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Tyler Ankrum scores first career win at Kentucky

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

July 11, 2019
Weekend Schedule for Kentucky Speedway

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

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

Please see the complete weekend schedule below.

All times are Eastern

Thursday, July 11

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

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

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

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

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

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

Friday, July 12

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

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

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

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

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

Saturday, July 13

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

The Buckle Up in Your Truck 225 can be seen live on Fox Sports 1 and MRN Radio with the green flag flying shortly after 7:30 p.m. ET. Stages will be broken up into 35/70/150 laps to make up the 225-mile race.
July 10, 2019
Four Takeaways: NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series-Chicago
Chicagoland Speedway hosted the 12th race of the 2019 NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series season Friday night and saw a familiar winner back in victory lane.

The Camping World 225 was a relatively quick, and for the most part, a caution free race. The race lasted about one hour and 49 minutes with five cautions for 27 laps. There were three incidents during the race; Jordan Anderson spun off Turn 4, Natalie Decker was nudged by Todd Gilliland off Turn 4 and Austin Wayne Self, Spencer Davis and Grant Enfinger were involved in an accident off Turn 4 as well.

The percentage under caution and green flag were about equal, with 18 percent run under caution, as race fans saw 20.5 laps under the green flag. There were seven leaders that made 12 lead changes among Austin Hill, Grant Enfinger, Brandon Jones, Camden Murphy, Brett Moffitt, Sheldon Creed and Spencer Boyd.

Despite those lead changes, Moffitt was able to pick up his second win of the 2019 Truck Series season and the ninth win of his career.

With that said, here are this week’s Four Takeaways from the Camping World 225.
1. Moffitt Wins In Unsponsored Truck – Quite possibly one of the more newsworthy items following the race was Moffitt winning in an unsponsored truck at Chicago. It’s the first time this season that Moffitt was not sponsored. While there may or may not be concerns in the GMS Racing camp about sponsorship, Spencer Gallagher noted on Friday night, “the statement is that the winning race truck is available for sponsorship to those organizations that want to be a member of a winning team and a future championship team, I believe.” Hopefully, it’s the only time Moffitt is not sponsored in a race and the team picks up more sponsors for the rest of the season. Nonetheless, it will be an interesting story to follow throughout the season.
2. Kyle Busch Motorsports Has Solid Outing – KBM was able to place all their trucks in the top-10 in Friday night’s race. Brandon Jones was the highest finisher placing second, Harrison Burton was fourth and Todd Gilliland rounded out the KBM team finishing order in sixth. Jones and Burton were able to place themselves in the top-10 during the stages, while Gilliland did not. However, it was just what Burton and Gilliland needed after facing some criticism this season. Although, both will need a win soon as the Playoffs are on the horizon as Burton sits sixth in the standings while Gilliland is eighth and neither have any wins. They could race their way in on points. However, as it stands right now, Sauter, Hill and Moffitt all have wins, while Enfinger, Friesen, Crafton and Rhodes do not. When the points reset for the Playoffs, Sauter, Hill and Moffitt will be on top of the points standings and everyone else will move down a spot. This will more than likely leave someone that is highly competitive out of the Playoffs.
3. ThorSport Racing Struggles – While one team enjoyed success, another team struggled to place their trucks in the top-10. After having such a solid season early on and leading up to Chicago’s race Friday night, it was a forgettable night for the Sandusky, Ohio based team. The night went from bad to worse when Ben Rhodes, who qualified 17th, blew up on the first lap of the race before getting into the turn. Due to the engine issue, Rhodes wound up with a last-place finish. It was the first last-place finish of his career for the Louisville, Kentucky native. More issues arose for his teammate Johnny Sauter. Sauter began experiencing the same thing in both of the stages. The No. 13 team believed it was a spark plug wire issue but never could figure out the exact cause. This left Sauter with a disappointing 18th place finish after qualifying second. For Enfinger, it looked like he was going to earn his first race win of the season. He qualified fifth, finished second in Stage 1 after getting passed on the last lap and won the second stage. The Alabama native led 49 laps only to finish 16th. Matt Crafton was the only ThorSport driver in the top-10 finishing eighth. It was a forgettable night for ThorSport Racing who will probably use the off week to reset and start fresh again.
4. Off Week – After completing 12 races of the 2019 Truck Series season, the regulars will be taking a week off. Many drivers will probably be celebrating the Fourth of July holiday, while others will use it as a reset before heading to Kentucky next week. Believe it or not, there are only five races left until the Playoffs. Those five tracks are Kentucky, Pocono, Eldora, Michigan and Bristol (the cutoff race before the Playoffs begin). There are some drivers that could sneak into the playoffs like Sheldon Creed, Tyler Dippel and possibly Spencer Boyd, who could surprise the field. Nonetheless, there are some other drivers like Enfinger and Friesen, among others, who have not won yet. The 2019 Truck Series season will only heat up from here in what has been one of the most exciting seasons to date.
July 2, 2019
NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series Power Rankings-Chicago
The NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series visited the Windy City this past weekend for race No. 12 of the 2019 season.

For some, it was a great race. Brett Moffitt earned his second win of the 2019 season in an unsponsored truck, while Kyle Busch Motorsports’ drivers placed in the top-10 for the first time in a while.

Other drivers like Anthony Alfredo, Dylan Lupton, Sheldon Creed and Tyler Ankrum all had good runs finishing ninth through 13th, some earned their best career finish.

However, others had their struggles coming out of the Camping World 225, despite being on a hot streak coming into the race.

With that said, here’s a look at this week’s Power Rankings following the 12th race of the season.
1. Brett Moffitt – Moffitt claimed his second win of the season Friday night in Joliet, Illinois. However, it was a newsworthy win for Moffitt and his No. 24 GMS Racing team, as they came in Thursday and unloaded an unsponsored truck. This left some people wondering how Moffitt would do in the race and whether or not, sponsorship problems would affect his performance. Obviously, it didn’t, as Moffitt started third and a had a great truck from the start. The Grimes, Iowa native finished third in both stages. However, it really wasn’t until after Stage 2 when we saw Moffitt out in front leading the way. He took the lead on Lap 74 and led for 46 laps. Despite green flag pit stops late in the going, Moffitt cycled out and regained the lead with 25 to go. From there, he held steady and won the race. This moves Moffitt up into third in points, 53 points behind first. The question remains if GMS Racing will continue to face more sponsorship woes as the season goes on.
  
  Previous Week Ranking – Third
2. Ross Chastain – Chastain quietly finished in the seventh position at Chicago Friday night after his popular win at Gateway the week prior. He started midfield, qualifying 16th. The Niece Motorsports driver didn’t place in the top-10 at all in Stage 1 but was able to earn playoff points by finishing eighth in Stage 2. Chastain ran as high as sixth, but never really got any further as he had to settle for a seventh place finish. This would be Chastain’s 11th top-10 finish of the season. He is now 10 points outside the top-20 in order to make the Playoffs, as there are now five races remaining.
  
  Previous Week Ranking – Second
3. Stewart Friesen – Another week, another third-place finish for Friesen and the No. 52 Halmar Racing team. He started in the 10th position, then finished eighth and sixth in Stage 1 and 2, respectively. This allowed Friesen to gain two points on championship points leader Grant Enfinger. Friesen is now 52 points back. Friesen ran as high as second in the race and averaged a fifth place showing throughout the event.
  
  Previous Week Ranking – Fifth
4. Harrison Burton – After a disappointing 16th place at Gateway, Burton and his No. 18 Kyle Busch Motorsports team rebounded to a fourth-place finish this past weekend. He never led a lap, but ran as high as second and finished sixth and fourth in both stages. Burton would remain consistent throughout the night and would finish in the top five for the fifth time this season. He sits sixth in the points standings, 111 points back with five races remaining before the Playoffs begin.
  
  Previous Week Ranking – Not Ranked
5. Grant Enfinger – Enfinger had strong outings in both stages, finishing second in Stage 1 and winning the second stage. He led three times for 49 laps until an accident late in the going on Lap 80 took Enfinger out of contention to win. The Alabama native continued to struggle throughout the night, having tires go down. This would, unfortunately, place Enfinger 16th, one lap down. Despite the bad luck, he still remains the points leader over Stewart Friesen by 52.
  
  Previous Week Ranking – First
Unranked:

1. Sheldon Creed -It was a rough outing at Chicago for the No. 2 GMS Racing team. While his teammate Moffitt was celebrating in victory lane, Creed was left with a disappointing 11th place finish. Creed did not finish in the top-10 in either stage, despite qualifying seventh and leading two laps.

Previous Week Ranking- Fourth

Other Notables:

Dylan Lupton returned to the Truck Series in his first outing in 2019. Lupton competed in the No. 5 DGR-Crosley Toyota and wound up 10th for the first top-10 finish of his career. Tyler Dippel earned a 12th place finish. It was his first 12th place finish since Kansas back in May.
July 1, 2019
Stewart Friesen and Harrison Burton earn top-five finishes at Chicago

Coming into the 12th race of the 2019 season, Stewart Friesen and his No. 52 Halmar Racing team had not yet won a race, despite being so close many times.

Friesen was looking to change that entering the Camping World 225 at Chicagoland Speedway. He had a decent qualifying spot of 10th and remained consistent in both stages, picking up a couple of stage points. The No. 52 team finished eighth in Stage 1 and sixth in Stage 2.

He never got to lead a lap but was battling side-by-side with Brandon Jones for the second place spot for a few laps. However, the side-by-side battle ended when the last round of pit stops began with less than 35 to go.

Friesen pitted from the top five but was able to get his position back after the pit stops cycled through. He and Jones battled it out again, but it allowed race leader Brett Moffitt to run away with the win. Friesen gave it all he could for the No. 52 Halmar Racing team, but once again had to settle for a third-place finish.

“Just me, I made a bad call in practice yesterday (Thursday afternoon),” Friesen said in his post-race interview with MRN Radio. “Hot and greasy track kept the car pretty tight, kind of bit us in the ass. Trip (Crew Chief) and the boys had to adjust on it all race. Great pit stops by the guys, got us some track position there. Once we got toward the front, we were fast. Just not as fast as Brett (Moffitt) and the 51 (Brandon Jones). Great race for us, thanks to Halmar and Orange County Fair Speedway, big race in August, so it’s cool to have those guys on board.”

It was Friesen’s seventh top-five finish of the 2019 season. He sits second in points, 52 points back behind championship points leader Grant Enfinger.

For Harrison Burton and his No. 18 Safelite Auto Glass Toyota team, it was a solid but quiet night for the Kyle Busch Motorsports entry.

Burton started in the eighth position but showed he had a fast truck through both the stages. In Stage 1, Burton finished sixth while he placed fourth in the second stage. Burton was able to miss all the melee during the race and kept himself in contention. However, his truck wasn’t good enough for the late green flag run, as well as the adjustments made during his final pit stop with 30 to go.

The No. 18 KBM driver would have to settle for a fourth place finish without leading a single lap.

“If I knew, I would probably have a higher paycheck,” Burton said describing his race to MRN Radio. “We’re just working really hard, all the guys at KBM busting their butts, day in and day out, giving us really fast trucks. They’re fun to drive and just lucky to be in this position. We’re fighting our way into the Playoffs. That’s a lot of fun for a team to try and come back to get to the Playoffs, and scratch and claw their way in. If we get in, they better watch out.”

Burton’s fourth-place finish was his fifth top five of the 2019 season. Burton sits sixth in the championship points standings, 111 points behind first place.

June 29, 2019
Austin Hill disappointed with top-five finish at Chicago

Austin Hill and his NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series No. 16 Hattori Racing team were hoping to come out of Chicagoland Speedway Friday night with a win.

Hill and company had a great start to their day, qualifying the No. 16 SiriusXM Toyota Tundra on the pole, the first pole of his Truck Series career. But, he was only able to lead twice for 10 laps and had to settle for running in the top five or top 10 for most of the night. Hill finished fourth and fifth, respectively, in Stage 1 and 2.

Despite strong stage finishes, a long green-flag run ensued after a caution on Lap 80. With less than 35 to go, the last round of green flag pit stops began to take place. Hill pitted with 30 to go from the top five. However, the adjustments weren’t quite enough for Hill and the Hattori Racing team, as they would have to settle for a disappointing fifth-place finish after starting on the pole.

“We’re definitely disappointed with fifth place,” Hill said to MRN Radio in his post-race interview. “We thought we had the speed to possibly win tonight, it just wasn’t there. We really thought the track was going to free up throughout the night and our truck just kept tightening up and tightening up. We could never just get on the other side of it.”

“That last pit stop under green, we put a dent in it, but we still needed some more to be able to run with the top three. All in all, it was a great effort. I think we only fell back to sixth one time. For majority of the time, we ran inside the top five. Can’t thank HRE enough, Scott (Zipadelli, Crew Chief), they put a lot of work into these trucks and we want to win. So top five is okay but still frustrated. We’ll work on it.”

This was Hill’s third top five of the 2019 season.

June 29, 2019
Brett Moffitt takes second win of the season at Chicago

A year removed from his first win at the Chicagoland Speedway in 2018, GMS Racing’s Brett Moffitt came in looking to repeat the same success he had one year ago. He succeeded by giving the team their second win of the 2019 season.

But this time, the story was a little different, as Moffitt and his No. 24 machine was unsponsored for the first time this season. The truck was all white with only GMS Fabrication on the truck lid and on the back bumper.

“Just a really good Chevy Silverado, Jerry (Baxter, Crew Chief), everyone does a great job,” Moffitt said in his post-race interview with MRN Radio. “We’ve been struggling on mile and a half’s, on and off. We’ve had speed at times and not at times, and then this pit crew got us out first, you could never complain about that. They did solid all night. I was able to do my job and hang on to it. It was just a full team effort tonight and we executed the race how we needed to, even when we lost track position, we never got down.”

Austin Hill and Johnny Sauter made up the front row for the Camping World 225 after qualifying earlier in the day. The race marked Sauter’s return from suspension last weekend at Gateway.

Stages were broken into 35/35/80 laps to make up the scheduled 150 lap race.

The first stage was relatively clean for the most part but still had some noticeable incidents. On the very first lap, everyone was trying to avoid the No. 99 of Ben Rhodes, who had major smoke coming out of the back end of his truck. Rhodes would eventually go to the garage where the team would try to work on his truck, but later would be out for the rest of the race due to an engine issue that relegated him to a last-place finish.

Then on Lap five, the first caution was brought out by the No. 3 of Jordan Anderson who spun off Turn 4. After that, the first stage remained clean and green for most of the way with the No. 98 of Grant Enfinger leading until the last lap, as the No. 51 of Brandon Jones made a late surge to pass Enfinger in Turn 4 for the stage win.

Right as the stage ended, the No. 6 of Norm Benning was parked for the rest of the night when they ignored the black flag for not maintaining minimum speed. Also during the yellow, Rhode’s teammate, Johnny Sauter, was experiencing the same issue as Rhodes and was trying to diagnose the problem.

Stage 2 saw 35 laps again and had just one incident, but some near misses.

On Lap 44, Todd Gilliland barely nudged the No. 54 of Natalie Decker, which spent her spinning in the frontstretch grass to bring out the third caution of the night. Also during the caution, it appeared that Sauter might have been dealing with a plug wire problem, as he was still trying to figure out what was going on with his Tenda Heal truck.

Right after the restart on Lap 47, eventual race winner Moffitt and two-time series champion Matt Crafton made contact with Austin Wayne Self. The three looked like they were going to wreck out of the race but somehow they were able to save their trucks from spinning out.

That was the only major incident in the stage, as this time the stage win would be flip-flopped when Grant Enfinger won the second stage, despite a rally from Jones.

The last stage began on Lap 77 and it was action packed right from the get-go.

On Lap 79, Enfinger had a hard time getting going on the restart, which saw him dropping back in the field. On the same lap, the No. 44 of Spencer Davis got loose off of Turn 4, which sent Davis back down the track only to get collected by Wayne Self. This would bring out the fifth and final caution of the night. This would also see Enfinger’s chances of winning diminish heavily due to the amount of damage he incurred.

It seemed as more trouble would happen for the ThorSport Racing team as right before the restart, Crafton’s No. 88 truck shut off, which caused the restart to be waved off. A little bit after Crafton’s incident, Wayne Self was parked for the rest of the night due to not maintaining minimum speed.

As the race went back green, so did the action. On Lap 98, Enfinger reported a tire going down. Just two laps later, he had to make an unscheduled pit stop to change the tire that went down.

From there, the race went on a long green flag run to the finish. However, Stewart Friesen and Jones battled for the second spot for quite a while until the last round of pit stops began with 34 to go.

Tyler Ankrum was the one who began the final round of green flag pit stops, however, he was busted speeding on pit road which ended his chances of winning for the night.

Everyone else started coming down on pit road with 32 to go or less. The major critical point in the race was when the race leader Moffitt pitted from the lead with 30 to go. After that, we saw Friesen, Harrison Burton, Hill and Jones pitting from the lead with 29 to go while Sheldon Creed pitted from the lead with 27 to go.

Despite the different strategies taking place all over the race track, in hopes of somehow beating Brett Moffitt, they couldn’t. On Lap 125 with 25 to go, the Grimes, Iowa native retook the lead as the pit stops cycled out.

From that point on, hoping for no late race cautions, Moffitt pulled his No. 24 machine away from the field and won his second race of the 2019 Truck Series season.

“Yeah new tires, we were really fast on the bottom,” Moffitt added in his post-race interview with MRN Radio. “That second to last run there, where the 52 (Stewart Friesen) was gaining on us there on the top. Once I moved up there, it took away his air and it kind of stalled his run. Him and the 51 (Brandon Jones) got racing, they both got really good trucks. You know, I was fast on top, fast on the bottom, but clean air with new tires is just better.”

This was Moffitt’s second win of 2019 and the ninth of his Truck Series career.

There were five cautions for 27 laps, with seven lead changes among 12 leaders.

Grant Enfinger continues to lead the championship points standings over Stewart Friesen by 52 points.

Up Next: The NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series takes a week off before heading to Kentucky Speedway on Thursday, July 11, live on Fox Sports 1.

June 28, 2019
NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series Preview-Chicago
The NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series continues their Midwest swing on Friday night by heading north to Chicagoland Speedway for the 12th race of the 2019 season.

Teams who have not won yet will begin to feel a little pressure now that there are only five races left until the Playoffs start at Bristol in August.

There are many drivers who are still winless and they are big names. They include Todd Gilliland, Harrison Burton, Matt Crafton, Stewart Friesen, Grant Enfinger, Sheldon Creed, Gus Dean, Jordan Anderson, Natalie Decker, Ben Rhodes, Spencer Boyd, Tyler Ankrum and Austin Wayne Self.

It’s been somewhat of a ho-hum season so far in the Truck Series. It was dominated early by Kyle Busch who won four races in a row, then won his in fifth and final start at Charlotte. The only other non-series regular who won this year was Greg Biffle, who scored a popular win at Texas a few weeks back.

Surprisingly, there have only been four regulars that have visited victory lane. Austin Hill won at Daytona, Johnny Sauter at Dover, Ross Chastain at Kansas and Gateway, and Brett Moffitt at Iowa.

So with that said, who else might finally win on Friday night or continue their season dominance?

Here is a look at the top five drivers on who might win in the Camping World 225.

Currently, there are 32 trucks entered on the preliminary entry list, meaning all drivers will be locked into Friday night’s show. It was 33, but the No. 25 of Ted Minor had withdrawn late.
1. Johnny Sauter – Sauter returns this week to the No. 13 Ford F-150 after serving his suspension last weekend at Gateway. The Wisconsin native has 10 starts at Chicago, earning one win coming two years ago in 2017. Sauter’s track record at the 1.5-mile track has been stellar. He has recorded six top fives and eight top-10 finishes with an average finish of 7.5, and 106 laps led. Sauter does have one pole that came in 2014. Despite his impressive track record, Sauter has no stage wins, but finished second in Stage one and fourth in Stage two in 2017, while he finished seventh in Stage one and fifth in Stage two in last year’s race. What a redemption it would be if Sauter could pull off the win Friday night.
2. Grant Enfinger – Sauter’s teammate, Enfinger could also wheel his No. 98 Protect The Harvest Ford F-150 into victory lane Friday night. Enfinger has been on a tear this year, earning six top fives and 10 top-10 finishes. He has been strong on the mile and a half tracks, placing third at Atlanta, 11th at Las Vegas, fourth after starting on the pole at Texas back in March, seventh at Kansas, ninth at Charlotte and fourth in the Texas June race. At Chicago, however, Enfinger has three starts with a best finish of fifth in 2017. His other finishes include sixth in 2016 and eighth in last year’s race, bringing his average finish to 6.3. Enfinger has no stage wins at the track located in Chicago, Illinois, but has been the championship points leader for most of the season. Look for the Alabama native to continue his hunt for the 2019 Truck Series championship Friday night.
3. Brett Moffitt – You could say Chicago is a special place for Moffitt. Last year at this time when he competed for Hattori Racing, Moffitt and company were facing sponsorship woes and his future was in question. If he had missed the race, he would not have been eligible to compete for the Truck Series championship. Thankfully, a sponsor came on-board early in the week and Moffitt was able to continue his season. If it wasn’t for Fr8Auctions.com, who knows where Moffitt would be now. It was a special race for the Grimes, Iowa native as he would go on to win the race after starting sixth and making a last lap pass on John Hunter Nemechek. Fast forward to a year later, Moffitt is with GMS Racing competing in the No. 24 machine. He has an up and down track record on 1.5-mile racetracks. Moffitt has finished fourth at Atlanta, second at Las Vegas, 19th at Texas in March, eighth at Dover, 19th at Charlotte and 11th at Texas in June. Moffitt and GMS will have three practice sessions to get the truck dialed in to his liking.
4. Brandon Jones – Jones returns to the famed No. 51 Kyle Busch Motorsports truck this week. He has one finish that came in the top five, in last year’s race driving for KBM where Jones finished fifth after starting 16th. He’s also made some ARCA starts and earned one top five, and one top-10 finish in those races. Jones will pilot chassis KBM-055. “This chassis has five starts, with three wins earlier this season, two by owner-driver Kyle Busch at Atlanta Motor Speedway in February, and Texas Motor Speedway in March, then veteran driver Greg Biffle won in this chassis at Texas Motor Speedway in June. In a total of five starts, this chassis has never finished lower than fifth.”
5. Ben Rhodes – Rhodes has three starts at Chicago with a best finish of second in last year’s race. The Kentucky native has one DNF, which came in his first outing with ThorSport in 2016, where Rhodes finished 25th after starting seventh. His other finish was sixth in 2017. Rhodes has no stage wins, but surprisingly has one stage finish in the top five that came in 2018, and a top-10 Stage finish in 2017. Look for Rhodes to be in contention Friday night.
Other drivers on the entry list this week include the return of Spencer Davis, who will compete in the No. 44 Niece Motorsports Chevrolet. Davis only has one start in the 2019 season that came at Martinsville where he finished 20th. Davis tried to qualify for the season opener at Daytona but failed. The Georgia native has no starts at Chicago.

Joey Gase is scheduled to compete in the No. 0 for Jennifer Jo Cobb Racing, B.J. McLeod in the No. 1 of Mark Beaver, Dylan Lupton in a new DGR-Crosley entry in the No. 05, Tyler Ankrum returns to the No. 17 DGR-Crosley Toyota, Mason Massey in the No. 32, Josh Bilicki in the No. 33 and Jesse Iwuji in the No. 34 for Josh Reaume. Timmy Hill returns in his family owned No. 56 team, his first race back since competing at Charlotte last month. Joe Nemechek also returns to the No. 87 Chevrolet.

Since stages were implemented in 2017, Ryan Truex, Christopher Bell, John Hunter Nemechek and Noah Gragson have all earned stage wins.

Chicagoland has seen only 10 races in what could be called a new track in the Truck Series. The series first came here in 2009 where the race was won by Kyle Busch. Busch has gone on to win five times at the 1.5-mile speedway. However, Busch will not be competing this weekend.

Other winners include Austin Dillon in 2011 where he won the championship that year, James Buescher in 2012 winning the championship that year as well. John Hunter Nemechek won in 2015, Johnny Sauter in 2017 and Brett Moffitt in 2018.

Qualifying is important at Chicago, where the winner has only come from outside the top-10 twice, set by Buescher in 2012 when he started 11th and Nemechek in 2015 after starting 11th as well.

Since 2009, no winner has ever come from the pole position. However, it seems that if you start in the fourth position, you have a great shot at winning as the winner has come from that position three times. Busch did it in 2009 and 2010, while Sauter did it in 2017.

Other drivers have won from the sixth starting position, eighth, fifth and seventh twice (2013, 2014). In 2011, 2012, 2017 and 2018, the winner of this race has gone on to win the championship later in the season.

The Truck Series will have three practice sessions on Thursday afternoon. The first practice will be at 1:35 p.m. local time, the second practice at 3:35 p.m. local time and the final practice is slated for 5:35 p.m. local time with no live coverage.

Qualifying will be Friday afternoon at 4:05 p.m. local time/5:05 p.m.ET live on Fox Sports 2.

The Camping World 225 will get underway shortly after 8 p.m. local time/9 p.m. ET live on Fox Sports 1 and MRN Radio. Stages will be broken in to 35/70/150 to make up the scheduled distance of 225 miles.
June 27, 2019