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  • Jack Wood rejoins McAnally-Hilgemann Racing for full Truck campaign in 2025

    Jack Wood rejoins McAnally-Hilgemann Racing for full Truck campaign in 2025

    Jack Wood has been named a full-time NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series racer for McAnally-Hilgemann Racing (MHR) for the 2025 season.

    The 24-year-old Wood from Loomis, California, will pilot the No. 91 Chevrolet Silverado RST entry that will be sponsored by Adaptive One Calipers and led by crew chief Kevin Bellicourt.

    The news comes as Wood is coming off a part-time Truck Series campaign at MHR, where he drove MHR’s No. 91 entry to seven top-20 results and an average-finishing result of 20.8 through 13-scheduled starts. He also competed on a full-time basis for Bill McAnally Racing in the ARCA Menards Series West division, where he notched five top-five results and seven top-10 results before he finished in fourth place in the final driver’s standings.

    The 2025 season is set to mark MHR’s second consecutive season fielding four full-time entries in the Truck Series as Wood will compete alongside teammates Tyler Ankrum, Daniel Hemric and Connor Mosack. The upcoming season is also set to mark Wood’s second as a full-time competitor in the Truck Series and first since the 2022 season.

    “I’m definitely thankful and excited to be back at MHR next season,” Wood said in a released statement. “We had a lot of bright spots this past season and have a great foundation to build on. I have a lot of trust in Kevin [Bellicourt], [team owner] Bill [McAnally], and everyone at MHR, so that makes me excited for what’s ahead of us next year. It’s great to have Adaptive One Calipers board with us and looking forward to activating with their customers throughout the season.”

    Wood made his Truck Series debut at Circuit of the Americas in May 2021, where he drove the No. 24 GMS Racing Chevrolet entry to a 28th-place result. He proceeded to make 11 additional starts throughout the 2021 season, where he notched his first top-10 result by finishing 10th at World Wide Technology Raceway in August, before he assumed the No. 24 entry on a full-time basis in 2022. During his first full-time Truck campaign, he recorded an average-finishing result of 25.2 and settled in 24th place in the driver’s standings. Prior to joining MHR on a part-time basis in 2024, Wood piloted the No. 51 Kyle Busch Motorsports Chevrolet entry in 13 events in 2023. During the stint, he recorded two top-10 results, a career-best ninth-place run at Texas Motor Speedway in April and an average-finishing result of 21.3.

    Through 61 current starts in the Truck Series, Wood has recorded three top-10 results, five laps led and an average-finishing result of 23.6 as he strives to both achieve his first series victory and make his first Playoffs in 2025.

    “We’re glad to have Jack return next season and excited to see him build on the groundwork from 2024,” Bill McAnally added. “The No. 91 team did a great job last season with multiple drivers and Jack managed the year well with splitting time between the truck program and the west series. It’s tremendous to have continued support from everyone at Adaptive One Calipers and allowing Jack to focus on the entire truck schedule next year will pay dividends for the whole team.”

    With his plans for next season set, Jack Wood’s 2025 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series season is scheduled to commence at Daytona International Speedway on February 14 at 7:30 p.m. ET on FS1.

  • McAnally-Hilgemann Racing adds Chase Elliott for Daytona Truck Series race, finalizes driver-crew chief pairing

    McAnally-Hilgemann Racing adds Chase Elliott for Daytona Truck Series race, finalizes driver-crew chief pairing

    McAnally-Hilgemann Racing solidified its driver-crew chief lineup for the 2023 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series season while also unveiling a special name that will be joining the organization to commence a new season of competition.

    For the Truck Series’ season-opener at Daytona International Speedway that is scheduled to occur on February 17, Chase Elliott will be piloting the No. 35 McAnally-Hilgemann Racing Chevrolet Silverado RST sponsored by Gates Hydraulics and NAPA Auto Care. The 2020 NASCAR Cup Series champion will be driving the entry in place of Jake Garcia, who will not be competing in the event due to age restrictions. Garcia, who was announced as the driver of the No. 35 Chevrolet for this upcoming Truck season on December 6, will make his first start of the season at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on March 3, which marks his 18th birthday.

    The 2023 Truck opener will mark Elliott’s first series start at Daytona and 18th overall, with his latest occurring at the Bristol Motor Speedway Dirt Course last April, where he finished seventh while driving for Spire Motorsports. Making his Truck debut at Martinsville Speedway in April 2013, Elliott has achieved three career victories in the Truck circuit. His first occurred at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park in September 2013 while driving for Hendrick Motorsports and following a last-lap run-in with Ty Dillon. He went on to win at Martinsville Speedway in April 2017 and at Charlotte Motor Speedway in May 2020, both while driving for GMS Racing.

    “This will be the first time I’ve driven a truck at Daytona, let alone a superspeedway,” Elliott, who finished fourth in the 2022 Cup Series final standings, said. “There’s no better team owner than Bill McAnally to do it with, as he’s been involved in racing and been associated with NAPA for a long time.”

    Following the season opener at Daytona, Garcia, who made his first five career starts in the Truck circuit with McAnally-Hilgemann Racing this past season and notched a career-best 16th place at Phoenix Raceway in November, will take over the No. 35 entry and compete for the rookie title. Mark Hillman, who spent the previous season at McAnally-Hilgemann Racing as a crew chief for Colby Howard and the No. 91 entry, will remain with the organization to navigate both Elliott and Garcia throughout the season.

    “I think there’s an incredible amount of potential for our team to make a lot of noise this year, and we have the people to make it happen,” Bill McAnally, owner of McAnally-Hilgemann Racing, said. “We’re thrilled to have Chase step in and drive our No. 35 Gates Hydraulics Chevrolet at Daytona and everyone involved in our program is excited and glad that he’s able to do so. I think his presence at Daytona will benefit Jake (Garcia) and our entire group.”

    Meanwhile, Charles Denike, who joined McAnally-Hilgemann Racing midway into the 2022 Truck season and served as a crew chief for the team’s No. 19 entry piloted by Derek Kraus, will be remaining with the organization to lead the No. 19 Chevrolet Silverado RST team for a full season. On this occasion, the No. 19 entry will be piloted by Christian Eckes, who joined the organization on December 6. The 22-year-old Eckes from Middletown, New York, spent the previous Truck season competing for ThorSport Racing, where he notched eight top-five results, 15 top-10 results and qualified for the 2022 Truck Playoffs before finishing eighth in the final standings. He also notched his first career victory at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in September 2021.

    Photo by Chad Wells for SpeedwayMedia.com.

    On the competition side, veteran Chad Norris will be serving as the team’s general manager and will oversee the truck operation at the team’s base in Statesville, North Carolina. Norris, who spent the previous season as Garcia’s crew chief in the Truck competition, joins McAnally Hilgemann Racing with an extensive racing resume that includes four victories in the NASCAR Xfinity Series and one in the Truck circuit, which occurred at Kansas Speedway in October 2020 with Brett Moffitt. Norris also previously served as a competition director for GMS Racing before filling in as a Cup Series crew chief for Petty GMS Motorsports and driver Ty Dillon midway through this past season.

    “Mark [Hillman] and Charles [Denike] had good seasons last year and are motivated to elevate the performance of both teams,” McAnally added. “Having Chad [Norris] come on board is a good boost for us also. He’s been around the Chevrolet team, has crew chief experience, and worked with Jake last season. I feel like we have a lot of talented people in our team, and we’re looking forward to putting it all together in our 33rd season with NAPA and NAPA Auto Care.”

    With their full roster set, McAnally-Hilgemann Racing’s 2023 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series season is scheduled to commence at Daytona International Speedway on February 17 at 7:30 p.m. ET on FS1.