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Tag: GMS Racing

  • Four Takeaways From The Truck Series Race At Daytona

    Four Takeaways From The Truck Series Race At Daytona

    The NASCAR Camping World Truck Series started the 2018 season last Friday night at Daytona International Speedway. Here are four takeaways from the event itself.

    1. GMS Racing Look To Recapture Championship – GMS Racing’s Johnny Sauter started off the season with a win, followed by the No. 24 of Justin Haley. If history repeats itself, Sauter would wind up winning his second championship this year as he won the season opener a few years ago and won the championship in that year. It could happen again, but there are a lot of hungry and new drivers looking to knock off the seasoned veterans for the championship.
    2. Scott Lagasse Jr. Gets A For Effort – Lagasse Jr earned a fifth-place finish Friday night at Daytona. It was his best finish at the historic 2.5-mile superspeedway since the 2015 race where he finished third. Regardless of where he finished in the stages, he gets an A for effort while earning his second top five of his career.
    3. Kyle Busch Motorsports Has Star-Studded Lineup – The driver lineup will look different this year for Kyle Busch Motorsports than it did in past years. Noah Gragson returns for his second full-time season driving the famed No. 18. Todd and David Gilliland will split the rides until Todd turns 18 at Charlotte in May. Spencer Davis and Kyle Busch will also spit the No. 51 Truck. While at Charlotte, KBM will field four entries with Todd in the No. 4, Gragson in the No. 18, Busch in the No. 51 and Brandon Jones in the No. 46. As you can see, the KBM entries are fielded with bright stars looking to make an impact and headlines in 2018.
    4. Jordan Anderson Fields Own Entry In 2018 – It will be interesting to see how Anderson does competing in his own team this year. He will be fielding the No. 3 Toyota Tundra in 2018. He was there at the end challenging for the win despite not finishing in the top 10 in both stages. However, just like Spencer Davis, Anderson went spinning around at the start-finish line to earn the first top 10 of his career. If Anderson can keep this up, he will have a solid 2018 season.
  • Sauter Now Biggest Threat For Truck Series Championship

    Sauter Now Biggest Threat For Truck Series Championship

    Throughout the course of the 2016 season, the biggest stories in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series were rookie driver William Byron’s series-leading six wins and the absolute dominance of the Toyota teams with 13 wins in 22 races. But with Byron eliminated from championship contention, it is looking like GMS Racing driver Johnny Sauter is now in prime position to hoist the championship trophy at Homestead.

    Since his first full season in the Camping World Truck Series in 2009, Sauter has been at or near the top of the standings each season, with a low of ninth in the final standings coming in 2012. In seven seasons racing for ThorSport Racing, the organization that fields the No. 88 of two-time NCWTS champion Matt Crafton, Sauter won 10 races and finished a career-best second in points in 2011 to champion Austin Dillon. However, despite the success and consistency, Sauter never held the championship trophy.

    In his first race behind the wheel of the No. 21 GMS Racing Chevrolet, Sauter took the win at Daytona and despite early season issues at Atlanta, Martinsville, and Kansas, he managed to fight his way back into the top-five in points, finishing outside of the top-10 only twice since finishing fourth at Dover in May. Now, following up back-to-back wins at Martinsville and Texas with a runner-up spot at Phoenix, his No. 21 Silverado is coming alive at the right time to clinch his first NCWTS championship.

    He holds a higher driver rating (120.3) than his four championship competitors heading into Homestead, and he has also posted more top-10s this season (18) than the other four drivers in the Final Four (Christopher Bell isn’t far off with 16 top-10s). As for the championship race at Homestead, despite Crafton having more top-10s, Sauter has posted several strong runs at Homestead including a win there in 2011. Sauter knows what it takes to win at Homestead and considering the stretch he’s been on coupled with the power that the GMS Racing trucks have been putting out this season (their six wins this season are an organization best), the No. 21 truck is definitely the team to beat.

    With this Chase format shaking things up in the standings, Sauter winning the championship isn’t a certainty. But considering he’s made it this far with a team that’s enjoying a breakout season, he’s on a hot streak. He has the best momentum heading into the finale and may be the odds-on favorite for the championship.