategy and a strong truck to work their way into the top-five late in the Eldora Dirt Derby. Unfortunately, the strong run was foiled by late-race contact, which left the No. 22 team with an 18th-place finish.

    “I’m proud of my Niece Motorsports team for bringing me a good truck to Eldora Speedway,” said Self.

    “We were running top-five for a good part of the race and got spun there at the end and didn’t have a lot of time to recover. Still, I’m proud of what we accomplished with our performance and that’s momentum to take to Pocono with our No. 22 GO TEXAN | AM Technical Solutions Chevrolet Silverado.”

    On The Truck: The Texas Department of Agriculture’s GO TEXAN program and AM Technical Solutions will support Self.

    GO TEXAN represents Texas agri-business on state, national and international levels by building recognition with the GO TEXAN mark.

    Along with its signature mark in the shape of Texas, GO TEXAN celebrates, promotes and supports the business savvy and plainspoken grit Texas agriculture is known throughout the world.

    About Niece Motorsports: Niece Motorsports is owned by United States Marine Corps Veteran Al Niece. In 2018, Niece Motorsports enters its second full season in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, fielding two full-time teams with Austin Wayne Self and Justin Fontaine. Niece also owns Niece Equipment, which has for over 30 years provided clients with reliable products at competitive prices. Niece Equipment’s reputation is built on service, integrity and dependability. The company provides water and fuel/lube trucks that are engineered with quality and durability in mind for the construction and mining industry. Follow the team on Facebook and Instagram @NieceMotorsports as well as twitter @NieceMotorsport.

  • Justin Fontaine – Gander Outdoors 150 Race Advance

    Justin Fontaine – Gander Outdoors 150 Race Advance

    Gander Outdoors 150 | Pocono Raceway Race Advance
    Team: No. 45 ProMATIC Automation | Superior Essex Chevrolet Silverado
    Driver: Justin Fontaine
    Follow the Team: @NieceMotorsport; @driverfontaine

    Fontaine on Racing at Pocono: “I’m looking forward to Pocono,” said Fontaine. “This weekend will be my second time in a truck and I feel like I can take what I learned there last year and apply it towards, hopefully, a successful weekend for our No. 45 ProMATIC Automation team.

    “This race is over pretty quick. Last year, I made a mistake in qualifying and got us behind the eight-ball.

    “I learned a lot during the race though. You have to attack each corner differently. You have to get yourself off Turn 3 well so you can carry the speed down the front straightaway. You need good rotation through Turn 1 to take you through the Long Pond straightaway to the tunnel turn.

    “It’s a very technical track for sure and I’m looking forward to getting back there. I know my Niece team is bringing me a really good truck.”

    Fontaine at Pocono: Saturday’s race at Pocono Raceway will mark Fontaine’s second NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS) start at the ‘Tricky Triangle’. In his previous start, which came last season, Fontaine finished 15th.

    In addition to his one NCWTS start at Pocono, Fontaine also has two ARCA Racing Series starts at the 2.5-mile track. Both starts came last season, where Fontaine earned 21st and 26th-place finishes, respectively.

    Recapping Eldora: Fontaine and the No. 45 team earned a 30th-place starting position in the Eldora Dirt Derby, after participating in the Last Chance Qualifying race. The race did not go as planned, as an early spin and subsequent contact made it difficult for Fontaine to work through the field. The No. 45 team was credited with a 25th-place result.

    “My Eldora debut was challenging but we made some strides between practice, qualifying and the race, so there’s a positive lining,” said Fontaine.

    “I wish our finish was better but our team’s perseverance through adversity is something to be proud of. We’ll put Eldora behind us and head to Pocono this weekend, a race track I’m looking forward to.”

    On the Truck: Fontaine’s No. 45 Chevrolet will carry the ProMATIC Automation, Inc. colors in this week’s race. ProMATIC Automation, Inc. specializes in the design and build of custom factory automation equipment.

    ProMATIC Automation, Inc. has extensive experience in the integration of high-level automation technologies like robotics, laser, vision, and dispensing systems along with many years of combined experience in the design and machining of custom manufactured components.

    About Niece Motorsports: Niece Motorsports is owned by United States Marine Corps Veteran Al Niece. In 2018, Niece Motorsports enters its second full season in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, fielding two full-time teams with Austin Wayne Self and Justin Fontaine. Niece also owns Niece Equipment, which has for over 30 years provided clients with reliable products at competitive prices. Niece Equipment’s reputation is built on service, integrity and dependability. The company provides water and fuel/lube trucks that are engineered with quality and durability in mind for the construction and mining industry. Follow the team on Facebook and Instagram @NieceMotorsports as well as twitter @NieceMotorsport.

  • A bumpy season for Crafton sees him looking for positivity

    A bumpy season for Crafton sees him looking for positivity

    It has been a season that Matt Crafton will probably want to forget. On a positive note, time has not yet run out for him to turn it around.

    If you look at the stats it has not been disastrous, but for Crafton, it has been. There is a decline in top-10 finishes for Crafton this year, and most importantly, he has not won a race thus far. With four races left until the Playoffs start, Crafton is holding the last spot and is 99 points to the good. He does have a wide margin when it comes to the points, but it’s still a letdown for Crafton.

    The driver of the No. 88 Menards Ford F-150 is looking to secure his Playoff spot this weekend at Pocono Raceway. However, this is a track where Crafton has not performed well. He has never won at the track and his average finish is 10.4.

    This season in the Camping World Truck Series, Crafton is averaging a 12th place finish which is a drop compared to past seasons. Last year, Crafton was averaging a 9.3 place finish with 16 top-10s.

    Even though Crafton has not won a race this season and struggled at times, you can never count him out of the championship. On the plus side, the Truck Series will be headed to Michigan International Speedway next month. If there is one race where you can see him winning before the Playoffs, it will be Michigan. Crafton has three wins at Michigan in the series and won this very same race last year. A win at this track could shift the momentum for the team.

    It is not time for the Crafton fans to panic just yet as there is still a good amount of racing left this season that can turn around his season. Time will tell if Crafton and his team will continue to struggle, or if it is just a phase in the experienced veterans’ Truck Series career.

    Follow on Twitter for updates: @BryanR_305

  • GMS Racing NCWTS Pocono Preview

    GMS Racing NCWTS Pocono Preview

    Cody Coughlin, No. 2 JEGS.com Chevrolet Silverado
    Pocono Stats
    2 starts, Best Finish: 8th (2017)
    Season Stats
    13 starts, 6 top-10 finishes

    Notes:

    – The No. 2 team will unload chassis no. 307 this weekend at Pocono Raceway. Coughlin has raced this chassis three previous times in 2018, collecting two top-10 finishes and three top-15 finishes. This is also the same chassis that Coughlin secured a career-best qualifying effort of second at Kansas Speedway back in May.

    -In combination with two previous NCWTS starts at the “Tricky Triangle,” Coughlin also has three previous ARCA Racing Series starts at Pocono. In those three starts, Coughlin had two top-10 finishes and never finished worse than 12th.

    – After the mid-week race at Eldora Speedway, Coughlin is 10th in the NCWTS driver point standings.

    Quote:

    “I expect us to be really competitive this weekend at Pocono (Raceway), honestly I think we should be a top-five truck. I’ve been there a few times both in ARCA and the Camping World Truck Series, it’s one of the tracks I have the most experience at. I feel like I can usually hold my own in the Tunnel Turn. The turn that I feel like I always need to be better in is the last one, Turn Three, so that’s the one I’ll work on the most this weekend.

    “Pocono is one of the tracks that I’ve had circled on my calendar all year. This weekend and Michigan (International Speedway) in two weeks actually, are two of the races I had circled. We’re competitive every race, but these next two races should be some of our best.”

     

    Johnny Sauter, No. 21 ISM Connect Chevrolet Silverado
    Pocono Stats
    8 starts, 3 top-fives, 5 top-10s
    2018 Season Stats
    13 starts, 4 wins, 10 top-fives, 10 top-10s

    Notes:

    – Sauter will pilot GMS chassis no. 304 at Pocono Raceway. This chassis has been raced a total of four times since debuting at ISM Raceway (Phoenix) in 2017. Sauter picked up his second win of the season at Dover with this Chevrolet and last raced it at Chicagoland Speedway to a third-place finish.

    – Sauter is locked into The Playoffs with four wins and has 22 Playoff Points. He holds a 32-point lead over Noah Gragson in the driver championship point standings.

    Quotes:

    “Pocono is a tricky place – obviously the name has a meaning there. It’s been good to me over the last couple of years. I used to struggle there early in my career, just overanalyzing it. The Tunnel Turn to me is the hardest part and trying to carry big momentum there. You’ve got to be comfortable turning off the wall and committing to the bottom of the racetrack without getting free. Then you’ve got to have good speed off the corner.

    “Track position really comes into play at Pocono (Raceway). I think any year where I’ve had a decent finish, and there was a green-white-checkered, I was in the outside groove. If you’re in the bottom sitting in the second, third, fourth row, you’re kind of easy prey for the guys behind you. That’s just part of it, you have to make sure you have track position earlier in the day.”

     

    Justin Haley, No. 24 Fraternal Order of Eagles Chevrolet Silverado
    Pocono Stats
    1 start, Best finish: 10th (2017)
    Season Stats
    13 starts, 1 win, 4 top-fives, 9 top-10 finished

    Notes:

    – Haley will climb behind the wheel of chassis no. 314 this weekend at Pocono Raceway. The No. 24 team has raced this chassis one previous time, earlier this season at Gateway Motorsports Park, where Haley qualified fourth and went on to secure his first NCWTS win.

    -Aside from one previous NCWTS start at the “Tricky Triangle,” Haley also has two previous starts in the ARCA Racing Series at Pocono, including a win in last year’s race.

    – With his ninth top-10 finish of the 2018 season at Eldora, Haley is eighth in the NCWTS driver point standings, but is locked into The Playoffs after his win at Gateway.

    Quote:

    “This is one of my favorite weekends on the schedule. Pocono (Raceway) has always been on the top of my list of favorite tracks since I made my first ARCA start there. It’s not a traditional track, having only three corners makes it dicey and fun. The aspect of having three differently banked corners also makes it difficult to finely tune the truck to be good everywhere.

    “I’ve had success at Pocono in the past and our Fraternal Order of Eagles Chevy was fast last year, but we had some bad luck. Qualifying up front will be key, and staying there will be tougher, this is a track where the truck likes clean air. I’m excited to head back with the 2FOE guys and grab another trophy. We’ve been working really hard on this truck for this race specifically.”

     

    Dalton Sargeant, No. 25 Performance Plus Motor Oil Chevrolet Silverado
    Pocono Stats
    This will be Sargeant’s first NCWTS start at Pocono Speedway.
    2018 Season Stats
    13 starts, 3 top-10s, 8 top-15s

    Notes:

    – Sargeant will pilot GMS chassis no. 308 at Pocono Raceway. This chassis has been raced once before, at Iowa Speedway in June.

    – While this is Sargeant’s first NCWTS start at Pocono, he has three top-five and four top-10 ARCA Racing Series finishes in four starts at the Tricky Triangle.

    – The 20-year-old is currently 11th in the driver championship point standings after 13 races.

    Quote:

    “I’ve had some great results at Pocono in the past in the ARCA Racing Series, so I’m looking forward to going there in the Truck Series. It’s going to handle a little differently. The trucks have more drag so we’ll be carrying a little bit more speed through the corners than what we had in the ARCA cars. It should be a lot of fun. The side-by-side racing has always been fun there, especially with the three different corners so I’m excited about going back there.

    “In the ARCA car you always wanted to be the best off Turn Three because you were wide open for so long down the frontstretch, but I think with these trucks, you’re almost able to hold it wide open off Turn Two so you may want to be better off Turn One, or at least that’s what Johnny (Sauter) told me. You’ve got to be on your game to get through Turn One at Pocono. It’s so fast and it’s going to be really crazy on these restarts with all the side force these trucks have and how spread out it gets.”

     

    ABOUT GMS RACING

    GMS Racing competes full-time in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series with drivers Cody Coughlin, Johnny Sauter, Justin Haley and Dalton Sargeant, and in the NASCAR XFINITY Series. Since the team’s start in 2014, GMS Racing has grown to occupy several buildings located in Statesville, N.C. The campus also includes operations for GMS Fabrication.

    SOCIAL MEDIA

    To keep up-to-date with the latest news, information and exclusive content, follow GMS Racing on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

  • Four Takeaways From The NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Race At Eldora

    Four Takeaways From The NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Race At Eldora

    The NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race at Eldora Speedway never disappoints. It was the 13th race of the season and with three races to go until the Playoffs begin, some drivers are on the bubble and other drivers are locked in.

    Here are four takeaways from the sixth annual Eldora Dirt Derby.

    1. Grant Enfinger Comes Up Short – At Eldora, you wouldn’t think of Enfinger as a dirt racer but he did have some prior dirt experience racing in ARCA at tracks such as Illinois State Fairgrounds and Duquoin where he had some success. Throughout the night, he was quietly racing inside the top-10. Enfinger started 10th and finished seventh and second in both stages, respectively. After some pit strategy late in the race and late race cautions, Enfinger found himself up front with eventual race winner Chase Briscoe. Both of them battled side-by-side in the overtime finish until he fell .038 seconds short of getting his second win and locking himself into the Playoffs.
    2. Noah Gragson and Johnny Sauter Have Forgettable Night – While Gragson finished sixth Wednesday night at Eldora, it didn’t come easy and he had his challenges early in the night. Gragson was put in the last chance qualifier and qualified 27th. At the end of Stage 1, he worked his way up to 18th. He continued to have his challenges as he restarted 25th in the second stage. Gragson would only end up 23rd in Stage 2. The No. 18 Safelite driver benefited from late cautions and various pit strategy and found himself finishing sixth. Nonetheless, Gragson is looking to put Eldora behind him and looking ahead to Pocono. Like Gragson, Sauter was also in the last chance qualifier. He was locked in, regardless, as he could have used a champion’s provisional. Sauter finished fourth in the last chance qualifier, giving him a 29th place starting spot. His night didn’t get better as Sauter was the first caution of the night at Lap 11. Sauter continued to struggle throughout the night not placing in the top 10 in either stage. At the end of the night, Sauter was glad to be done with Eldora as he finished 16th.
    3. Logan Seavey Shines At Eldora – Seavey, a dirt track midget star, had a career night at the dirt track in Rossburg, Ohio. He made his Truck Series debut driving the famed No. 51 Kyle Busch Motorsports Tundra for Kyle Busch. Seavey handled the pressure well as he started on the pole for the second heat race. He led seven laps until he was passed by his KBM teammate Todd Gilliland in the final laps of the heat race. By finishing second, Seavey found himself starting seventh for his first ever Truck Series race. His night continued to shine as he took the lead for the first time on Lap 92 and held on for 53 laps, as a late race caution cut Seavey’s three second lead. More cautions continued to fall and with that, it hurt his track position as other drivers were on fresher tires. Ultimately, Seavey finished eighth. If it weren’t for the late race cautions, we all could be talking about a different winner. Nonetheless, Seavey caught some eyes and attention from race fans and owners. It will be interesting to see if he’ll get anymore Truck Series starts in the future.
    4. Three Races Left Until The Playoffs Begin – Now that one of the wildcards is over for the series, there are three races left until the 2018 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Playoffs begin at Canadian Tire Motorsports Park. The Playoff field is pretty much set in stone as five drivers have a win and are locked in. These drivers are Sauter, Brett Moffitt, Gragson, Justin Haley, and Ben Rhodes. As the series heads to Pocono this weekend, the action will start to heat up on the track as three drivers sit on the bubble of not making it. These are Matt Crafton, Stewart Friesen and Grant Enfinger. These three drivers will have three more chances to lock themselves in on wins. If not, barring any more issues or troubles they have, they could lock themselves in on points if there aren’t any new winners until the Playoffs begin.
  • NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Power Ranking-Eldora

    NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Power Ranking-Eldora

    Eldora Speedway was home of the 13th race of the season for the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series. In one of the most anticipated races of the season, this standalone event certainly did not disappoint. The field included Truck Series regulars and dirt regulars but it was a not a dirt regular but a former series driver that stood atop the victory circle Wednesday night.

    Here’s a look at this week’s power rankings.

      1. Grant Enfinger – Enfinger and Chase Briscoe certainly put on quite a show in the last remaining laps. Enfinger, who was looking for the second win of his career, his first since Talladega in 2016, had to settle for second by .038 seconds. The win would have locked him into the Playoffs, but with the consistency and strength that Enfinger has shown in the past remaining races, he sits sixth in the playoffs standings, 120 points. In Wednesday night’s race, he finished seventh and second, respectively in both stages. His second-place finish earned him his fourth top five of the year. Previous Week Ranking: 5th
      2. Stewart Friesen – Friesen came up short once again at Eldora, but it wasn’t due to lack of effort from the No. 52 Canadian driver. He was in the fifth heat race and led all 10 laps to score the win, which led him to a third-place starting position. The race was somewhat of a struggle early on for Friesen, as he ran as low 31st but was able to advance with pit stop strategy and cautions helping out the team. But, it wasn’t until the end of Stage 2 when he placed inside the top-10 to finish 10th. Friesen found himself in competition for the win in the final five laps of the race with the multiple race cautions. On one of the restarts, he went four-wide with the top leaders until another caution came out. However, Friesen rallied after being a caution on Lap 29 and earned a third-place finish, giving him his fifth top-five of the year. He’ll have to be careful in the three remaining races until the Playoffs begin as he sits on the bubble in seventh per Playoff standings, 111 points behind, considering no new driver wins until then. Previous Week Ranking: 3rd
      3. Brett Moffitt – Moffitt had a good night at Eldora, considering this was his first time racing on dirt. Based on qualifying results, he was placed in heat race #2 and ended up finishing third, giving him a 12th place starting position. The three-time race winner in 2018 had to fight his way to the front after fighting in dirty air and heavy traffic. He wasn’t able to earn stage points which will hurt the team just a little bit, but Hattori Racing team already has three wins this year and is good for the Playoffs, if they continue to get sponsorship throughout the season. In the end, Moffitt was helped out with the cautions and race strategy to give him a third-place finish. Previous Week Ranking: Not Ranked
      4. Matt Crafton – It has now been one year since Crafton has won a race in the Truck Series. After last night’s race, he has three more races remaining to earn a win to solidify himself into the Playoffs and compete for the championship. Crafton didn’t have a bad night, but it certainly didn’t come without troubles. On Lap 55, he and Tyler Dippel got collected with each other, and Crafton got tipped from behind by Ryan Newman who tore the back end off Crafton’s truck. However, not all was lost, as he and the No. 88 ThorSport team finished eighth and seventh respectively in both stages, ultimately giving him a fourth-place finish. But Crafton and the team are hungry for a win as he sits right on the cut line for the playoffs. He may have to get in on points if he wants to be a championship contender. Previous Week Ranking: 2nd
      5. Justin Haley – Like Briscoe and Crafton, Haley often competes in dirt racing when his schedule allows. It was second race at Eldora and it was almost the same identical finish for the No. 24 GMS Racing team. In last year’s race, he started 13th and finished eighth. Haley was placed in the fourth heat race and finished fourth after starting sixth. This gave him a 19th starting position, meaning it was going to be a long night for the series regular. But the No. 24 took the entire race to get to the front. He didn’t earn any stage points, but with his Gateway win, Haley is locked into the Playoffs. After a wild finish and race, he finished ninth for his ninth top-10 finish of the year. It’ll be interesting to see how he fares in the Playoffs. Previous Week Ranking: Not Ranked

    Fell Out

    1. Noah Gragson – Gragson had a quiet night at Eldora and didn’t make too much noise. He was placed in the last chance qualifier but had points to fall back on to make it into the race. He didn’t finish inside the top-10 at all for either stage after starting 27th, but Gragson did finish sixth after battling handling conditions all night long. He’ll look to Pocono and try to continue to close the gap on Johnny Sauter’s points lead.
    2. Ben Rhodes – Rhodes was having a good race going until a few laps after the Stage 2 restart. On Lap 45, he hit the wall and continued to slip all the way back in the field, ultimately having to bring the truck to pit road as the tow was knocked out of the truck. This gave the Kentucky winner a 29th place finish, but he is locked into the playoffs.

  • Chase Briscoe Fends off Teammate Grant Enfinger in Last Lap Thriller at Eldora

    Chase Briscoe Fends off Teammate Grant Enfinger in Last Lap Thriller at Eldora

    In a green-white-checkered race to the finish line, Chase Briscoe was able to fend off his ThorSport Racing teammate Grant Enfinger for the win in a last-lap thriller at Eldora Speedway. It was the closest finish at Eldora for the Truck Series with a margin of victory of .038 seconds.

    After a series of late race cautions near the end, Briscoe, with fresher tires than race leader Logan Seavey, was able to restart up front alongside his teammate Grant Enfinger. Both of them battled side-by-side all the way to the checkered flag after the restart and even banged the wall at the finish.

    “It means so much,” Briscoe said. “You know, I think Eldora, just in general, means a lot to people, but when you grow up with Sprint car roots and Sprint car backgrounds; I mean this place is our Daytona for dirt guys. So to be able to win this race, this is so special. There was one race that I wanted to win, it would definitely be this one. So it’s kind of surreal to me. Two years ago or three years ago, whenever (Christopher) Bell won, I came over (victory lane) here and was standing here, pumped that he won. We went to Waffle House later and maybe we’ll do that again tonight. Just unbelievable.”

    “Thank you so much to these Ford guys for allowing me to come do this,” he said. “The ThorSport guys worked their tails off. I hate how I had to race the (Grant Enfinger) 98. We definitely roughed him up a little bit and this is not how I race, but part of it, I guess. Just thankful for the opportunity. It’ll probably be the only truck race I’m going to do this year. It’s good to end on a good note.”

    Earlier in the day, there were five heat races including a last chance qualifier to set the 32 truck field. Last weeks winner, Ben Rhodes, and Todd Gilliland set the front row after winning the first two heat races.

    Stage 1 was 40 laps and there were only three incidents that occurred. One on Lap 9 for 2016 Champion Johnny Sauter who spun around in Turn 2 and went a lap down. On Lap 20, Justin Fontaine in the No. 45 spun out and brought out the second caution, giving Sauter his lap back. Then the final incident in the first stage came on Lap 27, when Stewart Friesen was spun by Chris Windom with other trucks involved as well including Sheldon Creed and Cody Coughlin.

    Kentucky winner, Ben Rhodes was able to win the first stage. The race was restarted on Lap 41 and went to lap 90 for Stage 2. On lap 45, Rhodes smacked the wall hard and had to come down pit road, eventually ending his night. He would ultimately finish 29th.

    Then a little foreshadowing occurred for what the end of the race might be, as Briscoe held off teammate Enfinger for the stage win.

    The final stage took place with 59 laps to go.

    Briscoe and Enfinger made pit stops for fresh tires and were sent to the back of the field. During the early stages of the final stage, this saw dirt standout star, Logan Seavey, lead for a total of 53 laps until a late race caution came with 21 to go. This saw Tyler Dippel and Austin Self make contact in the turns, thus bunching the field up once more.

    Seavey tried all he could to hold off the hard-charging Enfinger and Briscoe, but the late race cautions continued to hurt him as he had no tires. There were two more cautions near the end with less than five to go.

    In the end, there was a green-white-checkered overtime finish. Enfinger and Briscoe pulled away from the rest of the field. The other 30 drivers had to watch a thrilling finish between Briscoe and Enfinger which ended by a .038 seconds margin with Briscoe as the winner.

    Friesen, Matt Crafton and Noah Gragson rounded out the top five finishers in the Sixth Annual Eldora Dirt Derby.

    It was Briscoe’s first win in the Truck Series since his victory at Homestead-Miami last year for the Brad Keselowski Racing team. This was his second career Truck Series win.

    Briscoe led three times for 54 laps with seven lead changes among five drivers. There were nine cautions for 41 laps.

    Sauter, who finished 16th, continues to lead the standings by 32 points over Gragson.

  • NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Preview-Eldora

    NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Preview-Eldora

    The Eldora Dirt Derby is one of the biggest races for the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series. This historic race is one of the most unique races on the Truck Series schedule. Along with Daytona, Talladega, Canada and Bristol, you could say Eldora is a wildcard, as well, to the series. The Eldora Dirt Derby is a national attraction for the series and as always, expect another exciting race for the sixth annual Eldora Dirt Derby Wednesday night.

    There are 40 entries on the preliminary entry list as for this week in a list of who-who.

    There will be 14 dirt track stars making their Truck Series debut but are no stranger to dirt racing. These include Chris Windom in the No. 54, Kyle Strickler in the No. 63, Logan Seavey in the No. 51, Max McLaughlin in the No. 38, Tyler Dipple in the No. 17, and J.R. Heffner in the No. 15, John Provenzano will be the oldest driver in the field, 63, making his debut in the No. 03 Mike Affarano entry.   These dirt track stars have a built-in resume that includes Six Silver Crown wins, 180 dirt modified wins, a midget driver, 60+ wins, and a K&N driver.

    The rest making their track debut include Austin Hill, John Provenzano, Todd Gilliland, Myatt Snider, Brett Moffitt, Tyler Dippel, Dalton Sargeant, Justin Fontaine, Nick Hoffman, Max McLaughlin, Logan Norman Seavey, Kyle Strickler, Trevor Collins and RJ Otto Jr.

    Chase Briscoe will make his series return driving the No. 27 Thorsport’s fifth entry.

    Ryan Newman will be fielding the No.3 entry of Jordan Anderson Racing. It’ll be Newman’s first start of the series since 2015 where he drove the No. 8 NEMCO Motorsports entry at Kansas when he started fourth and finished second. It’ll be the first time at Eldora since 2013 when he drove the Turner Motorsports entry and finished third.

    Here’s who to expect that might end up in victory lane in Wednesday nights annual running at Eldora.

    1. Matt Crafton – It will be the one year anniversary since the two-time champion has scored a win in the series. His last win came at this very track after leading 24 laps and finishing first and ninth in both stages, respectively. Crafton got some dirt exposure this past weekend driving his modified at Oakshade Raceway. He’s been driving his modified whenever his schedule will allow. Crafton has competed in all five races, earning one win, one top five and five top-10 finishes, averaging a 10.4 start and a 7.4 finish. Nonetheless, after a somewhat forgettable season so far, the series veteran will be hungry to get his first win of the season and lock himself in the 2018 Truck Series Playoffs.
    2. Stewart Friesen – This will be Friesen’s playground this week and could be his chance to park it in victory lane for his first career win. Like the other dirt track stars, Friesen is a dirt track standout of his own, driving in the Super DIRTCar Series. He has amassed over 260 wins dirt tracks across the United States since 1999. Friesen currently drives Big-Block Modifieds. Eldora is a special place for the No. 52 Halmar Racing driver. It’s where he made his series debut in 2016 starting 16th but he disappointingly finished 28th due to a crash on Lap 111. However, this opportunity led him to make more series starts before going part-time in 2017, and full-time this year. In last year’s race, Friesen started on the pole and finished second after leading 93 laps. He won Stage 1 and finished second in Stage 2.
    3. Chase Briscoe – Briscoe is back competing in the Truck Series Wednesday night. This time, however, he is competing in the No 27 ThorSport Racing entry. It will be the team’s fifth entry. But Briscoe is no stranger to the series nor dirt, as he competed full-time last year driving for the now defunct Brad Keselowski Racing team. He competed in the Dirt Derby last year finishing third after starting 12th. Briscoe also brings dirt experience having driven quarter midget and 410 Sprint Cars. He also is the youngest winner to earn a victory in the 410 Sprint Car Series. Currently, Briscoe competes in a family-owned team in all kinds of series on dirt.
    4. Tanner Thorson – If there is an upset winner this week in the Truck Series, it could very well be the No. 20 of Tanner Thorson, but if it’s on dirt,  his fans know it wouldn’t really be an upset. Thorson is a decorated dirt track star driving in the TRI-C No.3C Sprint Car and Midget team. In past years, Thorson drove in the Keith Kunz Motorsports and earned 25 midget wins. Other stats include 2013 Midget National Rookie of The Year, 2015-2017 National Midget Driver of the Year, and he won the 2016 USAC National Midget Championship. This year, Thorson is competing in pretty much everything dirt. This includes Midgets, POWRI National Midget, USCS 360 Wing Sprint Car, World of Outlaws, Civil War 360 Wing Sprint Cars, KWS 410 Sprint Car, and in the SCCT 360 Sprint Car series. In the Truck Series this year, he has two starts with those coming in Dover and Iowa. The best finish was 13th at Iowa. It’ll be interesting to see how the decorated dirt star competes against the series regulars when dirt comes into his favor.
    5. John Hunter Nemechek – When it comes to dirt, you wouldn’t think of Nemechek as a contender for the win. However, in the past four starts, he only has one finish outside the top-10 which came in 2016 after some issues during the race. His other finishes include sixth, seventh, and fifth in last year’s race. Nemechek even led 11 laps in the previous race after finishing third in both stages. In his four starts, it has brought him an average start of 11.8 and an average finish of 10.5, with 12 laps led. He’ll be hungry to get to victory lane as one slipped away at Chicago, where he ran out of gas on the last lap on the back straight, ultimately finishing seventh.

    In the past five races, there have been five different winners including Matt Crafton, Kyle Larson, Christopher Bell, Darrell Wallace Jr., and the first event winner Austin Dillon. The lowest a winner has ever come from the field to win was 19th in 2013 from Dillon. The highest starting spot came in last year’s race where Crafton started second and won.

    Two practices are scheduled for Tuesday night with the first one taking place at 7:05 p.m. ET and the final practice is slated for 9:05 p.m. ET, with no live TV coverage.

    Qualifying for the heat races is scheduled for Wednesday at 4:35 p.m. ET on Fox Sports 1. There will be five heat races starting at 7 p.m. ET. All five heat races will consist of 10 laps to set the starting lineup.

    Live coverage begins at 9 p.m ET Wednesday on Fox Sports 1 and MRN Radio, with the approximate green flag at 9:15 p.m. ET. Stages are broken into 40/50/60 for a total of 150 laps.

    Eldora Race Format