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  • Kyle Busch victorious again at Homestead

    Kyle Busch victorious again at Homestead

    After a rough stretch of races, Kyle Busch piloted his No. 51 Kyle Busch Motorsports Toyota Tundra back to victory lane again at Homestead Miami Speedway, but it wasn’t all that easy for the Las Vegas native.

    Prior to the event going green, Busch had prerace inspection issues and had to drop to the rear and serve a pass-through penalty. It wasn’t until Lap 39 when the KBM driver would get back to the front to take the lead which he held for 58 laps, taking the Stage 2 victory. In the end, Busch had to persevere through a red flag and a late-race restart to take home his second victory of the year.

    “You’re always concerned about tires being better and having the opportunity to out-show you, but I felt like six laps was just the right amount, any more than that and it probably would have been a different outcome,” said Busch.

    “I knew the Cessna Beechcraft Toyota Tundra here was going to be awesome. Thanks to TRD and Rowdy Energy, everybody that helps us here and makes us so fast and want to say thanks to Big Machine Hand Sanitizer as well, they were on the quarter panel the last two weeks and we didn’t win and now they’re not here and we won.”

    Stage 1: Lap 1 – Lap 30

    When the race went green, not only the drivers were racing to the checkered flag, but NASCAR was as well due to potential impending weather in the area. With weather in the area, there was a lot of thrilling action from the start.

    Sheldon Creed would make slight contact with the wall early on, while the leaders battled with each other. Despite Creed hitting the wall, there would be no caution and last week’s runner-up Austin Hill led the field to the mandatory competition caution on Lap 15.

    After the caution, five laps later, another one ensued as a major wreck broke loose between Brett Moffitt and Zane Smith. Brennan Poole and Chase Elliott were also involved, albeit with slight damage to their vehicles. Unfortunately for Moffitt and Smith, their night was done early for too much damage and they were relegated to finishing 36th and 37th.

    A late-stage restart was seen and Niece Motorsports driver, Ross Chastain, passed Hill just before the stage completed. Chastain would end up winning the stage with Ben Rhodes, Hill, Grant Enfinger, Matt Crafton, Todd Gilliland, Christian Eckes, Raphael Lessard, Stewart Friesen, and Creed the top-10 finishers.

    Under the stage caution, several trucks stayed out including Eckes, Majeski, Ankrum, Poole, Kraus, Greenfield, Fogleman, Elliott, and Busch. Dawson Cram was too fast on pit road.

    Stage 2: Lap 35 – Lap 60

    Once Stage 2 began, Busch took the lead on Lap 39, which was the first time in the race for Busch to be out front.

    Other than a piece of debris out of the racing groove, Matt Crafton in the wall in Turn 4 with five to go in the stage and losing a tire, Stage 2 was caution free.

    With Stage 2 going caution free, Busch would take his first stage win of the night. Chastain, Hill, Eckes, Gilliland, Rhodes, Elliott, Kraus, Enfinger, and Lessard rounded out the top-10

    Stage 3: Lap 66 – Lap 134

    The third and final stage saw more action than the other previous stages.

    Beginning with Lap 69, Poole had a tire go down which brought out the caution. Charlotte winner, Elliott, was in the wall slightly but no caution.

    As a green flag run took place, green flag pit stops began with 39 to go. Eckes, Crafton and Poole played pit strategy during the normal cycle of stops. In order for the strategy to work, a caution had to be flown within their pit window. Alas, a caution was flown with 30 to go for Korbin Forrister who had problems with his No. 7 machine. Under the yellow, Eckes, Busch, Crafton and Rhodes among a few others came on to pit road to pit.

    During the pit stops, we saw a bizarre incident that occurred when Sheldon Creed in the No. 2 got called to pit road at the last second. However, it was too late for Creed to make a left-hand turn to pit road, which caused him to hit the water/sand barriers. As water and sand went everywhere, a 15-minute red flag was displayed.

    Once the red was lifted, a restart came with 24 to go. Busch would eventually take the lead a lap later and set the pace. But, the last caution flew with 12 to go for the No. 3 of Jordan Anderson, which set up a seven-lap dash to the finish.

    It only took Busch a couple of laps before he cleared the field and once he did so, he set sail to his 58th career victory in the Truck Series, and his third victory at Homestead, the first time in seven years.

    When asked if Busch would retire from the Truck Series as he approaches 100 in that series, he said it wouldn’t be that easy to kick him out.

    “If my name is on the door, I’ll run as many as I’ll possibly can,” Busch said. “You can’t get rid of me that easily. Maybe one day, they’ll fix the rules where I will run more or I can be like Mark Martin and run Trucks full time (after I retire from Cup). Perhaps one day, I’ll go Trucks full time and run for a championship. Who knows?”

    There were seven caution for 34 laps and six leaders among eight lead changes. Busch led twice for 82 laps.

    Official Results

    1. Kyle Busch, led 82 laps, won Stage 2
    2. Tyler Ankrum
    3. Ross Chastain, won Stage 1
    4. Chase Elliott
    5. Johnny Sauter
    6. Todd Gilliland
    7. Austin Hill
    8. Christian Eckes
    9. Matt Crafton
    10. Ty Majeski
    11. Raphael Lessard
    12. Tanner Gray
    13. Spencer Davis
    14. Stewart Friesen
    15. Derek Kraus
    16. Austin Wayne Self
    17. Grant Enfinger
    18. Ben Rhodes
    19. Brennan Poole
    20. Sheldon Creed
    21. Cory Roper
    22. Spencer Boyd
    23. Tate Fogleman
    24. Angela Ruch
    25. Tyler Hill, one lap down
    26. Gray Gaulding, one lap down
    27. Jennifer Jo Cobb, two laps down
    28. Codie Rohrbaugh, two laps down
    29. Ray Ciccareli, three laps down
    30. Clay Greenfield, 12 laps down
    31. Jordan Anderson, OUT, Crash
    32. Dawson Cram, OUT, Transmission
    33. Korbin Forrister, OUT, Crash
    34. Norm Benning, OUT, Handling
    35. T.J. Bell, OUT, Crash
    36. Brett Moffitt, OUT, Crash
    37. Zane Smith, OUT, Crash
    38. Bryant Barnhill, OUT, Transmission

    Up Next: The NASCAR Gander RV and Outdoors Truck Series will take a few weeks off before returning to action at Pocono Raceway Saturday, June 27.

  • NASCAR Gander RV and Outdoors Truck Series Preview-Homestead

    NASCAR Gander RV and Outdoors Truck Series Preview-Homestead

    Coming off a thrilling finish last Saturday at Atlanta Motor Speedway, the NASCAR Gander RV and Outdoors Truck Series heads back to South Florida and Homestead-Miami Speedway carrying some momentum.

    It’s an unusual trip for not only the Truck Series but the other two series, as this will be the first time in quite some time, the series will be racing in the middle of the summer compared to racing in November. For the longest time, the Truck Series finale was slated at Homestead dating back to 2002. You have to go back 19 years ago in the year 2001 when the series did not compete in November. In ’01, the Truck Series competed in March. The earliest the series ever competed at the track was February of 2000. So yes, there have been races at Homestead where it was not scheduled for November, but a very long time ago.

    Coming back to the present, racing in the middle of summer will create some very hot and slick conditions at the 1.5-mile speedway, which, for some drivers, will play into their favor.

    Last week, ThorSport Racing driver, Grant Enfinger, in slick conditions, scored the victory for the second time this year and now comes to Homestead hoping to click off another victory. Though there will be 38 other drivers competing for the victory and one of them hopes to keep Enfinger’s momentum in the rearview by getting a victory for themselves.

    Here is this week’s preview for the Baptist Health 200.

    1. Austin Hill – This may be an obvious pick to some of you but hear me out. After falling short by a matter of seconds last Saturday, the Georgia native is hungry for a race win and has the truck/team capable to do it. Last November, the No. 16 Hattori Racing Team scored the victory by sweeping both of the stages, leading the majority of the race (56 laps) and taking the checkered flag. Not only does Hill have a good chance from a statistical standpoint, but HRE will bring back the race-winning truck, hoping to do the same thing they did in November, which is to win. Hill was solid last November and crew chief, Scott Zipadelli, has been with three different drivers going back to 2017. Zipadelli also won the race/championship with former team driver Brett Moffitt back in November of 2018. This team and driver will be tough to beat come Saturday. Hill also is starting on the pole.
    2. Brett Moffitt – Moffitt has had solid success in the past two races at Homestead, including a victory and winning the championship back in 2018. In the 2019 event, Moffitt competed with his new team, GMS Racing. The Iowan native started fourth and nabbed a fifth-place finish back in November. Moffitt also was able to lead three laps and placed the truck fourth in both stages. When Moffitt won the ’18 race, he led 59 laps en route to victory in just his first Truck start at the track. Despite having limited Truck experience, Moffitt does have other series starts, such as competing in the Cup Series several years ago. With that in mind, it’ll be hard to stop the momentum of Moffitt at Homestead. The team is still searching for their first victory of the year. and that just might come Saturday night.
    3. Matt Crafton – Speaking of experience, Matt Crafton has the most starts of all active drivers, with 13 dating back to 2001. Since that debut, Crafton has had a mixed bag of results at the 1.5-mile speedway but has also enjoyed recent success. Homestead has been the site where the California native has collected three Truck Series championships. The first one was in 2013 and he went back to back in 2014. Crafton also took the title home in last year’s event after placing runner up and leading nine laps. It wasn’t until 2015 however, when the ThorSport driver scored his first victory at Homestead. In total, Crafton has scored four top fives and 11 top-10 finishes with 154 laps led which has produced an average finish of 10.4. In the 2019 event, Crafton finished sixth in Stage 1 and second in Stage 2. Should Crafton pull off the win, it would be a special victory, as he celebrated a birthday Thursday.
    4. Christian Eckes – By finally scoring a top-five finish last week at Atlanta in 2020, Eckes is rolling into Homestead hoping to grab another top-five finish. The Kyle Busch Motorsports driver does have one start at the 1.5-mile speedway, which came a few months ago in November. Eckes started second and finished third after leading 26 laps in his first outing. He was unable to score any stage points, but finishing second was a goal achieved for that night. This time around, it wouldn’t be shocking should Eckes pull off the victory this Saturday. The No. 18 team will be using a chassis that Noah Gragson used to score his first victory at Kansas in 2018. Cup Series regulars William Byron and Christopher Bell have also won with this truck. Eckes will roll off in the fourth position on the starting grid.
    5. Sheldon Creed – After having a couple of rough results at Las Vegas and last week at Atlanta, Creed and the No. 2 GMS Racing team will hope to turn things around with a great finish this weekend. The Alpine, California native has made two starts with finishes of fifth and ninth. Not only has Creed been able to finish inside the top-10 in both races, but he has also piloted the No. 2 Chevy to stage finishes in both races as well, with an average finish of 7.0. Creed starts eighth on Saturday and has a decent chance to win.

    Since 1996, Homestead-Miami Speedway has been host to 24 Truck Series races with many different winners. Some of those winners include Dave Rezendes, Kenny Irwin Jr, Mike Wallace, Andy Houston, Ted Musgrave, Ron Hornaday Jr, Bobby Hamilton, Kasey Kahne, Todd Bodine Mark Martin, Johnny Benson Jr, Kevin Harvick, Kyle Busch, Johnny Sauter, Cale Gale, Bubba Wallace, Matt Crafton, William Byron, Chase Briscoe, Brett Moffitt and Austin Hill.

    Kyle Busch and Todd Bodine have the most victories with two apiece. This weekend, Sauter, Crafton, Moffitt, and Hill have a chance to tie that feat set by Busch and Bodine.

    Toyota has 10 victories, Ford 6 victories, Chevrolet 5 wins and Dodge has just two wins.

    Caution flags have been hit or miss at Homestead for a Truck Series race. The most ever flown was back in 1997 when 11 cautions flew for 52 laps. The fewest amount of cautions ever seen was one caution for four laps in 2002. The most ever lead changes was 17, three times, in ’97, ’99, and ’10. The fewest ever lead changes were five also set in the 2002 race.

    In addition, the race winner has come from the pole four times (2003, 2015, 2016, and 2017). The lowest a race winner has ever started to win was 18th set by Bodine in 2008.

    Since stages were implemented in 2017, Christopher Bell, Ben Rhodes, Grant Enfinger, Brett Moffitt, and Austin Hill have all won stages. Hill has been the only driver who has swept both stages, which occurred in last year’s event.

    Stages will be broken into 30/60/134 to make up the 201-mile race.

    The Baptist Health 200 can be seen on Fox Sports 1 and heard on MRN Radio Saturday, June 13 at 6 p.m. ET.

  • Weekend Schedule for Homestead-Miami Speedway

    Weekend Schedule for Homestead-Miami Speedway

    This weekend NASCAR travels to Homestead-Miami Speedway for a full weekend of completion that includes a double-header for the Xfinity Series, a Gander RV and Outdoors Truck Series race and the Dixie Vodka 400 Cup Series event Sunday afternoon.

    Denny Hamlin will start on the pole for the Dixie Vodka 400 and Harrison Burton scored the pole for Saturday’s Xfinity Series Hooters 250, both based on a random draw. The Xfinity pole for Sunday’s Contender Boats 250 will be based on the race results of the Hooters 250 with an inverted top-15. The pole winner for the Truck Series was chosen by a random draw as well, based on the owners’ point standings, with Austin Hill claiming the top spot.

    All times are Eastern.

    Saturday June 13

    3:30 p.m.: Xfinity Series Hooters 250 (Stages 40/80/167 Laps = 250.5 miles) FOX/MRN/SiriusXM NASCAR Radio

    7:30 p.m.: Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series Baptist Health 200 (Stages 30/60/134 Laps = 201 Miles) FS1/MRN/SiriusXM NASCAR Radio

    Sunday June 14

    Noon: Xfinity Series Contender Boats 250 (Stages 40/80/167 Laps = 250.5 miles) FS1/MRN/SiriusXM NASCAR Radio

    3:30 p.m.: NASCAR Cup Series Dixie Vodka 400 (Stages 80/160/267 Laps = 400.5 Miles) FOX/MRN/SiriusXM NASCAR Radio

  • NASCAR Gander RV and Outdoors Truck Series Power Rankings – Atlanta

    NASCAR Gander RV and Outdoors Truck Series Power Rankings – Atlanta

    The NASCAR Gander RV and Outdoors Truck Series continued their momentum with another consecutive race following Charlotte Motor Speedway and sped to Atlanta Motor Speedway for the VetTix/Camping World 200 in what would be another thrilling race in typical Truck Series fashion.

    After winning the season opener at Daytona, Grant Enfinger had high hopes of continuing his early-season momentum and march toward another playoff run later in the year. Meanwhile, Georgia native, Austin Hill had great motivation as he entered his hometown racetrack. 

    While Kyle Busch was dominant in the early and middle portions of the race, it was Austin Hill and Enfinger who battled for the checkered flag. Enfinger managed to get Hill loose and take the checkered for his first Atlanta victory. 

    With Enfinger and Hill taking the top two spots, other Truck Series regulars also had a strong, but quiet day at Atlanta. We’ll detail Enfinger’s race along with Hill and check out the others to see how they fared in the fourth race of the 2020 season. 

    1. Austin Hill- Yes. While Hill did not win the race and the last lap dash to the finish with Enfinger, the Georgia native had the best Truck late in the going, especially on the longer runs. The No. 16 Hattori Racing team was nearly flawless all day, having great pit stops and keeping the truck in contention, should the opportunity present itself. Hill’s time to shine came during the final round of green-flag pit stops when race leader Kyle Busch was penalized twice for speeding. The Hattori driver took over the lead on Lap 99 and all the way up to Lap 134 (the original final lap of the race) before the Charlotte winner, Chase Elliott, spun and brought out a late-race caution. Hill did get a good restart but it wasn’t enough to keep Enfinger behind him. However, you can’t discount the effort of Hill’s team, who came up just a tad short in a disappointing loss. But this should give them some motivation heading into Homestead, as Hill won that race last year. In addition, he placed the No. 16 team fifth in Stage 1 and 10th in Stage 2 and gained the fourth top-10 in a row for the year.

      Previous Week Ranking – Third
    2. Grant Enfinger – Flipping the roles, Enfinger also had a solid No. 98 Ford F-150 before he took the checkered flag. It took all race to get up in position to have the opportunity to win but the Alabaman led the laps that counted the most after getting Hill loose coming to the last lap. Enfinger also had some solid stage finishes, finishing ninth in Stage 1 and second in Stage 2. So far, the No. 98 team is on a roll early and could be a sleeper in the championship.

      Previous Week Ranking – Not Ranked
    3. Todd Gilliland – After a disappointing Charlotte outing a week prior, Gilliland and the No. 38 Front Row Motorsports team looked to put that behind them. The No. 38 team started 12th, finished 10th in Stage 1 and fifth in Stage 2. Gilliland spent 130 laps in the top 15 throughout the majority of the race, before a timely caution came with a few laps left. He restarted in the top five and had a chance to win the race. Ultimately, Gilliland and company placed fourth for his first top-five finish of the year.

      Previous Week Ranking – Fell Out
    4. Matt Crafton – Crafton and the No. 88 Menards F-150 had an up and down day but managed to fight back to a respectable 12th place finish. However, during the competition caution, there was a major check-up on pit road. Unfortunately, Crafton was on the receiving end and had some front-end damage to the hood of his truck. This set the team back a bit and they finished 20th in the first stage. In the second stage, he fought back to a 10th place finish. Crafton continued to make the best out of his day and brought the truck to a salvageable top-15 finish.

      Previous Week Ranking – Fourth
    5. Christian Eckes – Eckes finally brought home his first top-five finish of the 2020 season in the No. 18 Safelite Tundra. The first three races weren’t so kind to Eckes who has finished outside the top-10 and had only a best finish of 14th the week prior in Charlotte. He did note during the week that Eckes and the team had a come to Jesus meeting about what they could improve on and gave him some motivation. Obviously, that meeting worked as Eckes finished third in Stage 1 and sixth in Stage 2. At the end of the day, he finished third for the first top-five of his Truck Series career.

      Previous Week Ranking – Not Ranked 

    Fell Out 

    1. Brett Moffitt – Moffitt and his GMS Racing Chevy was a quiet contender all day long. He was up at the front during certain parts of the race but never challenged for the lead or victory. The Iowan did manage to finish sixth in Stage 1, but received no stage points for Stage 2. Moffitt eventually brought the No. 23 to an eighth-place finish. It was somewhat disappointing after a strong finish of fourth at Charlotte.

      Previous Week Ranking – Second
    2. Johnny Sauter – It was a crazy turn of events for Sauter on Saturday afternoon. The No. 13 driver had respectable finishes in both the stages, placing ninth and seventh, respectively. Troubles arose post-race when series officials disqualified Sauter’s finishing position of 17th. The officials found a tire modification violation after one of the tires was tested in what is called a dunk test, which will indicate any changes with the tire. Unfortunately, a penalty is expected later in the week, as this is an L2 penalty. This mean the driver could be penalized 75 points with the crew chief serving a four-race suspension along with a $25,000-$75,000 fine. It was a disappointing ending for Sauter, who had originally finished 17th.

      Previous Week Ranking – Fifth 
  • Grant Enfinger wins in overtime thriller at Atlanta

    Grant Enfinger wins in overtime thriller at Atlanta

    In typical Atlanta Motor Speedway fashion, there was a last-lap dash and pass to the finish in the NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series Vet Tix Camping World 200 race. This time, however, it was between Grant Enfinger and Hattori Racing Enterprises’ Austin Hill.

    Hill had led up until a late caution that flew with four laps to go when Chase Elliott spun off Turn 4. When the event went back green, Hill got a good jump on the restart, but it was eventually ThorSport Racing’s Enfinger who took home the win over Hill by 0.215 seconds.

    “It was definitely wild, that’s for sure,” Enfinger said. “We didn’t lead too many laps, but we led the ones that counted. It was just a unbelievable, Farmpaint Ford F-150 on the short run. We didn’t have everything that we needed to make a real run at those guys, to keep up with Chase (Elliott) and Kyle (Busch) on the long run. We were decent on the long run, but we weren’t great. On the short run, I knew if it came down to it, we could make it happen if we had a good restart.”

    “Fortunately, we got a good restart,” he continued. “Austin (Hill) blocked me on the backstretch and I felt like we could probably clear him either way but I was kind of glad he went to the bottom. I never used that move, but I (had) seen Kyle (Busch) and Johnny (Sauter) be successful with that same move. From there, it was just a matter of holding him (Hill) off and we had the speed to do that.”

    Stages 30-30-70 made up the 130 lapper for the fourth race of the season with a competition caution on lap 15. Kyle Busch Motorsports driver, Christian Eckes, drew the pole earlier in the week while Tyler Ankrum of GMS Racing drew outside pole.

    Stage 1: Lap 1 – Lap 30

    Eckes led early on but the race was slowed a couple of times by the No. 28 of Bryan Dauzat. Dauzat spun around twice, once on Lap 2, and a second time on Lap 12. Eventually, Dauzat would be out of the race, due to the damaged vehicle policy.

    Before the competition yellow, KBM teammates, Eckes and Kyle Busch traded the lead. When the yellow flew, Johnny Sauter, Zane Smith, Brennan Poole, Stewart Friesen, and Ankrum were among the drivers to pit under yellow.

    As the race went back green on Lap 16, Eckes got ahead for the lead but Busch took the top spot on Lap 24. KBM Team Owner Busch went on to win Stage 1 with Elliott, Eckes, Smith, Hill, Brett Moffitt, Sheldon Creed, Ross Chastain, Sauter, and Enfinger rounding out the top-10.

    When the leaders pitted, there was a log jam on pit road and a collision. Ryan Truex, who was ahead of John Hunter Nemechek, checked up which caused Nemechek to run into the back of the No. 40 truck. Seasoned veteran, Matt Crafton also received front-end damage to his No. 88 machine after the incident and Nemechek had left-rear quarter panel damage to his Truck as well.

    However, Sauter and Chastain were too fast on pit road and Angela Ruch was penalized for pitting outside the box. TJ Bell was also penalized for improper fueling. Zane Smith did not elect to pit, stayed out and was deemed the new leader for the Stage 2 restart.

    Stage 2: Lap 36 – Lap 60

    After staying out hoping for track position, Smith fell back and was almost run over by drivers with fresher tires in the back.

    Last week’s winner, Elliott, took the lead on Lap 38 and held it until Lap 51 when Busch once again made his way to the top of the leaderboard. The two traded positions before a caution halted the field when Austin Wayne Self in the No. 22 was stopped sideways off Turn 4. A few drivers, including Ruch, had to make some extra moves to avoid the sitting truck.

    When the stage restarted with four to go, there wasn’t much of a challenge for Busch and he took the stage win. Enfinger, Kraus, Chastain, Gilliland, Eckes, Sauter, Raphael Lessard, Crafton, and Hill completed the top-10 finishers in the second stage.

    Stage 3: Lap 66 – Lap 136

    The final stage saw the longest green-flag run of the day with 62 laps. Busch took the lead from Niece Motorsports’ Chastain with 44 to go and it looked as though he would set sail.

    The final round of green-flag pit stops began with 35 to go with Chastain the first to start the sequence. Busch pitted from the lead one lap later. Meanwhile, Elliott had troubles slowing when he tried to pit and was forced to make an extra lap.

    When Busch pitted, he was too fast on pit road and was given a penalty. As Busch re-entered the track, he nearly got into the No. 3 of Jordan Anderson in Turns 3 and 4. However, the No. 51 Cessna Tundra, was too fast again on pit road when Busch served the initial penalty. Receiving two penalties in a row would eventually end Busch’s chances of winning the race.

    After that, Georgia native Hill was in prime position as he inherited the lead during the pit stop cycle. He appeared to be on his way to score the big victory until Elliott went spinning around in the No. 24 Hooters machine off Turn 4 with four to go, setting up an overtime restart.

    There were some questions as to whether Hill would pit and everyone else would stay out or if Hill stayed out and everyone else would pit. However, all the lead lap trucks pitted under the final yellow.

    Eventually, a two-lap dash to the finish ensued and anybody inside the top five had a chance to win. But when it came down to it, Enfinger and Hill were the two trying to get to the finish line first. Enfinger was on the outside while Hill was on the inside. Enfinger was able to get Hill loose just enough to take the lead and would score the first Atlanta victory of his career.

    In 2020, Enfinger has earned two wins early in the season.

    “Obviously, it started at Daytona,” he said. “Superspeedways can be so crazy and hit and miss. It’s something I like though. The fact we won at Daytona and I shouldn’t say this, but shouldn’t be the reason we won today. That, however, changes our mindset at the shop even before we get here. Like my spotter, Chris Lambert said, ‘we won this race at the shop.’ Some of those guys can’t even celebrate with me right now, so we won this for the shop. We might not have made the same move, had we not won (at Daytona) and we would be points racing. Thankfully, we get to take some of Marcus Lemonis’ (CEO of Gander RV and Camping World) money home to those who deserve it.”

    Enfinger led twice for seven laps and now has four career victories. Not only did the Alabama native score his fourth career victory, he and the team picked up the $25,000 bonus from Marcus Lemonis.

    There were six cautions for 28 laps and 14 lead changes among seven different drivers.

    Note: Following the post-race inspection, Sauter’s 17th place finish was disqualified due to an unspecified tire modification. He was relegated to last place in the finishing order. This moves everyone who finished after him up one spot in the results.

    Official Results

    1. Grant Enfinger, led seven laps
    2. Austin Hill, led 36 laps
    3. Christian Eckes, 18 laps
    4. Todd Gilliland
    5. Zane Smith, led five laps
    6. Ross Chastain, led 17 laps
    7. Derek Kraus
    8. Brett Moffitt
    9. Ben Rhodes
    10. Stewart Friesen
    11. Tanner Gray
    12. Matt Crafton
    13. Ryan Truex
    14. Sheldon Creed
    15. Tyler Ankrum
    16. Jeb Burton
    17. Johnny Sauter – DQ – Officially scored in last place
    18. Brennan Poole
    19. Raphael Lessard
    20. Ty Majeski, one lap down
    21. Chase Elliott, one lap down
    22. Kyle Busch, one lap down
    23. Timmy Hill, one lap down
    24. Cory Roper, one lap down
    25. John Hunter Nemechek, one lap down
    26. Spencer Davis, two laps down
    27. Clay Greenfield, two laps down
    28. Spencer Boyd, two laps down
    29. Angela Ruch, two laps down
    30. Korbin Forrister, two laps down
    31. Austin Wayne Self, four laps down
    32. Tate Fogleman, four laps down
    33. Bayley Currey, five laps down
    34. Codie Rohrbaugh, six laps down
    35. Gray Gaulding, seven laps down
    36. Jesse Little, nine laps down
    37. Jennifer Jo Cobb, OUT, Too Slow
    38. Jordan Anderson, OUT, Crash
    39. TJ Bell, OUT, Clutch
    40. Bryan Dauzat, OUT, Damage Vehicle Policy
  • NASCAR Gander RV and Outdoors Truck Series Preview-Atlanta

    NASCAR Gander RV and Outdoors Truck Series Preview-Atlanta

    Last week we saw a thrilling finish at Charlotte Motor Speedway with Chase Elliott fending off Kyle Busch to claim the $100,000 bounty hosted by Marcus Lemonis and Kevin Harvick. The NASCAR Gander RV and Outdoors Truck Series will continue their momentum this week as they head to Atlanta Motor Speedway Saturday afternoon as part of the Truck-Xfinity Series doubleheader planned for the track.

    Like the previous Charlotte races, Kyle Busch has been dominant at Atlanta recently with multiple race wins at the 1.5-mile speedway. This weekend, however, he won’t have to worry about a bounty as that has been claimed. However, competitor and last week’s race winner, Chase Elliott, will be back in the field to give Busch another run for his money.

    As those two names are more than likely the favorites to win the Vet Tix/Camping World 200 at Atlanta Saturday, there are some sleepers in the field to keep an eye on. Despite that, we’ll also give you reasons why Busch and Elliott might dominate the competition once more.

    Here is this week’s preview that details five drivers who might have a solid chance to win on Saturday afternoon.

    1. Grant Enfinger – Enfinger has made four Truck Series starts at Atlanta dating back to 2016, the first time with ThorSport in 2017, three years ago. In all four of those starts, the Alabama native has managed to finish inside the top-10 in all of his starts. In last year’s race, Enfinger scored his best finish to date at Atlanta by finishing third. He piloted the No. 98 Truck to four laps led, finished third in Stage 1 and eighth in Stage 2. While Enfinger was certainly strong last year, he’s also managed to complete 100 percent of the laps in all four races. The ThorSport driver should be a strong contender Saturday.
    2. Austin Hill – Hill has been having a solid season so far in the three races run. The Georgia native collected one top-five and three top-10 finishes in 2020 with a best finish of third at Las Vegas back in February, another 1.5-mile track, similar to Atlanta. Hill had his first outing with the team last year in 2019 and had a great run in the No. 16 Toyota when he finished seventh. He was also able to earn some stage points after placing fifth in Stage 1 and sixth in Stage 2. Hill never got to lead a lap, but it was still another solid run for Hill and the No. 16 team.
    3. Brett Moffitt – Moffitt has three starts at Atlanta dating back to his first start in 2017. However, last year was his first start with the GMS Racing team. Moffitt had a great run with the team when he piloted his No. 24 Truck to a fourth-place finishing position. He averaged seventh mid-race, had 44 green-flag passes and had the two fastest laps throughout the event. Moffitt finished fifth in Stage 2. He is also the 2018 winner of this event.
    4. Johnny Sauter – Surprisingly, Johnny Sauter has not had a win yet out of his nine starts but has been really close multiple times to securing a victory. His first few outings from 2009 to 2011 didn’t go well but in the last three since 2017, Sauter has really picked it up and has been a challenger for the win only to fall short. In the 2019 race, he secured his best finish ever at the track after placing second and leading nine laps. Sauter also placed fourth in both stages in the 2019 race. The year before in 2018, he led 12 laps en route to a third-place finish. Expect Sauter to be a front runner in the No. 13.
    5. Chase Elliott – Elliott is back in the field this week with the GMS Racing team in the No. 24 Chevy. The Georgia native is coming into the race with momentum after the win at Charlotte last week. This weekend will mark the first time in three years that Elliott will make a start at Atlanta in a Truck. The last time he competed in the race was 2017. In that race, Elliott started ninth and came home to a fifth-place finish and finished eighth in Stage 2.

    When the entry list came out, 47 Trucks were once again entered, but seven drivers were sent home. Those sent home were Tim Viens, Norm Benning, Trey Hutchens, David Ragan, Bryant Barnhill, Dawson Cram, and Parker Kligerman.

    Since 2004, Atlanta Motor Speedway has hosted 18 races and has seen many different winners.

    The list of winners includes Bobby Hamilton, Ron Hornaday Jr, Kyle Busch, Todd Bodine, Mike Bliss, Mike Skinner, Ryan Newman, Kevin Harvick, Ty Dillon, Matt Crafton, John Hunter Nemechek, Christopher Bell, and Brett Moffitt.

    Out of those race winners, Kyle Busch has the most victories with five, while Hall of Famer Ron Hornaday has two victories. Everyone else has scored one win each.

    As for qualifying, the lowest a winner has started from was 18th and that happened twice. That was set by Hornaday in 2005 and Nemechek in 2016. The highest a race winner has started from was from the pole, which happened five times, with Bodine being the first to do so in 2006. However, due to the ongoing pandemic and limited team exposure, there continues to be no live qualifying.

    Chevrolet narrowly edges out Toyota in terms of victories at the track. The manufacturer has nine race wins in total while Toyota has eight wins. Dodge only has one win that took place in the first race in 2004. Ford has yet to secure a win.

    The most ever lead changes was seen in 2006, with 21. The fewest lead changes in the Atlanta Truck race was six back in 2015, five years ago.

    The Atlanta Truck race can be an eventful race as it has seen a lot of cautions flown from time to time. The most caution flags that occurred was nine times for 45 laps back in 2007. The least amount of cautions happened two times, with the 2015 race leading the way with three yellows for 13 laps, followed by the 2012 race with three cautions for 16 laps. In last year’s race, there was six cautions for 30 laps.

    As far as stage winners go, Christopher Bell, Noah Gragson, and Kyle Busch have all won stages. Busch has the most stage victories with three, including sweeping last years stages.

    Stages will be broken into 30-30-70 to make up the 130 lap race.

    The race can be seen on Fox Sports 1 at 1 p.m. ET and can be heard on MRN Radio.

  • Four Takeaways from the North Carolina Education Lottery 200

    Four Takeaways from the North Carolina Education Lottery 200

    It’s hard to imagine, but Tuesday night at Charlotte Motor Speedway was the first time since February at Las Vegas Motor Speedway that the NASCAR Gander RV and Outdoors Truck Series was last in action.

    When the entry list was announced, 47 Trucks were entered, the largest-field of Trucks in quite some time. Unfortunately, seven of those got sent home after a random draw that took place a week ago. Just imagine, 47 Trucks racing on the track at the same time, it would have been wild.

    When 40 Trucks took the track for the first time in three months many did not know what to expect. A big pile-up? Some taking it easy? Actually, neither of these took place. It was a similar race to the one at Las Vegas back in February, run cleanly and smoothly, without a lot of cautions.

    However, this type of race was certainly different. Camping World CEO Marcus Lemonis and NASCAR Cup Series superstar Kevin Harvick had placed a $100,000 bounty on the all-time wins leader, Kyle Busch. Originally, it was $50,000 before Lemonis stepped in.

    Knowing that Busch is pretty much unstoppable in the Truck Series, it was interesting to see if anyone could beat him. That’s when Cup regulars, Chase Elliott, John Hunter Nemechek and Brennan Poole, took the opportunity in hopes of beating Busch, albeit, cleanly on the track. And wouldn’t you know it? It came down coincidentally, to Chase Elliott and Kyle Busch, the two drivers that had a run-in with each other last week at the Cup race in Darlington. It’s funny how things work out.

    As it turned out, Elliott would outrun Busch to the finish line by .627 seconds for the third Truck Series victory of his career. It was his first win in the series since three years ago in 2017 at Martinsville Speedway.

    While Elliott fended off Busch for the victory, there were some other notables during the race. So, with that said, here are four takeaways from the North Carolina Education Lottery 200.

    1. More Bounty – After Tuesday night’s race, the bounty that will be donated to a coronavirus relief charity of the driver’s choice was so successful that Marcus Lemonis stepped in once again and offered another bounty for the upcoming Atlanta Truck Series race next month. This time, anyone is eligible for the bounty and the award is $25,000 to anyone who wins the race. With the bounty being thrown out, there have been past drivers who have become interested such as former series champion Todd Bodine and former NASCAR driver, Kenny Wallace. While the bounty is most certainly fun, it also definitely brings extra attention to the Truck Series and makes it a great race to watch.

    2. GMS Racing Places Four Trucks In Top Five – It was a strong-night for the GMS Racing team, who had five Trucks entered in the race, including race winner Chase Elliott. At one point or another, you would almost find at least one of those Trucks up near the front, challenging for a stage win or the lead. While Elliott’s Truck was the best among the GMS stable, there was another driver who shined; rookie Zane Smith. Smith put himself up there with leaders Busch and Elliott and other series drivers and actually led 15 laps. It was the first time ever that Smith was able to lead laps in the Truck Series. The California native also had sporadic battles with Kyle Busch near the end, as well. Ultimately, GMS Racing finished first, third, fourth, fifth, and 13th. Not a bad night for the team.

    3. Clean Race For The Most Part – When you see 40 Trucks on track and add in several rookies, you sometimes think that this is going to be a caution-filled race. Well actually, it wasn’t, at least toward the very end. The first caution that came out for an actual incident was Lap 81 when a multi-truck crash broke loose that was started by Jesse Iwuji. After that incident, there were really only two more cautions for incidents. Speaking of the accident on Lap 81, Iwuji apologized for the incident which took out drivers, Stewart Friesen, Brennan Poole, and Tyler Ankrum.

    4. Ty Majeski Earns Best Career Finish To Date – Overlooked in the finishing order, could very well be Niece Motorsports driver, Ty Majeski. Majeski finished eighth, which was his best finish in the Truck Series in over four starts. The Wisconsin driver finished fifth in Stage 1 before earning a top-10 finish. Now it’s only a matter of time before Majeski scores his first win in the series.


  • NASCAR Gander RV And Outdoors Truck Series Power Rankings – Charlotte

    NASCAR Gander RV And Outdoors Truck Series Power Rankings – Charlotte

    The NASCAR Gander RV And Outdoors Truck Series was back in action Tuesday night at Charlotte Motor Speedway for race No. 3 of the 2020 Truck Series season.

    It felt like forever since we had seen the Trucks in action, but once the green flag flew, there was tons of action from start to finish in a race that saw a 40-Truck field for the first time in several years. In fact, you would have to go back to 2004 at Mansfield to see a field of 40 Trucks hit the track.

    We not only saw 40 Trucks in the race, there was also a $100,000 bounty on the line which was set up by Kevin Harvick and Camping World CEO Marcus Lemonis. The rules for the bounty stated, if any full-time Cup driver could beat Kyle Busch “cleanly” in a race, they would win the bounty bonus. However, as conditions of the COVID-19 pandemic arose, the rules of the bounty were changed the day of the race. Now, should the winner beat Busch, they would donate the bounty to a charity COVID-19 relief effort.

    As the bounty was on the line, Cup regulars like Chase Eliott, Brennan Poole and John Hunter Nemechek were all entered to compete. While Poole and Nemechek certainly had the opportunity to beat Busch, it was ultimately Elliott who proved the winner over Busch with coincidentally Elliott finishing first and Busch second in the running order.

    While Elliott was class of the field in a GMS Racing truck, other notable regular Truck Series drivers had some decent runs and finishes as well.

    Here are this week’s Power Rankings following the North Carolina Education Lottery 200.

    1. Sheldon Creed – Creed had a quiet fifth-place showing Tuesday night at Charlotte Motor Speedway. The GMS driver started 21st due to a random draw earlier in the week. The 22-year-old ran as high as third, had 80 green flag passes and spent 92 laps in the top-15. While Creed didn’t get to lead any laps or manage to grab a stage point, he brought the No. 2 Chevy Accessories home to a top-five finish. The finish marked his sixth top-five of his Truck Series career.

      Previous Ranking That Followed Las Vegas – Third

      https://twitter.com/sheldoncreed/status/1265489102381735937?
    2. Brett Moffitt – The GMS train continues with Brett Moffitt, who piloted the No. 23 truck home to fourth. Though his story is different compared to others. Right before the world got shut down due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Moffitt broke both of his legs and it appeared as though he would have missed a few races, had the NASCAR world kept with its original schedule. But, luck came his way and Moffitt was able to rehab and was cleared to compete. He competed in the two Xfinity races at Darlington and Charlotte and had a solid run in the Truck race. Moffitt was able to lead just two-laps, made 60 quality passes and ran the event around eighth. The Iowa native finished 10th in Stage 1 and sixth in Stage 2, before finishing fourth in the race. It was a nice outing at Charlotte for Moffitt.

      Previous Week Ranking That Followed Las Vegas – Not Ranked

      https://twitter.com/Brett_Moffitt/status/1265488020083531777?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%22
    3. Austin Hill – Speaking of solid runs, Hill looked to be the fastest Truck in the field early on. The Georgia native started fifth and took the lead from the get-go, led 19 laps early on and led six-laps right before the stage ended. Unfortunately, he got passed by Ross Chastain for the stage win and was second in the first stage. The second stage wasn’t quite as impressive he would finish 10th. Hill noted that he was fighting a loose handling Truck through the middle of the race. He caught a lucky caution near the end and pitted with Kyle Busch and Tanner Gray. However, Hill got stuck in traffic and could not find the clean air that was needed. Ultimately, the Hattori Racing driver finished ninth for his third top-10 of the season, the 24th of his career.

      Previous Week Ranking Following Las Vegas – First

      https://twitter.com/_AustinHill/status/1265483853629710340?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%22
    4. Matt Crafton – While still on his winless streak dating back to three years now, Matt Crafton was looking for a consistent run after the time off. Like Hill, Crafton was one of the few up front early on. The ThorSport driver finished fourth in both stages. Unfortunately, Crafton’s efforts were cut-short, as he suffered a broken track bar mount on the truck. Due to the issue, he was relegated to a 35th place finish.

      Previous Week Ranking Following Las Vegas – Fifth
    5. Johnny Sauter – Sauter was impressive late in the going, challenging for the lead and perhaps a victory. Throughout the event, the Wisconsin native was unable to finish inside the top-10 for a stage point during both stages, with 68.7% of the laps in the top-15, while having 32 quality passes and 71 green flag passes. At the end of the day, Sauter placed the No. 13 Ford F-150 seventh.

      Previous Week Ranking Following Las Vegas – Second

    Fell Out

    1. Todd Gilliland – Gilliland had a rough Charlotte outing following his return to the track. On Lap 102, the DGR-Crosley driver was caught up in an accident that saw him blow a right-front tire. His night was done early and he was credited with a 37th place finish.

      Previous Week Ranking Following Las Vegas – Fourth

      https://twitter.com/ToddGilliland_/status/1265482682194165764
  • Rookie Spotlight – Raphael Lessard

    Rookie Spotlight – Raphael Lessard

    When the NASCAR Truck Series hit the track at Charlotte Motor Speedway for the first time in three months, there were several new names that were either making their first start at the track and drivers that shined and had a respectable outing.

    One of those that stood out was NASCAR Gander RV and Outdoors Truck Series driver, Kyle Busch Motorsports rookie, Raphael Lessard. While Lessard is still new to the Truck Series with only eight starts in the series, he already has two top-10 finishes in his NASCAR career, which came in the five races in which he competed last year.

    When Lessard arrived at Charlotte Motor Speedway, he had no prior starts or at track experience to lean on. Therefore, he most likely would have to lean on his Team-Owner Kyle Busch for advice, or gain experience on the simulator like so many other rookies do.

    Lessard started 20th due to the draw, ran a consistent race and stayed out of trouble for most of the night. He was unable to score any stage points, finishing 17th in Stage 1 and 13th in Stage 2. Despite fighting a loose truck, Lessard found himself at the front for a short while near the end of the race and was actually able to lead his first laps in NASCAR by leading two laps. Ultimately, Lessard wound up earning a top-15 finish by finishing 15th in his first Charlotte outing.

    Following the third Truck race of 2020, Lessard averaged 41 green-flag passes, 25 quality passes, and spent 66.4 percent of the time in the top-15.

  • Chase Elliott takes Gander Truck Series win at Charlotte, claims bounty

    Chase Elliott takes Gander Truck Series win at Charlotte, claims bounty

    After 95-days, the NASCAR Gander RV and Outdoors Truck Series were back in action Tuesday night at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Not only did the Truck Series return to action, but it also marked the first time in series history, that a bounty was issued to any Cup driver that could beat Kyle Busch.

    GMS driver and Cup veteran, Chase Elliott was able to fend off the All-time win-list leader Kyle Busch to win the North Carolina Education Lottery 200 at Charlotte Motor Speedway. He not only won the race but also claimed the $100,000 bounty that was offered by Kevin Harvick and Camping World CEO Marcus Lemonis to any full-time NASCAR Cup Series driver who could beat Busch in the series.

    “He was a little better than I was there at the end,” Elliott said after the race. “I got tight. I don’t think we adjusted enough on that last pit stop (on Lap 89). I was a little scared. I really didn’t know exactly what I needed or what these things did as time went on.

    “Luckily, the right-front (tire) stayed on it long enough to get to the end. And I think he (Busch) burned out his stuff pretty hard trying to get to me. It was a lot of fun. To be able to come out and outrun him, and him finish second — I’d much rather him finish second than wreck or something, so I feel like I did something right.”

    Stage 1: Lap 1 – Lap 30

    Before the green-flag dropped a random draw was held earlier this week. As a result of the draw, ThorSport Racing’s Ben Rhodes sat on the pole with Tyler Ankrum on the outside. The stages were broken into 30/30/74 to make up the 134-lap race.

    A short green-flag run was seen before a competition caution flew on Lap 15 due to no practice or qualifying. Hattori Racing’s Austin Hill had led the field up until that point. A few drivers including Busch, Tanner Gray, Johnny Sauter, Christian Eckes and a few others pitted. Both Busch and Sauter reported that their splitter was hitting the ground. Under the yellow, Spencer Davis and Austin Wayne Self were penalized for speeding, while Timmy Hill was penalized for too many crewmen over the wall.

    Once the stage went back to green with 10 to go, Ross Chastain took the lead from Austin Hill. From there, Chastain went on to take the stage win.

    Hill, Zane Smith, Matt Crafton, Ty Majeski, Elliott, Todd Gilliland, Ben Rhodes, Tyler Ankrum, and Brett Moffitt completed the top-10 stage finishers.

    Under the stage caution, Timmy Hill was nabbed for speeding and Tanner Gray was caught with too many men over the wall. Before the stage finish, Busch’s right-rear tire was going down.

    Stage 2: Lap 37 – Lap 60

    When Stage 2 began, we saw new leaders at the front with Zane Smith and Canadian Raphael Lessard on the front row. It didn’t take long though for Elliott to get to the lead who was in the top position at Lap 44. Surprisingly, this stage went caution-free but there were a few drivers who had issues. Reaume Brother’s Jesse Iwuji was black-flagged by NASCAR for not maintaining minimum speed and Bryan Dauzat was also penalized for the same issue.

    Elliott went on to claim Stage 2 as Rhodes, Nemechek, Crafton, Busch, Moffitt, Smith, Gilliland, Chastain, and Austin Hill completed the top-10.

    Stage 3: Lap 68 – Lap 134

    In the final stage, Busch did not lead a single-lap in the race until Lap 69.

    Also during the final-stage, Todd Gilliland in the No. 38 had an issue with a tire rub and hit the wall off Turn 4 receiving damage to the left front. Later, Iwuji continued to have problems as he was involved in a wreck with Stewart Friesen and Brennan Poole.

    Once the event went back green with 48 to go, another caution was flown as Natalie Decker and Poole were involved in a wreck in Turns 3 and 4. Several laps later Garrett Smithley spun around with 39 to go after caution was called for debris. The last caution of the night would come out for Gilliland as he once again hit the wall off Turn 4.

    Before that last caution, however, Crafton would come down pit road for a problem with the No. 88 Truck. It was later reported that the track bar mount had broken. While he was able to get back out, Crafton couldn’t go much higher than 35th in the running order.

    After the final restart with 26 to go, Elliott would be back in the lead and was looking for his first Truck Series victory since Martinsville of 2017. It wasn’t easy as Busch was trying all he could to duke it out for the victory.

    Ultimately, Elliott fended off Busch’s late-race charge and won by .627 seconds to claim the $100,000 bounty.

    Elliott led three-times for 47 laps en-route to the third Truck Series victory of his career.

    There were seven cautions for 37 laps and 19 lead changes among 10 different drivers.

    Official Results

    1. Chase Elliott, won Stage 2, led 47 laps
    2. Kyle Busch, led 25 laps
    3. Zane Smith, led 15 laps
    4. Brett Moffitt, led 2 laps
    5. Sheldon Creed
    6. John Hunter Nemechek
    7. Johnny Sauter
    8. Ty Majeski
    9. Austin Hill, led 26 laps
    10. Ben Rhodes
    11. Ross Chastain, won Stage 1
    12. Grant Enfinger
    13. Tyler Ankrum
    14. Christian Eckes
    15. Raphael Lessard
    16. Derek Kraus
    17. Tate Fogleman
    18. Codie Rohrbaugh
    19. Austin Wayne Self
    20. Tanner Gray
    21. Jesse Little
    22. Timmy Hill
    23. Angela Ruch, 1 lap down
    24. Korbin Forrister, 1 lap down
    25. Spencer Boyd, 1 lap down
    26. Jennifer Jo Cobb, 1 lap down
    27. Natalie Decker, 2 laps down
    28. Bayley Currey, 2 laps down
    29. Clay Greenfield, 4 laps down
    30. Stewart Friesen, 4 laps down
    31. Jordan Anderson, 4 laps down
    32. Cory Roper, 5 laps down
    33. T.J. Bell, 7-laps down
    34. Bryan Dauzat, 14 laps down
    35. Matt Crafton, 27 laps down
    36. Garrett Smithley, OUT, Rear-End
    37. Todd Gilliland, OUT, Crash
    38. Brennan Poole, OUT, Damage Vehicle Policy
    39. Jesse Iwuji, OUT, Crash
    40. Spencer Davis, OUT, Transmission

    Up Next: The next time the NASCAR Gander RV and Outdoors Truck Series will be on-track is Saturday, June 6 at Atlanta Motor Speedway live on Fox Sports 1.