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  • Layne Riggs spoils the 2024 Playoff opener with first Truck career victory at Milwaukee

    Layne Riggs spoils the 2024 Playoff opener with first Truck career victory at Milwaukee

    For a second time since the inception of the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series’ Playoff format, a non-Playoff contender stole the final spotlight in the Playoff opener as rookie Layne Riggs dominated the final stage and cruised to his first Craftsman Truck Series career victory in the LiUNA! 175 at the Milwaukee Mile on Sunday, August 25.

    The 22-year-old, second-generation racer from Bahama, North Carolina, led the final 53 of 175-scheduled laps in an event where he qualified in 16th place but methodically drove his way to the front, where he would spend the majority of the event running upfront with a bevy of Playoff contenders.

    Then after notching a total of 13 stage points between the event’s first two stage periods, Riggs flexed his horsepower at the start of the final stage period with 56 laps remaining to move into second place before he then muscled past Playoff contender Ty Majeski for the lead three laps remaining. With the lead in his sole possession, Riggs would maintain it for the remainder of the event and beat Majeski by one-and-a-half seconds to score his first elusive Truck Series career win.

    With on-track qualifying that determined the starting lineup occurring on Saturday, August 24, Playoff contender Ty Majeski notched his fourth Truck pole position of the 2024 season after he posted a pole-winning lap at 122.556 mph in 29.815 seconds. Joining him on the front row was Tanner Gray, who posted the second-fastest qualifying lap at 122.469 mph in 29.836 seconds.

    Prior to the event, Playoff contender Rajah Caruth and Justin Carroll dropped to the rear of the field due to unapproved adjustments made to their respective trucks.

    When the green flag waved and the race started, Ty Majeski rocketed his No. 98 Road Ranger/Soda Sense Ford F-150 ahead with a strong start from the inside lane and he retained the lead through the first two turns and the backstretch while Playoff contender Christian Eckes, who started behind Majeski on the inside lane, used every inch of the first two turns to muscle his No. 19 NAPA Chevrolet Silverado RST past Tanner Gray’s No. 15 Dead On Tools Toyota Tundra TRD Pro for the runner-up spot. As the field behind jostled for early spots, Majeski proceeded to lead the first lap.

    Over the next four laps, Majeski stabilized his lead to as high as six-tenths of a second over runner-up Eckes while Playoff contenders Corey Heim and Nick Sanchez made their way into third and fourth, respectively, ahead of Tanner Gray and Kaden Honeycutt. With William Sawalich, winner of the ARCA Menards Series event at Milwaukee earlier in the day, running in seventh, Playoff contenders and teammates Tyler Ankrum and Daniel Dye followed suit in the top nine while rookie Layne Riggs occupied 10th place ahead of Playoff contender Grant Enfinger.

    Through the first 10 scheduled laps, Majeski extended his early advantage to more than a second over Eckes while Heim, Sanchez and Honeycutt followed suit in the top five ahead of Tanner Gray, William Sawalich, Ankrum, Daniel Dye and Riggs. Behind, Enfinger retained 11th place ahead of Matt Crafton, with Playoff contenders Ben Rhodes and Taylor Gray occupying 13th and 14th, respectively, ahead of Sammy Smith, Jake Garcia, Dean Thompson, Matt Mills, Chase Purdy and Ty Dillon. Meanwhile, Playoff contender Rajah Caruth was up to 24th place after starting at the rear of the field while Bayley Currey plummeted to 36th place, dead last, due to pitting under green from the top-15 mark after getting squeezed into the frontstretch’s outside wall by Taylor Gray and Crafton that cut Currey’s left-front tire on the sixth lap.

    Ten laps later, Majeski’s advantage was reduced to eight-tenths of a second over Eckes as Heim and Sanchez trailed the lead as far back as five seconds. Behind, Ankrum retained eighth place and was running two spots ahead of Dye while Enfinger, Rhodes, and Taylor Gray were running 11th, 13th, and 14ty, respectively. By then, Caruth was still mired in 23rd as Honeycutt continued to run as the highest non-Playoff contender in fifth place ahead of Tanner Gray and Sawalich.

    Another 15 laps later, Majeski regained his wide advantage from early in the race as he was now leading by more than a second over Eckes. Behind, Heim continued to fend off Sanchez in third place, where the former was ahead of the latter by half a second, while Honeycutt retained fifth place ahead of Tanner Gray, Sawalich, Ankrum, Dye and Riggs. Meanwhile, Caruth cracked the top 20 as he was running in 20th place behind Matt Mills while Playoff contenders Enfinger, Ben Rhodes and Taylor Gray remained in 11th, 13th and 14th, respectively.

    Then on Lap 42, Eckes took advantage of Majeski getting mired behind lapped traffic, starting through the backstretch and through Turns 3 and 4 before returning to the frontstretch, to move into the lead as he used the outside lane to overtake Majeski along with lapped competitors Bret Holmes and Chase Purdy. Eckes proceeded to stretch his advantage to more than a second just past the Lap 45 mark while Heim, Sanchez and Honeycutt trailed the lead as far back as six seconds.

    Then on Lap 47, the event’s first caution period flew when Jayson Alexander got loose and hit the outside wall in Turn 3, where his truck came to a stop. During the caution period, nearly the entire field led by Eckes pitted while Ty Dillon and Jake Garcia remained on the track. Following the pit stops, Eckes exited pit road first ahead of Majeski, Sanchez, Heim, Riggs and Dye, respectively. Amid the pit stops, Heim was sent to the rear of the field for speeding on pit road.

    With the caution period being extended towards the first stage’s conclusion period at Lap 55, the first stage period officially concluded under caution. As a result, Ty Dillon, who remained on the track, claimed his first Truck stage victory of the 2024 season. Jake Garcia, who also remained on the track, followed suit in second ahead of Eckes, Majeski and Sanchez while Riggs, Dye, Tanner Gray, Taylor Gray and Ankrum were scored in the top 10. By then, Playoff contenders Enfinger, Rhodes, Caruth and Heim were mired back in 13th, 18th, 19th and 22nd, respectively, as they missed the first round of opportunities for stage points.

    Under the stage break and extended caution period, select names including the leader Ty Dillon, Garcia, Stewart Friesen, Conner Jones and Chase Purdy pitted while the rest led by Eckes remained on the track.

    Amid an extended caution period, where Dexter Bean stalled on the frontstretch just past the Lap 60 mark, the second stage period started on Lap 62 under green as Eckes and Majeski occupied the front row. At the start, Eckes muscled ahead of Majeski to retain the lead through the first two turns and from the inside lane while Riggs overtook Majeski for the runner-up spot entering the backstretch. As Eckes proceeded to lead the following lap, Riggs followed suit in second ahead of Majeski, Sanchez and the Gray brothers while Crafton was battling Dye for seventh place ahead of Ankrum, Honeycutt and Enfinger.

    By Lap 70, Eckes maintained a narrow lead over Riggs as Majeski, Sanchez and Tanner Gray followed suit in the top five. Eckes would proceed to slightly stabilize his advantage to three-tenths of a second by Lap 75 over Riggs as Majeski, Sanchez and Tanner Gray continued to trail in the top five. Meanwhile, Heim, who restarted just outside the top 20 amid his pit road speeding penalty, was up to 14th place in his No. 11 Safelite Toyota Tundra TRD Pro behind Rhodes while Taylor Gray, Dye, Crafton, Ankrum and Honeycutt rounded out the top 10 ahead of Enfinger and Dean Thompson. Amid the battles upfront for a majority of the Playoff contenders, Caruth was mired back in 20th place.

    Ten laps later, Eckes retained the lead by half a second over Riggs, with third-place Majeski trailing the lead by a second and fourth-place Sanchez trailing by more than two seconds. Behind, the Gray brothers retained fifth and sixth, with older brother Tanner racing ahead of younger brother Taylor, while Dye occupied seventh place as he was two spots ahead of teammate Ankrum.

    At the halfway mark between Laps 87 and 88, Eckes extended his advantage to more than two seconds over Majeski and Riggs as Sanchez, Tanner Gray, Taylor Gray, Dye, Crafton, Anrkum and Honeycutt followed suit in the top 10 ahead of Enfinger, Rhodes, Thompson, Heim, Sammy Smith, Ty Dillon, Matt Mills, Caruth, Garcia and Sawalich.

    Through the Lap 100 mark, Eckes stabilized his advantage to more than two seconds over Majeski while Riggs, Sanchez and Taylor Gray trailed the lead as far back as six seconds. By then, Playoff contenders Dye and Ankrum were in sixth and ninth, respectively, while Enfinger, Rhodes and Heim trailed in the top 13. In addition, Caruth was mired back in 18th place behind Dillon and Mills.

    When the second stage period concluded on Lap 110, Eckes cruised to his ninth Truck stage victory of the 2024 season. Majeski followed suit in second ahead of Riggs, Sanchez and Taylor Gray while Dye, Ankrum, Crafton, Honeycutt and Enfinger were scored in the top 10. By then, Playoff contenders Rhodes, Heim and Caruth were mired back in 11th, 13th and 19th, respectively.

    During the stage break, the lead lap field led by Eckes returned to pit road for service. Following the pit stops, Eckes retained the lead as he exited pit road first ahead of Riggs, Majeski, Sanchez, Dye, Taylor Gray, Ankrum, Heim, Tanner Gray and Enfinger.

    With 56 laps remaining, the final stage commenced as Eckes and Riggs occupied the front row. At the start, Eckes gained a brief advantage from the inside lane through the frontstretch until he went wide, which allowed Majeski to capitalize and clear Eckes off of Turn 2 with the lead. As the field fanned out to multiple lanes through the first two turns and the backstretch, Riggs then joined the battle for the lead with Majeski and Eckes, but Majeski retained the top spot as Matt Mills got sideways off the front nose of Caruth and hit the wall in Turn 3, though the race remained under green flag conditions. With Majeski leading Riggs for the following lap, Eckes fell back to third as he had Heim, Taylor Gray, Ankrum, Sanchez and more trailing in from behind.

    Then with 53 laps remaining, Riggs battled and overtook Majeski to lead for the first time through the backstretch. Riggs proceeded to lead by half a second in his No. 38 Zorn Compressor & Equipment Ford F-150 over Majeski with 50 laps remaining as Eckes, Heim and Sanchez trailed in the top five by less than three seconds. By then, nine of 10 Playoff contenders were running in the top 13 while Caruth, the lone Playoff contender who was not running inside the top 13 on the track, was mired back just within the top-20 mark.

    With 40 laps remaining, Riggs stabilized his advantage to six-tenths of a second over Majeski while Eckes, Sanchez and Heim trailed in the top five by as far back as four seconds. Meanwhile, Taylor Gray trailed in sixth place by five seconds while Ankrum, Rhodes, Tanner Gray and Dye were scored in the top 10 ahead of Crafton, Honeycutt, Enfinger, Sawalich and Ty Dillon. Meanwhile, Caruth was mired back in 19th place in front of Dean Thompson.

    Down to the final 25 laps of the event, Riggs extended his advantage to a second over runner-up Majeski as Eckes, Sanchez and Heim were running in the top five, with the latter three trailing by more than four seconds. Behind, Taylor Gray, Ankrum, Rhodes, Dye and Tanner Gray followed suit in the top 10 while Playoff contenders Enfinger and Caruth were mired back in 13th and 17th, respectively.

    Five laps later, Riggs continued to lead the race ahead of eight Playoff contenders and by a second over his closest challenger Majeski. Riggs would proceed to retain the top spot by seven-tenths of a second over runner-up Majeski with 15 laps remaining while third-place Eckes trailed in third place by one-and-a-half seconds

    With 10 laps remaining, Riggs, who was being mired in lapped traffic and had his steady advantage steadily decreasing over the last several laps, continued to lead by nine-tenths of a second over Majeski while third-place Eckes continued to trail by one-and-a-half seconds in third place ahead of Sanchez and Heim. Heim would then be entangled in a battle for fifth place with teammate Taylor Gray and Ankrum while Dye, Rhodes and Crafton trailed in the top 10.

    Down to the final five laps of the event, Riggs stretched his advantage back up to a second over runner-up Majeski as Majeski had Eckes trailing him by nine-tenths of a second. By then, fourth-place Sanchez trailed by three seconds while Taylor Gray, who persevered in his late battle against teammate Heim and Ankrum, was running in fifth place and trailing the lead by six seconds.

    When the white flag waved and the final lap started, Riggs remained as the leader by one-and-a-half seconds over Majeski. With Majeski unable to quickly narrow the deficit, Riggs, who was mired within no lapped traffic that could stall his momentum, cycled his Ford smoothly around the Milwaukee circuit for a final time before he streaked back to the frontstretch and claimed his first checkered flag in his 23rd series’ start.

    With the victory, Layne Riggs, the leading Rookie-of-the-Year candidate who did not make the 2024 Truck Series Playoffs, became the 125th competitor overall to win in the Craftsman Truck Series division, a list that includes his father and former NASCAR competitor, Scott Riggs. He also joined Nick Sanchez and Rajah Caruth as competitors to record their first Truck victories in 2024 and he notched the ninth Truck career victory for Front Row Motorsports, with the team winning for the first time since Talladega Superspeedway in October 2023 with Brett Moffitt. The victory was also a first for rookie crew chief Dylan Cappello.

    Prior to his first Truck career victory, Riggs had only notched four top-five results while ending up with 10 results of 18th or worse through 16 starts in his rookie campaign. Riggs’ Milwaukee victory, which made him the spoiler of the day as a non-Playoff contender, resulted in the 10 qualified Playoff contenders missing their first shot of automatically transferring past the Round of 10 to 8 by not winning the Playoff opener.

    The only thing that went wrong for Riggs’ first victory was the driver dislocating his shoulder while standing atop his roof and pumping his fists in the air and in front of the Milwaukee fans after claiming his checkered flag. Nonetheless, Riggs would receive assistance from his No. 38 pit crew to climb back down from his truck’s roof as he then proceeded to celebrate both on the frontstretch and in Victory Lane.

    “I don’t even know how to describe [the first win],” Riggs said in Victory Lane on FS1. “The biggest thing I can do is just thank Zorn that was on the truck this weekend. It’s their first race. It’s awesome for them. Thank you to [team owner] Bob Jenkins, [general manager] Jerry Freeze for letting me drive this [No. 38] truck. I mean, it’s been no surprise that we’ve had a terrible year. It’s been an awful year. I’ve learned so much, though, and I went through my rookie season. After the start, I thought there’s no way we were going to get a win. We do the best we can, but we’re just learning for next year. I knew in practice, this [truck] was pretty awesome. [Me and my team] have a good time together and we’re a family now.”

    “[My shoulder] hurts like a mug, but hey, it was worth it,” Riggs jokingly added. “It’s not the first time it’s happened to me, but it ain’t going to slow me down.”

    Behind Riggs, Ty Majeski, the pole winner who led 45 laps and was a local hero of the venue as a native of Seymour, Wisconsin, settled in second place as he fell short of winning three races in a row in recent weeks while Eckes, the 2024 Truck Series Regular Season Champion who led a race-high 71 laps, came home in third place for his ninth top-three result of the 2024 season.

    Amid the disappointments of not winning the Playoff opener and automatically transferring into the second Playoff round, both Majeski and Eckes continue to set their sights on transferring to this year’s Championship 4 round at Phoenix Raceway and contending for their first series championship.

    “I think the fact that we missed [the setup] as bad as we did and we were as close as we were is super encouraging,” Majeski, who is 44 points above the top-eight cutline in the Playoff standings, said. “That means we have a lot of speed in our trucks. It’s just up to us to hit the package right. [Crew chief] Joe [Shear Jr.] and I put our heads together to come up with our Phoenix [Raceway] package and come up with some changes to it, to try and make it better for Phoenix. [I] Don’t know that we got there quite yet, but super proud of the run we’ve had the last three races. We’re hitting on all eight cylinders right now and super proud of everybody. Everybody back at the shop has been working hard over the course of the Olympic break, into Richmond and into Milwaukee here to get our trucks better. We’re seeing that improvement and I feel good about where we’re at. We’re poised to make a pretty good run here, so we got to keep it going.”

    “I was leading on the bottom [lane] and [the truck] bottomed out for the first time all day,” Eckes, who leads the Playoff standings and is 60 points above the cutline, added. “It shot up the racetrack and just couldn’t recover. I was way too tight. [I] Felt like it was going to build tight and it did and we just weren’t aggressive enough on adjustments. Proud of everybody, but definitely a pretty big missed opportunity. We’ll see what happens, but disappointed in that.”

    Nick Sanchez rallied from a late retirement at Richmond Raceway two weeks ago by finishing in fourth place while Taylor Gray muscled his No. 17 JBL Toyota Tundra TRD Pro to a strong fifth-place result.

    Playoff contenders Tyler Ankrum, Corey Heim, Daniel Dye and Ben Rhodes finished sixth through ninth, respectively, while Matt Crafton came home in 10th place.

    Notably, Playoff contender Grant Enfinger ended up in 13th place behind Kaden Honeycutt while Playoff rookie Rajah Caruth capped off his long afternoon in 17th place behind Sammy Smith.  

    There were five lead changes for four different leaders. The race featured two cautions for 22 laps. In addition, 20 of 36 starters finished on the lead lap.

    Results.

    1. Layne Riggs, 53 laps led

    2. Ty Majeski, 45 laps led

    3. Christian Eckes, 71 laps led, Stage 2 winner

    4. Nick Sanchez

    5. Taylor Gray

    6. Tyler Ankrum

    7. Corey Heim

    8. Daniel Dye

    9. Ben Rhodes

    10. Matt Crafton

    11. Tanner Gray

    12. Kaden Honeycutt

    13. Grant Enfinger

    14. William Sawalich

    15. Jack Wood

    16. Ty Dillon, six laps led, Stage 1 winner

    17. Sammy Smith

    18. Rajah Caruth

    19. Dean Thompson

    20. Stewart Friesen

    21. Jake Garcia, one lap down

    22. Conner Jones, one lap down

    23. Chase Purdy, two laps down

    24. Matt Mills, two laps down

    25. Timmy Hill, two laps down

    26. Bret Holmes, two laps down

    27. Mason Maggio, two laps down

    28. Spencer Boyd, three laps down

    29. Bayley Currey, three laps down

    30. Dexter Bean, three laps down

    31. Marco Andretti, five laps down

    32. Thad Moffitt, six laps down

    33. Matthew Gould, six laps down

    34. Justin Carroll, eight laps down

    35. Lawless Alan – OUT, Suspension

    36. Jayson Alexander – OUT, Accident

    *Bold indicates Playoff competitors

    Playoff standings

    1. Christian Eckes +60

    2. Ty Majeski +44

    3. Corey Heim +41

    4. Nick Sanchez +34

    5. Taylor Gray +13

    6. Tyler Ankrum +13

    7. Daniel Dye +9

    8. Grant Enfinger +2

    9. Ben Rhodes -2

    10. Rajah Caruth -4

    With the 2024 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Playoffs underway, the next event on the schedule is Bristol Motor Speedway in Bristol, Tennessee, for the UNOH 200, which will serve as the second Round of 10 event. The event is scheduled to occur on September 19 and air at 8 p.m. ET on FS1.

  • Ben Rhodes “rodeos” through regular-season battle; eyes Truck title defense in 2024

    Ben Rhodes “rodeos” through regular-season battle; eyes Truck title defense in 2024

    Following a rodeo-style regular-season stretch mired with a rough start but late surge that enabled him to make the Playoffs on points, Ben Rhodes has an opportunity to defend his NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series championship in 2024.

    Rhodes, the reigning two-time Truck Series champion from Louisville, Kentucky, stumbled out of the gate by notching only a single top-10 result through the first eight events of the regular-season stretch. Mired within the eight-race stretch were five finishes of 16th or worse.

    Then in May, Rhodes notched his first top-five result of the 2024 season by finishing third at Darlington Raceway. Two races later, he collected a second top-five result by finishing fifth at Charlotte Motor Speedway before notching back-to-back seventh-place results at World Wide Technology Raceway and Nashville Superspeedway, respectively. Despite finishing 18th and 21st during his next two starts, Rhodes rallied by being competitive during the regular-season finale at Richmond Raceway this past weekend and taking the checkered flag in seventh place, which officially locked him into the Playoffs by 34 points.

    By making the 2024 Playoffs, Rhodes secured himself into the Truck Series’ seven-race postseason battle for the title for the seventh time in his career and fifth in a row in recent seasons.

    Stats-wise, Rhodes has the second-lowest recorded number of top-five results at two through 16 races and is tied with Playoff newcomer Daniel Dye for the lowest top-10 results (six) and average-finishing result at 14.9. Nonetheless, Rhodes, who is well-known for capitalizing in late stages that enabled him to make the Championship 4 round by a mere margin over the final two seasons and outlasted four overtime attempts to win his second title a year ago, has another opportunity to pull any hidden tricks beneath his sleeves for seven races to defend his title.

    For this season, Rhodes is set to commence the 2024 Playoffs in ninth place in the Playoff standings with 2,002 points. Should he win this year’s title, he would join an elite group of competitors that feature teammate Matt Crafton and Jack Sprague as having the second-most titles in the Truck circuit at three and leaving him one away from tying Ron Hornaday Jr. for the most at four.

    Even after notching his top-10 run at Richmond combined with his recent string of consistent results, Rhodes remains optimistic that he and his No. 99 ThorSport Racing Ford F-150 team can transfer their way through every round of the Playoffs and bid for another championship to deliver back to ThorSport’s headquarters in Sandusky, Ohio.

    “[Richmond] certainly met [our expectations],” Rhodes said on FS1. “We fought inside the top five all night long and then, some of these restarts, we get shuffled back, we work our way back forward. I’m happy with the improvements of our team. It’s not our first rodeo, so we’re going to make another run at the championship.”

    Ben Rhodes’ quest to win his third NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series title in 2024 and third in recent seasons commences at the Milwaukee Mile with the LiUNA! 175. The event is scheduled to occur this Sunday, August 25, at 4 p.m. ET on FS1.

  • Heim “ready” to extend regular-season momentum towards 2024 Truck Playoffs

    Heim “ready” to extend regular-season momentum towards 2024 Truck Playoffs

    With a career-high five victories accumulated through 16-scheduled events, Corey Heim enters the 2024 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Playoffs as a key favorite to contend for his first series’ championship a year after having it slip out of his grasp in the closing laps.

    The 21-year-old Heim from Marietta, Georgia, wasted no time igniting an eight-race hot streak of finishing no worse than 10th place on the track that started by finishing in the runner-up spot at Daytona International Speedway after he dodged a final lap multi-truck wreck. Then after finishing third, third and sixth, respectively, during his next four starts, Heim made it his time at Circuit of the Americas in March by leading a race-high 31 of 46 laps and having enough fuel to survive an overtime attempt by grabbing his first Truck victory of 2024.

    Three races later, Heim doubled down by winning at Kansas Speedway in May before he dominated en route to another victory at North Wilkesboro Speedway another two races later, during which he led the most laps for both victories. Then after having a runner-up finish at Charlotte Motor Speedway stripped due to three loose lug nuts, Heim responded back by winning at World Wide Technology Raceway for a second time and cashing in on a $50,000 bonus from the Triple Truck Challenge. The Georgian would then tally his current win totals of this season to five with a dominant run at Pocono Raceway, where he led all but 15 of 70 laps.

    Despite falling short of winning his second consecutive regular-season title to Christian Eckes, where he also finished 17th and 16th, respectively, during his latest two series’ starts, Heim will commence the 2024 Truck Series Playoffs with the top seed at 2,041 points and with a three-point advantage over Eckes this upcoming Sunday at the Milwaukee Mile. He strives to redeem himself with his first overall championship in the Truck circuit after ending up in fourth place in the 2023 final standings due to being involved in two late-race incidents during the 2023 finale at Phoenix Raceway.

    Currently, Heim’s five victories are the most he has ever garnered in a Truck season. In addition, he holds the second-highest average-finishing result of 8.2 a year after concluding the 2023 season with a season-best average-finishing result of 6.8. With 10 top-five results and 12 top-10 results recorded through 16-scheduled events, he only needs two additional top-five results and seven additional top-10 to tie both stats from his previous season. At six stage victories, he is two away from tying Eckes for the most.

    Amid the frustration of finishing within the top-20 mark during his latest two series’ starts, Heim, who has made select starts between the NASCAR Cup and Xfinity Series divisions throughout the 2024 campaign, is primed to make it his time to emerge as the next NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series champion that would enable his career to grow with bigger opportunities within his horizon.

    “I feel like these last two races have been a little bit of a slump for us,” Heim said after the regular-season finale at Richmond on FS1. “We’ve had fifth- to sixth-place speed, but our standards are to go and try to win every race. I feel like we’re going to be really good. We got a lot of Playoff points, more than last year. I’m ready.”

    Corey Heim’s 2024 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Playoffs commences at the Milwaukee Mile with the LiUNA! 175. The event is scheduled to occur this Sunday, August 25, at 4 p.m. ET on FS1.

  • Taylor Gray poised for first Truck championship battle amid strong regular-season stretch

    Taylor Gray poised for first Truck championship battle amid strong regular-season stretch

    From doing a full barrel roll while airborne at Daytona International Speedway to qualifying for his first career appearance in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Playoffs, Taylor Gray aims to shift his mentality and set aside the adversity and steady climb he endured to make the postseason to emerge as a potential finalist for the 2024 championship.

    After missing the first three races of the 2023 season due to age restrictions and missing the Playoffs, Gray, a native of Artesia, New Mexico, had the No. 17 Toyota Tundra TRD Pro entry all to himself for the entire 23-race schedule with veteran crew chief Jeff Hensley joining the organization and working atop Gray’s pit box.

    Gray commenced the 2024 season on a wild note when he was involved in a multi-truck wreck on the final lap at Daytona International Speedway. During the incident, Gray, who was clipped by Jack Wood after Wood got turned by Rajah Caruth to ignite the wreck, had his truck go airborne and perform a full turnover on top of three competitors’ trucks after he got T-boned into the side of Daniel Dye before he rolled back over right-side up and emerged uninjured.

    Following the season-opening incident that left Gray bitter with the outcome, he then went on a six-race hot streak by finishing no worse that seventh on the track and tying his career-best result with a runner-up result at Circuit of the Americas. He would then encounter some on-track challenges in the form of four finishes of 16th or worse over his next eight starts that resulted with his No. 17 team slipping out of the top five in the regular-season standings. Nonetheless, the driver and team recorded four top-15 results during the stretch and capped off the regular-season stretch by finishing in third place in the regular-season finale at Richmond Raceway.

    Thus far, Gray has the seventh-best average-finishing result for full-time competitors of the 2024 season at 12.3. While he remains winless through 16 events, the top fives (five), top 10s (nine) and laps led (25) are the most he has garnered compared to the previous season.

    With the 2024 regular-season stretch complete, Taylor Gray is set to commence the Playoffs in eighth place in the Playoff standings with 2,003 points. He will battle alongside teammate Corey Heim and eight additional competitors in his pursuit for his first championship within NASCAR’s top three major series.

    Looking ahead to his first campaign as a Playoff competitor, Gray leans towards both a cautious and optimistic mindset as key approaches that would enable him to remain eligible for the series’ championship at this season’s conclusion.

    “[Making the Playoffs] means a lot, especially with these [No. 17] guys,” Gray said after Richmond on FS1. “They worked their butts off every week and every day. It’s really for them and now, it’s time for me and [crew chief] Jeff [Hensley] to sit down and go race for a championship. I think honestly, [the goal is] just keeping the mindset cool and brushing things off the shoulder and not getting too antsy about certain things and being able to rebound from bad races quickly.”

    Taylor Gray’s 2024 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Playoffs is set to commence at the Milwaukee Mile for the LiUNA! 175. The event’s broadcast time is scheduled to occur this Sunday, August 25, at 4 p.m. ET on FS1.

  • Enfinger “proud” with strong regular-season stretch ahead of 2024 Truck title bid

    Enfinger “proud” with strong regular-season stretch ahead of 2024 Truck title bid

    In a season where he joined forces with an organization that is in its third consecutive season fielding a full-time entry in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, Grant Enfinger has defied the odds by utilizing his crafty expertise and competitiveness to elevate both himself and his new team, CR7 Motorsports, into potential championship status with a sealed spot into the 2024 Playoffs.

    Enfinger, the 2019 Truck Series Regular Season Champion from Fairhope, Alabama, capped off the 2023 season on a bittersweet note through two fronts: the first by finishing in the runner-up spot in the championship battle to Ben Rhodes and the second being his final campaign with GMS Racing, the team where Enfinger notched his first Truck career victory in 2016 and had campaigned with over the previous two seasons, before the organization ceased all operations and left the veteran without a ride.

    A month after the 2023 season concluded, however, CR7 Motorsports tapped Enfinger to pilot the team’s No. 9 Chevrolet Silverado RST entry for the 2024 season. By then, the team had only recorded a total of eight top-10 results in five years of existence and was coming off a second full-time campaign with Colby Howard.

    Commencing the season with a 17th-place result at Daytona International Speedway after being involved in a final lap multi-truck wreck, Enfinger was in position of notching the first victory for his new team during the following event Atlanta Motor Speedway when he fell off the pace from the lead with seven laps remaining due to a flat right-front tire and ended up in 25th place. He would rally by notching back-to-back ninth-place results during his next two starts before finishing no higher than 12th twice over his next five races.

    Then beginning at North Wilkesboro Speedway in May, Enfinger ignited a hot streak that started by finishing in the runner-up spot, which marked a career-best result for CR7, followed by a third-place finish at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Despite finishing 17th at World Wide Technology Raceway in early June, the Alabama native would the finish no worse than sixth for the remaining four regular-season events. During his latest four-race span, Enfinger notched another runner-up result at Pocono Raceway in July, lead 71 laps en route to a third-place run during the following event at Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park and lead a race-high 98 laps while winning the second stage period before settling in fourth place in the regular-season finale at Richmond Raceway.

    Through 16 events of the 2024 season, Enfinger’s five top-five results and eight top-10 results are the most for a competitor competing for CR7 Motorsports. Enfinger, who currently holds the fifth-best average-finishing result for full-time competitors in 2024 at 11.8, is set to commence the Playoffs in sixth place in the Playoff standings and with 2,007 points as he aims to record the first NASCAR national touring series championship for himself and CR7 Motorsports.

    Ironically, the 2024 Playoff is set to occur at the Milwaukee Mile, the site of Enfinger’s 10th and latest Truck Series victory that enabled him to transfer from the Playoff’s Round of 10 to 8 a year ago.

    “I’ve been proud of us all for the last eight or nine races,” Enfinger said following the regular-season finale at Richmond on FS1. “Definitely very, very proud of the speed that [crew chief] Jeff [Stankiewicz] has brought to the track. It’s been great. Now, we got seven [races] to go. I feel like we’re building momentum at the right time. Now, it’s time to go Playoff racing.”

    Grant Enfinger’s 2024 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Playoffs is set to commence at the Milwaukee Mile for the LiUNA! 175. The event’s broadcast time is scheduled to occur this Sunday, August 25, at 4 p.m. ET on FS1.

  • Caruth leaning towards confidence, eyeing key venues in pursuit of first Truck title in 2024

    Caruth leaning towards confidence, eyeing key venues in pursuit of first Truck title in 2024

    In a season filled with first-time accomplishments, including a historic first victory at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in February, Rajah Caruth is primed to experience another first to his racing resume: pursuing a championship within NASCAR’s top three national touring series in 2024.

    The 22-year-old Caruth from Washington D.C. makes his inaugural presence in the Craftsman Truck Series Playoffs in a season where he joined forces with Spire Motorsports to pilot the No. 71 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet Silverado RST. By then, he had campaigned in his first full-time Truck campaign a year ago, where he ended up in 16th place in the final standings on the strength of four top-10 results while driving the No. 24 Chevrolet for GMS Racing. Previously, he finished in third place in the 2022 ARCA Menards Series standings on the strengths of eight top-five results and 14 top-10 results through 20 starts with Rev Racing.

    Caruth commenced the 2024 Truck season on a controversial note, where he ignited a multi-truck wreck on the final lap despite posting his first top-five career result in third place. Then after finishing eighth at Atlanta Motor Speedway, Caruth’s partnership with HendrickCars.com was announced to expand from 10 to the full 23-race Truck schedule.

    Things only got brighter for Caruth as he then achieved a breakthrough moment at Las Vegas by winning both his first series’ pole and race victory, where he beat runner-up Tyler Ankrum by eight-tenths of a second and led 34 of 138 laps. In doing so, the DC native joined his mentor Bubba Wallace and the late NASCAR Hall of Famer Wendell Scott as the only African-American competitors to win in NASCAR’s top three major series. He also became the 124th competitor overall to win in the Truck Series.

    Since the Vegas victory, Caruth proceeded to finish in the top 10 five additional times over the remaining 13 regular-season events. Throughout the span, he recorded a strong fourth-place run at Nashville Superspeedway in June, notched his second career pole position at Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park in July and battled to keep himself in contention for a top-five spot within the regular-season standings. With his latest series’ start at Richmond Raceway, where he finished 17th, Caruth has accumulated 43 starts in the Truck Series.

    Despite recording zero stage victories throughout the season, Caruth, who holds the fourth-best average-finishing result of full-time competitors in 2024 at 11.4, will commence the 2024 Truck Series Playoffs in fifth place in the Playoff standings with 2,009 points as he strives to deliver the first championship for himself and Spire Motorsports.

    Amid a 17th-place run during the 2024 regular-season finale at Richmond, Caruth has set his sights on the venues in the Playoffs he targets as his strengths while keeping his competition within the Playoff close to mind.

    “I think going into the Playoffs, I feel really good about going to Bristol, Kansas, Homestead, some really good tracks for me,” Caruth said at Richmond on FS1. “I know what trucks have speed, so thanks to Mr. [Rick Hendrick], Linda [Hendrick], all the men and women at Spire [Motorsports] and Team Chevy for supporting me. I think we can go make some hay later into the fall.”

    Rajah Caruth’s 2024 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Playoffs and battle for the championship commences at the Milwaukee Mile for the LiUNA! 175. The event is scheduled to occur this upcoming Sunday, August 25, at 4 p.m. ET on FS1.

  • Ankrum pleased with on-track resurgence ahead of Truck Playoff run in 2024

    Ankrum pleased with on-track resurgence ahead of Truck Playoff run in 2024

    After a three-year absence from the Playoff picture, Tyler Ankrum returns to the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series’ postseason battle for the championship with a new team and a new confidence level in 2024.

    Ankrum, the 2018 ARCA Menards Series East champion and 2019 Truck Rookie of the Year from San Bernardino, California, entered the 2024 season by joining forces with McAnally-Hilgemann Racing following a two-year campaign at Hattori Racing Enterprises.

    Driving the No. 18 Chevrolet Silverado RST primarily sponsored by LiUNA!, Ankrum rolled out of the gates by winning the second stage at Daytona International Speedway and rallying from a late multi-truck wreck to finish in 11th place. He would proceed to finish seventh at Atlanta Motor Speedway, second at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and fifth at Bristol Motor Speedway over his next three starts. By then, he was leading in the Truck Series drivers’ standings for the first time in his career.

    Despite losing the points lead during the following race weekend at Circuit of the Americas and being mired with five finishes of 20th or worse over his next eight starts, Ankrum managed to record three top-eight results within the stretch. He would then finish no worse than 15th and log in three additional top-six results for the remaining five regular-season events, including a sixth-place run during the regular-season finale at Richmond Raceway, before capping off the stretch in sixth place in points.

    Despite recording zero victories thus far, Ankrum’s five top-five results in 2024 are the most he has recorded compared to his last three seasons combined and the 92 laps led are the most he has led in a season thus far. With his average-finishing result also boosted to 13.7, his highest since ending up with 13.4 in 2020, the Californian qualifies for his third career Truck Series Playoffs and his first since the 2020 season.

    Ankrum, who also notched two stage victories, is set to commence the 2024 Truck Series Playoffs in seventh place in the Playoff standings and with 2,007 points. With 129 Truck career races under his belt, Ankrum’s first and only series’ victory occurred at Kentucky Speedway in July 2019.

    Amid his strong regular-season performance, regained confidence and hungered desire to return to Victory Lane, Ankrum strives to extend both the on-track consistency and momentum towards his pursuit for his first championship across NASCAR’s top three major series.

    “I’m just proud of all my guys at [McAnally-Hilgemann Racing] to get us in the Playoffs, their first year with this team,” Ankrum said following the regular-season finale at Richmond on FS1. “All the work that we had to do throughout the summer and all the bad luck that we had, we were able to pull through it. It feels pretty amazing to be back [in the Playoffs], to be honest. I’ve always felt like I was a Playoff driver and so for me to be back in my full strength, I feel like all the confidence in the world. I was just telling [crew chief] Mark [Hillman] we keep on running top five, second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth, we’re gonna get a couple wins here and I feel like we’re going to be there for Phoenix.”

    Tyler Ankrum’s pursuit for the 2024 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series championship commences at the Milwaukee Mile for the LiUNA! 175. The event is scheduled to occur this Sunday, August 25, and air at 4 p.m. ET on FS1.

  • Sammy Smith scheduled for final double-duty Xfinity-Truck campaign between Daytona and Milwaukee

    Sammy Smith scheduled for final double-duty Xfinity-Truck campaign between Daytona and Milwaukee

    This upcoming weekend is set to mark a busy one for Sammy Smith, who will be racing double duty between two racetracks and two NASCAR national touring series (Xfinity and Craftsman Truck Series) that commences under the lights at Daytona International Speedway before concluding on a Sunday afternoon at the Milwaukee Mile.

    On Friday, August 23, Smith, a 20-year-old native from Johnston, Iowa, will be piloting his full-time Xfinity Series ride, the No. 8 Chevrolet Camaro for JR Motorsports, at Daytona and in his continued quest to remain above the top-12 cutline in the regular-season standings that would enable him to make the 2024 Xfinity Series Playoffs. Two days later, he will then travel to West Allis, Wisconsin, and make his fourth and final Craftsman Truck Series start of the season at Milwaukee in the No. 7 Chevrolet Silverado RST for Spire Motorsports, a team that is set to contend for this year’s Truck Series owners’ championship with Milwaukee serving as this year’s Truck Playoff opener.

    Smith, the reigning Xfinity Series Rookie of the Year and two-time ARCA Menards Series East champion, is coming off a fifth-place run at Michigan International Speedway, which moved him back into the top-12 cutline to make the Playoffs as he currently holds sole possession of the final transfer spot into the Playoffs by a single point with five regular-season events remaining on the schedule. He is also competing in his second full-time stint in the Xfinity Series and first with JR Motorsports after spending the previous season driving for Joe Gibbs Racing.

    Thus far, Smith’s best on-track result at Daytona in the Xfinity Series is 19th, which occurred during the 2023 season opener. Through 21 of 33-scheduled events of the 2024 Xfinity Series season, Smith has recorded four top-five results, 11 top-10 results and an average-finishing result of 15.6 as he strives to make his second consecutive appearance in the Xfinity division’s postseason berth and elimination-style battle to the championship. He qualified for his first Xfinity Playoffs a year ago, where he fell short of transferring into the Championship 4 round and ended up in sixth place in the final standings. During the season, he notched his first career victory at Phoenix Raceway and managed to claim the rookie title over Chandler Smith.

    In addition to his full-time Xfinity Series role this season, Smith has made three Truck Series starts in Spire Motorsports’ No. 7 “all-star” Chevrolet entry, all on short track events. He made his first start at Martinsville Speedway in April, where he finished eighth. Four races later, he recorded a career-best fifth-place run at North Wilkesboro Speedway in May before finishing sixth in his recent series’ start at Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park in July. During the Martinsville and Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park weekends, Smith was also pulling double duty between both the Truck and Xfinity circuits.

    Previously, Smith made his Truck Series debut during the 2023 season opener at Daytona, where he piloted the No. 17 TRICON Garage Toyota to a 14th-place finish. While this upcoming Sunday is set to mark Smith’s first start at the Milwaukee Mile in the Truck Series, it will not mark his first overall start at the venue, with the Iowa native notching an ARCA Menards Series victory in 2022 while driving for Kyle Busch Motorsports.

    Currently, Spire Motorsports’ No. 7 entry is set to commence the 2024 Truck Series Playoffs in eighth place in the owners’ standings with 2,003 points. The entry has been piloted to Victory Lane twice this season, both occurring with two-time Cup Series champion Kyle Busch at Atlanta Motor Speedway in February and at Texas Motor Speedway. Corey LaJoie, Connor Zilisch, Connor Mosack, Andres Perez de Lara and Clint Bowyer have all piloted the entry at least once through 16-scheduled events. Following Smith’s fourth and final start at Milwaukee, Zilisch and Mosack are scheduled to pilot the entry for the remainder of the season in their efforts to keep Spire’s No. 7 entry led by veteran crew chief Brian Pattie in contention for the owners’ title.

    Photo by John Knittel for SpeedwayMedia.com.

    Sammy Smith’s upcoming double-duty weekend is set to commence with the Xfinity Series’ Wawa 250 at Daytona International Speedway on Friday, August 23, with the event’s broadcast time to commence at 7:30 p.m. ET on USA Network. He will then compete in the Craftsman Truck Series’ Playoff opener at the Milwaukee Mile for the LiUNA! 175 on Sunday, August 25, that will air at 4 p.m. ET on FS1.

  • Majeski, ThorSport Racing issued L2-level penalties amid pre-race violations from Milwaukee

    Majeski, ThorSport Racing issued L2-level penalties amid pre-race violations from Milwaukee

    NASCAR released its penalty report following an action-packed tripleheader weekend between Daytona International Speedway and the Milwaukee Mile, with all of the penalties stemming from the second Craftsman Truck Series Playoff event of this season at Milwaukee that occurred last Sunday, August 27.

    The team that headlined the penalty report was ThorSport Racing’s No. 98 Ford F-150 team piloted by Playoff contender Ty Majeski, which was assessed L2-level penalties for infractions involving the wheel assembly, tires/wheels and valve stems per the NASCAR Rulebook. The issue was first discovered during the inspection process prior to Sunday’s event, where NASCAR officials confiscated the No. 98 Ford’s right-rear tire. This also resulted with Majeski starting at the rear of the field and serving a pass-through penalty on pit road once the main event started, where he was able to recover by finishing in seventh place.

    As a result of the penalties prior to the event, Majeski and ThorSport were docked 75 points and five Playoff points from the standings. In addition, crew chief Joe Shear Jr., who was ejected prior to the event at Milwaukee, has now been issued a four-race suspension and a $25,000 fine. He will be eligible to return for the season-finale event at Phoenix Raceway in November.

    The issue does not affect Majeski’s automatic transfer to the Playoff’s Round of 8, which he achieved after winning the previous Truck scheduled event at Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park in August. Currently, he along with Grant Enfinger, Christian Eckes and Corey Heim have transferred to the Round of 8 by virtue of winning during the Round of 10 or by clinching through points.

    Another team that was issued a big penalty was Kyle Busch Motorsports’ No. 51 Chevrolet Silverado RST entry that was recently piloted by Matt Mills. The organization was issued an L1-level penalty for infractions involving the team’s triangular filler panels. As a result, NASCAR deducted 10 driver/owner points from Mills and KBM. Mills, who was making his second and final start of the season with KBM, finished 25th after starting 26th.

    In addition, two Niece Motorsports crew chiefs (Mike Hillman and Phil Gould) were each fined $2,500 for violating NASCAR’s lug nut check after both of their respective entries were found to have one unsecured lug nut during the post-race inspection process. Hillman is the crew chief for Niece’s No. 41 Chevrolet Silverado RST entry that was recently by Bayley Currey at Milwaukee, who finished 10th, while Gould is the crew chief for Niece’s No. 42 entry piloted by Playoff contender Carson Hocevar, who finished in the runner-up spot behind race winner Enfinger.

    Lastly, Aaron Volf, a hauler driver for TRICON Garage’s No. 15 Toyota Tundra TRD Pro entry piloted by Tanner Gray, has been suspended indefinitely from NASCAR for a behavioral infraction.

    With the NASCAR Xfinity and Cup Series preparing for their next scheduled events this upcoming weekend during Labor Day weekend at Darlington Raceway, the next Craftsman Truck Series event on the schedule is Kansas Speedway on September 8, which will determine the Playoff’s Round of 8 field. The event’s broadcast time is scheduled to occur at 9 p.m. ET on FS1.

  • Enfinger dominates in Truck’s return at Milwaukee Mile, clinches Playoff’s Round of 8 spot

    Enfinger dominates in Truck’s return at Milwaukee Mile, clinches Playoff’s Round of 8 spot

    With his racing plans for next season undetermined amid the announcement of GMS Racing’s closure at this season’s conclusion, Grant Enfinger made a pivotal statement in a pair of quests to fight for this year’s championship and to keep his name on the grid by scoring a dominant victory in the Clean Harbors 175 at the Milwaukee Mile on Sunday, August 27.

    The 37-year-old Enfinger from Fairhope, Alabama, led three times for a race-high 95 of 175-scheduled laps in an event where he qualified on the pole position and dominated the event by sweeping both stage periods. Despite losing a handful of spots on pit road during both stage breaks and pitting for fresh tires along with the majority of the field that dropped him from the top five to 16th, Enfinger benefited through two late-race restarts and the fresh tires to muscle his way back to the front and withstand a battle against Playoff contender Carson Hocevar with 16 laps remaining to drive away and cruise to his third NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series victory of the 2023 season and advance to the Playoff’s Round of 8.

    With on-track qualifying that determined the starting lineup occurring on Sunday, Playoff competitor Grant Enfinger started on the pole position for the first time this season after posting a pole-winning lap at 122.848 mph in 29.744 seconds. Joining him on the front row was Playoff competitor Nick Sanchez, who clocked in the second-best qualifying lap at 122.601 mph in 29.804 seconds.

    Prior to the event, Playoff contender Ty Majeski, who won the previous Truck event at Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park, dropped to the rear of the field and was assessed a pass-through penalty at the start of the event after NASCAR confiscated a right-rear tire in pre-race inspection, a penalty that resulted with crew chief Joe Shear Jr. being ejected from the event. In addition, Greg Van Alst, Josh Reaume and Playoff competitor Matt DiBenedetto dropped to the rear of the field for missing driver introductions along with Matt Mills, whose No. 51 Kyle Busch Motorsports entry faced unapproved adjustments.

    When the green flag waved and the race commenced, Enfinger used the outside lane to retain the lead ahead of Sanchez through the first two turns and entering the backstretch. As the field behind jostled for early positions, Enfinger was able to fend off another charge from Sanchez, who was running on the inside lane, to lead the first lap as Taylor Gray trailed closely behind in third.

    Through the second lap, Sanchez tried to draw even against Enfinger’s No. 23 Champion Power Equipment Chevrolet Silverado RST through the first two turns, but Enfinger was able to gain the advantage from the outside lane to retain the top spot through the backstretch. As Majeski served his pass-through penalty, Taylor Gray continued to trail closely behind the two leaders as Enfinger retained a narrow advantage over Sanchez.

    Through the first five scheduled laps, Enfinger was leading by half a second over Sanchez followed by Taylor Gray, Christian Eckes and Carson Hocevar while Corey Heim, Chase Purdy, Ben Rhodes, William Sawalich and rookie Jake Garcia were in the top 10. By then, Tanner Gray was in 11th ahead of Tyler Ankrum, rookie Daniel Dye, rookie Rajah Caruth and Bayley Currey while Zane Smith, Derek Kraus, Matt Crafton, Hailie Deegan and Dean Thompson occupied the top 20. In addition, Majeski was in 36th, dead last, and trailing the lead pack by nearly 21 seconds.

    Then on the 10th lap, the first caution of the event flew when Josh Bilicki blew a tire and collided his No. 02 Insurance King Chevrolet Silverado RST against the outside wall in Turn 2 as he became the first retiree of the event.

    When the race restarted on Lap 17, Enfinger used the outside lane to his advantage as he fended off Sanchez to retain the lead through the backstretch while Taylor Gray mounted a challenge for the runner-up spot on Sanchez through Turns 3 and 4. As Enfinger proceeded to lead by nearly four-tenths of a second, Majeski continued to mount his charge back to the front as he moved his No. 98 Road Ranger Ford F-150 up to 26th while Hocevar, Heim and Eckes occupied the top six on the track.

    At the Lap 25 mark, Enfinger was leading by four-tenths of a second over Sanchez followed by Taylor Gray, Hocevar and Heim while Eckes, Purdy, Sawalich, Rhodes and Garcia battled within the top 10. By then, Playoff competitors Crafton and Zane Smith were in 14th and 15th, Majeski carved his way towards 16th and DiBenedetto was mired back in 26th behind newcomer Sean Hingorani, who was piloting Hattori Racing Enterprises’ No. 61 entry.

    Ten laps later, Enfinger extended his advantage over Sanchez while Taylor Gray, Hocevar and Heim remained in the top five. With Eckes, Purdy, Sawalich, Rhodes and Garcia remaining in the top 10, Kraus was in 11th ahead of Tanner Gray and Zane Smith while Majeski moved up to 14th ahead of Ankrum and Crafton.

    Another 10 laps later, Enfinger continued to extend his advantage as he was more than two seconds ahead of Sanchez while Taylor Gray, Hocevar and Heim retained the top on the track. Eckes, Sawalich, Purdy and Rhodes also retained positions sixth through ninth while Kraus moved up to 10th over Garcia. In addition, Majeski was in 12th, Zane Smith was back in 14th, Crafton fell back to 17th ahead of Matt Mills and DiBenedetto was mired a lap down in 29th.

    When the first stage period concluded on Lap 55, Enfinger notched his second Truck stage victory of the 2023 season. Sanchez settled in second as he trailed Enfinger by nearly two seconds while Taylor Gray, Heim, Eckes, Hocevar, Sawalich, Kraus, Purdy and Rhodes were scored in the top 10. By then, 24 of 36 starters were scored on the lead lap while Majeski was up to 11th. Majeski, however, joined teammate Crafton, Zane Smith and DiBenedetto as Playoff competitors to not score stage points during the first stage period.

    Under the stage break, the lead lap field led by Enfinger pitted for service. Following the pit stops, Heim exited first and assumed the lead for the first time in the event followed by Enfinger, who was boxed in behind Purdy during his pit service. Eckes, Hocevar, Matt Mills, Sawalich, Taylor Gray and Sanchez, who lost six spots on pit road, followed suit. Amid the pit stops, Majeski plummeted to 23rd after enduring a slow pit service from his pit crew.

    The second stage started on Lap 64 as Heim and Enfinger occupied the front row. As Heim and Enfinger dueled for the lead through the first two turns, the caution quickly returned after Greg Van Alst, who was running towards the rear of the field, locked up his tires due to an apparent mechanical issue and collided into Brad Perez as both competitors wrecked against the Turn 1 outside wall, with both having their events coming to an end.

    When the event restarted under green on Lap 71, Heim and Enfinger again dueled for the lead through the first two turns until Heim was able to muscle ahead from the outside lane and clear the field through the backstretch. As Heim retained the lead, Enfinger fended off Eckes to remain in the runner-up spot while Sawalich, who won the ARCA Menards Series East event at Milwaukee earlier in the day, battled Eckes for third. With the field fanning out behind, Eckes fended off Sawalich for third place and Sanchez moved up to fifth in front of Hocevar, Taylor Gray and Purdy while Heim started to extend his advantage to eight-tenths of a second over Enfinger nearing the Lap 75 mark.

    At the Lap 85 mark, Heim stabilized his advantage to two-tenths of a second over a hard-charging Enfinger, who had managed to close the gap from trailing half a second a lap earlier. Enfinger then drew himself into a duel against Heim through the frontstretch a lap later, but Heim maintained the advantage as he continued to run on the outside lane while third-place Eckes trailed by nearly three seconds. With Enfinger continuing to trail by within two-tenths of a second, Heim retained the lead just past the Lap 90 mark.

    Then on Lap 95, Enfinger was able to race his way around Heim’s No. 11 Safelite Toyota Tundra TRD Pro to reassume the lead. Enfinger would proceed to extend his advantage to nine-tenths of a second over Heim at the Lap 100 mark while Eckes, Sawalich and Hocevar were in the top five. Behind, Sanchez, Majeski, Crafton, Zane Smith and Tanner Gray occupied the top 10 while Taylor Gray, Rhodes, Purdy, Kraus and Ankrum followed suit in the top 15. With nine of 10 Playoff competitors running in the top 12 on the track, DiBenedetto was mired back in 27th and not on the lead lap category.

    When the second stage period concluded on Lap 110, Enfinger notched his third Truck stage victory of the 2023 season and second of the day after retaining the lead by more than two seconds over Heim, who settled in second. Eckes, Hocevar, Sawalich, Sanchez, Majeski, Crafton, Tanner Gray and Zane Smith were scored in the top 10. By then, 23 of 36 starters were scored on the lead lap.

    During the stage break, the lead lap field led by Enfinger pitted for service. Following the pit stops, Eckes emerged as the new leader after exiting first followed by Hocevar and Sanchez while Enfinger fell back to fourth after losing three spots on pit road in front of Rhodes and Heim, who lost four spots on pit road.

    With 57 laps remaining, the final stage started under green as Eckes and Hocevar occupied the front row. At the start, Eckes and Hocevar dueled for the lead until Hocevar rocketed ahead with the lead from the inside lane through the first two turns. As the field fanned out to three lanes through the backstretch, Hocevar retained the lead by two-tenths of a second over Eckes while Sanchez retained third ahead of Enfinger, a hard-charging Rhodes and Tanner Gray as Crafton challenged teammate Majeski for seventh place. A few laps later, Majeski went wide in Turn 1, which allowed Crafton, Kraus, Heim and Sawalich to overtake him.

    Following another caution period with 52 laps remaining when Spencer Boyd spun entering Turn 2, the race restarted under green with 46 laps remaining. At the start, Hocevar and Eckes dueled for the lead for a second time through the first two turns until Hocevar managed to zip ahead in his No. 42 Worldwide Express Chevrolet Silverado RST on the outside lane. As the field fanned out behind, Sanchez overtook Eckes through the frontstretch while Hocevar muscled ahead by three-tenths of a second. In addition, Enfinger retained fourth ahead of Kraus, Heim overtook Tanner Gray for sixth place and Crafton followed suit in seventh during the proceeding laps. By then, Majeski battled Sawalich for 10th while Rhodes was in ninth.

    Then with 41 laps remaining, Sawalich, who was having a stellar race in 10th place, got loose underneath Rhodes in a bid for ninth place, spun backward and crashed against the Turn 1 outside wall as he emerged with significant rear-end damage to his No. 1 Starkey/Soundgear Toyota Tundra TRD Pro. During the caution period, some led by Hocevar and including Kraus, Tanner Gray, Ankrum, Sean Hingorani, Rajah Caruth and Hailie Deegan remained on the track while the rest of the lead lap field pitted.

    During the proceeding restart with 35 laps remaining, where Hocevar and Kraus occupied the front row, Hocevar retained the lead after gaining a strong start from the outside lane while Tanner Gray dueled against Kraus for the runner-up spot. Shortly after, however, the caution quickly returned when Sanchez, who was trying to carve his way back to the front from the top 10, got boxed in behind Deegan and hit by Heim entering Turn 3 as he spun his No. 2 Gainbridge Chevrolet Silverado RST backward and hit the outside wall, which spoiled his strong run towards the front.

    With the race restarting under green with 28 laps remaining, Hocevar muscled ahead of Tanner Gray from the outside lane to retain the lead through the first two turns and the backstretch. As the field fanned out to three and four lanes through the backstretch, Hocevar was leading by three-tenths of a second during the following lap while Kraus overtook Tanner Gray for the runner-up spot. In addition, Enfinger bolted his way into third as he used the outside lane to gain momentum and overtake both Tanner Gray and Eckes for spots. With Enfinger moving up the leaderboard, Crafton also boosted his way into the top five as he navigated his No. 88 Menards Ford F-150 in fifth while Heim was mired in seventh in between Tanner Gray and Ankrum with 25 laps remaining.

    Down to the final 20 laps of the event, Hocevar was leading by three-tenths of a second over a hard-charging Enfinger, who was running on fresher tires than Hocevar, while Kraus, Eckes and Crafton engaged in a fierce three-truck battle for third place, with Eckes and Crafton moving up to third and fourth while Kraus fell back to fifth. By then, Heim was in sixth while Majeski was mired in seventh and trailing by more than four seconds.

    Three laps later, Enfinger gained a run on Hocevar through Turns 3 and 4 as both dueled for the lead through the frontstretch. Enfinger then rocketed ahead entering Turns 1 and 2 before he went wide, which allowed Hocevar to pull a crossover move and try to challenge Enfinger again for the lead on the inside lane. Enfinger, though, managed to withstand a side-by-side duel and near bump from Hocevar exiting the backstretch and entering Turns 3 and 4 before muscling ahead with 16 laps remaining. Enfinger would retain the top spot during the proceeding laps, but not by a large margin as Hocevar kept Enfinger’s No. 23 Chevrolet within his sights while mounting repetitive challenges through the turns.

    Down to the final 10 laps of the event, Enfinger was leading by seven-tenths of a second over Hocevar followed by Eckes, Crafton and Heim while Kraus, Majeski, Purdy, Garcia and Tanner Gray were in the top 10. By then, Zane Smith was in 11th, Rhodes was in 16th, Sanchez was mired back in 24th and DiBendetto was down in 27th while two laps behind.

    With five laps remaining, Enfinger managed to extend his advantage to nine-tenths of a second over Hocevar while third-place Eckes trailed by more than a second while also starting to close in on Hocevar for the runner-up spot. By then, Heim moved up to fourth while Crafton fell back to fifth. In addition, Purdy and Majeski pulled a three-wide move on Kraus through the frontstretch to move up to sixth and seventh on the track.

    When the white flag waved and the final lap started, Enfinger remained as the leader by more than a second and a half over Hocevar. With both Hocevar and Eckes unable to gain ground to mount a final lap charge, Enfinger was able to smoothly navigate his way around the Milwaukee circuit for a final time and cross the finish line to claim his third checkered flag of the 2023 Truck season after winning by more than a second and a half over Hocevar.

    With the victory, Grant Enfinger, who won the first Truck event at the Milwaukee Mile since the circuit’s return spanning back to 2009, achieved his 10th career victory in the Craftsman Truck Series, his third of the season and first since winning at Worldwide Technology Raceway in early June. The Alabama native also recorded the 45th Truck career victory for GMS Racing, a two-time Truck championship-winning organization that announced four days earlier that it would cease operations at the conclusion of the 2023 season.

    By virtue of winning the second Truck Playoff event of the 2023 season, Enfinger became the second competitor to clinch a spot for the Playoff’s Round of 8 alongside Ty Majeski as he continues his pursuit for his first Truck championship.

    “I don’t want to hear anybody asking if we’re going to lay down again,” Enfinger said on FS1. “[Crew chief] Jeff Hensley’s been focused the whole year. There’s been distractions going on all year long, so if anything, that’s clarity. None of these guys, including me, have a job next year, but I feel like we proved we deserve one. We had a heck of a Champion Power Equipment Chevy. I don’t know if we had a dominant truck, but we had a winning truck. [I] Got put behind the 8-ball there at the end, but it was fun racing. I hope the fans enjoyed it. This [win] is special for a lot of reasons.”

    “Did we execute perfectly today?” Enfinger added. “No, but we’ve had speed all year long. When we’ve hit it, when the guys hit it, we’ve done this twice now this year. We’ve got three wins, but we’ve had three trucks like this in my opinion. This is a brand-new truck. I can’t say thank you enough for GMS Fabrication, GMS Racing, not just this year and not just lately, but the whole year last year. They were just as much effort put into this stuff. I’m glad some of our fruits are showing.”

    Hocevar managed to fend off Eckes to finish in the runner-up for the first time and for his ninth top-five result of the season. With the result, Hocevar is 56 points above the top-eight cutline entering the upcoming Round of 10 finale at Kansas Speedway.

    “Our No. 42 Chevy was really fast,” Hocevar said. “I was finding lines. I was driving like a dirt car, sliding myself, running the top [lane]. I don’t know how good the fans loved it or how good the racing, but I had a lot of fun being able to move around when I didn’t think we were gonna be able to. Just kind of a bummer to run second. Luckily, we’ve been fortunate to win some races. Just close.”

    Playoff contenders Christian Eckes and Corey Heim finished third and fourth at the Milwaukee Mile, but both were able to secure spots for the Round of 8 based on points as they will proceed forward to the Playoff’s second round along with Enfinger and Majeski.

    Matt Crafton came home in fifth place for his second top-five result of the season and first since finishing fourth at the Bristol Motor Speedway Dirt Course in April. As a result, he is currently nine points above the top-eight cutline.

    Chase Purdy, Ty Majeski, Derek Kraus, rookie Jake Garcia and Bayley Currey completed the top 10 on the track. In addition, Playoff competitors Zane Smith, Ben Rhodes, rookie Nick Sanchez and Matt DiBenedetto finished 12th, 16th, 24th and 27th, respectively, as Rhodes and DiBenedetto are below the top-eight cutline in the Playoff standings.

    There were five lead changes for four different leaders. The race featured seven cautions for 44 laps. In addition, 26 of 36 starters finished on the lead lap.

    Results.

    1. Grant Enfinger, 95 laps led, Stages 1 & 2 winner

    2. Carson Hocevar, 40 laps led

    3. Christian Eckes, five laps led

    4. Corey Heim, 35 laps led

    5. Matt Crafton

    6. Chase Purdy

    7. Ty Majeski

    8. Derek Kraus

    9. Jake Garcia

    10. Bayley Currey

    11. Tanner Gray

    12. Zane Smith

    13. Taylor Gray

    14. Rajah Caruth

    15. Dean Thompson

    16. Ben Rhodes

    17. Colby Howard

    18. Connor Jones

    19. Bret Holmes

    20. Tyler Ankrum

    21. Lawless Alan

    22. Hailie Deegan

    23. Sean Hingorani

    24. Nick Sanchez

    25. Matt Mills

    26. William Sawalich

    27. Matt DiBenedetto, two laps down

    28. Daniel Dye, two laps down

    29. Tyler Hill, two laps down

    30. Stewart Friesen, three laps down

    31. Derek Lemke, three laps down

    32. Spencer Boyd, three laps down

    33. Josh Reaume, four laps down

    34. Greg Van Alst – OUT, Accident

    35. Brad Perez – OUT, Accident

    36. Josh Bilicki – OUT, Accident

    *Bold indicates Playoff contenders

    Playoff standings.

    1. Grant Enfinger – Advanced

    2. Ty Majeski – Advanced

    3. Corey Heim – Advanced

    4. Christian Eckes – Advanced

    5. Carson Hocevar +56

    6. Zane Smith +29

    7. Matt Crafton +9

    8. Nick Sanchez +3

    9. Ben Rhodes -3

    10. Matt DiBenedetto -20

    The Round of 10 in the 2023 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Playoffs is set to conclude at Kansas Speedway on September 8, which will determine the Playoff’s Round of 8 field. The event’s broadcast time is scheduled to commence at 9 p.m. ET on FS1.