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  • Parker Kligerman Earns Top Five Finish

    Parker Kligerman Earns Top Five Finish

    It’s the little team that could in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series.

    Parker Kligerman and the No. 75 Henderson Motorsports team run when they can and when they do, they run up front and sometimes have a shot at the win. Bristol looked like the place where it could happen.

    With a sixth-place qualifying effort, Kligerman ran there for most of the UNOH 200 race at Bristol Motor Speedway, finishing sixth in both stages. After the first stage, he, along with race leader John Hunter Nemechek, stayed out to keep track position and to see what their tires were like on the long run.

    At the end of the day, Kligerman and the Henderson Motorsports team finished in the fourth position for his first top five of the year.

    “We had a lot of lap traffic,” Kligerman said. “This is huge for Henderson Motorsports and Country USA. This is a real local team, a local effort, they’re from Abingdon, Virginia. My crew chief, Chris Carrier is from here. I mean, this is the Super Bowl to them.

    “So, to have a good run is cool, but man, we were just too tight to battle for the front, the lead. And I gave up two positions at the end of Stage 2, and that just killed me, where I was never able to get that back. I feel like an idiot because I was trying to make the top work, but it just didn’t work. It’s so funny because I come here every time and I’m a top three truck if the top comes in, or a car, whatever I drive. But I suck on the bottom. This year, I came focused on getting better at the bottom and I was never able to run it, and the only place I could run was the bottom. So, I don’t know. I suck, I guess.”

     

  • NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Preview-Bristol

    NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Preview-Bristol

    “It’s the final countdown!” as the band Europe would sing.

    The NASCAR Camping World Truck Series makes their final stop at Bristol Motor Speedway before the playoffs begin next weekend at Canadian Tire Motorsports Park. While one driver will be crowned regular season champion, three other drivers currently sit on the bubble of making/not making the playoffs.

    Currently, there are 38 drivers entered on the preliminary entry list that will make up the 32 truck field Thursday night at Bristol.

    Here’s a look at what to expect and who might end up in the UNOH 200.

    1. John Hunter Nemechek – Nemechek has competed in the past four starts at Bristol. He and the No. 8 NEMCO Motorsports team have collected two top fives and four top-10 finishes. Nemechek has an average start of 12.5 and an average finish of 5.0. In the past five races, he finished third twice, eighth, and sixth. He has competed in the Truck Series event since 2014 and has completed 100 percent of the laps. Nemechek scored the victory at Martinsville this past April which is another short track, somewhat similar to Bristol. He finished 10th in Stage 2 in the 2017 race.
    2. Christopher Bell – Last year’s Truck Series champion returns to the field Thursday night at Bristol driving the No. 51 Hunt Brothers Pizza Toyota for Kyle Busch Motorsports. Bell has competed in two races at Bristol earning a seventh-place finish twice after starting fifth and second. He finished fourth and fifth respectively in both stages last year. KBM, however, has won here three times with Kyle Busch, who will not be able to compete in this year’s race due to restrictions. Harrison Burton was scheduled to drive the No. 51 but had to withdraw due to illness. Bell will fill in for Burton and will be tough to beat Thursday night at Bristol driving the famed No. 51.
    3. Johnny Sauter – Sauter will be crowned regular season champion just by starting the race. Even though he knows he’ll be the regular season champion, he’ll still be hungry for that first Bristol win. It will be his first win since Texas in June if he can pull it off. Sauter has competed in 10 races at the famous Bristol Motor Speedway. His first start came back in 2003 driving the No. 9 for Christopher Beckington but failed to finish that year due to an engine issue. However, Sauter returned to a Truck back in 2009 driving for Mike Curb until 2015. In the past two races, he has competed for GMS Racing. For Sauter, however, it’s been a mixed bag of results at the “World’s Fastest Half-Mile.” He has four top fives and six top-10 finishes, along with seven laps led and one DNF. With those stats, he has an average start of 12.4 and an average finish of 9.6. His best finish at Bristol was second back in 2011 after starting 12th. In the previous race, he finished eighth and seventh respectively in both stages.
    4. Parker Kligerman – If someone could upset this weekend, it could very well be the No. 75 Henderson Motorsports team of Parker Kligerman. Kligerman has four starts at Bristol with a best finish of second coming in 2012 for Red Horse Motorsports. In last year’s race, however, driving the No. 75, he finished eighth. During the span of his four starts, Kligerman has earned one top five and three top-10 finishes. For Charlie Henderson’s team, the No. 75 has competed at Bristol every year since 2012 with Caleb Holman as the driver until 2016. Their best finish came with Kligerman last year by finishing eighth. They currently have one win in the series which came last fall at Talladega. Their other best finish came this year at Charlotte, where he finished seventh.
    5. Ben  Rhodes – Rhodes has three starts at Thunder Valley. His best finish came last year where he finished fifth. In total, Rhodes has one top five and two top-10 finishes with one lap led. He has an average start of 7.3 and an average finish of 14.7. He finished seventh and fourth in both stages in 2017. Look for Rhodes to be up front and contend for the win.

    Playoff Bubble Drivers

    1. Grant Enfinger – Enfinger has one start which came in the 2017 race. He started seventh and finished fourth giving him his first top five at the track. If he continues to win stages or perhaps wins the race, he’ll be good to go for the Playoffs.
    2. Stewart Friesen- Like Enfinger, Friesen has been running somewhat consistently and is having his best year to date. He sits seventh in the Playoff standings with five Playoff points. He should be fine if there are no new winners. However, Friesen’s track stats don’t look all that great. He has two races, but no finishes inside the top 10. In 2017, he failed to finish due to an overheating problem and wound up 29th. In 2016, Friesen finished 16th. He can’t afford to have any of these issues during the race or he’ll be in jeopardy of missing the Playoffs.
    3. Matt Crafton – Crafton is the most experienced driver in the field. He’s competed at Bristol since 2003 and has 15 starts. During that span, he’s earned four top fives and nine top-10 finishes, along with 129 laps led and one DNF. His best finish came in 2017 and 2009, where he finished second. In 2016, he failed to finish with an engine problem. If Crafton can avoid any issues in Thursday’s night race and have no mechanical problems, he’ll also be locked in on points and be able to chase for his third championship.

    Outside Looking In

    1. Myatt Snider- Snider will be making his first ever Bristol start in the Truck Series driving the No. 13 Carolina Nut Company Ford. However, he has competed at Bristol before driving in the CARS Late Model Stock Tour Series. In fact, he won last year’s race at Bristol after starting on the pole and leading 80 laps. Snider also competed in this year’s Tour Series event at Bristol and finished third. He could very well end up in victory lane tomorrow night and solidify himself in the playoffs picture, possibly knocking out his teammate, Matt Crafton.
    2. Cody Coughlin – Coughlin has competed in one race here but did not finish in the top-10.
    3. Dalton Sargeant – It will be Sargeant’s first race back at Bristol since 2015, where he finished 10th after starting 18th. He has one NASCAR K&N Pro Series East start but finished 26th due to a crash.
    4. Todd Gilliland – Perhaps one driver who could spoil the spotlight is the No. 4 KBM driver, Todd Gilliland. He’ll be making his first Truck Series start at Bristol, but does have previous experience at the track. Gilliland has competed at Bristol in the K&N Pro Series East three times. During those three starts, he finished ninth, eighth, and won the event in 2018 after leading 64 laps.

    The Truck Series has competed at Bristol Motor Speedway since 1995. In those twenty starts, there have been 15 different race winners. Those winners include Joe Ruttman, Rick Carelli, Ron Hornaday, Jack Sprague, Travis Kvapil, Carl Edwards, Mike Skinner, Mark Martin, Johnny Benson, Kyle Busch, Kevin Harvick, Timothy Peters, Brad Keselowski, Ryan Blaney and Ben Kennedy.

    Of those drivers, two have been able to repeat. These include Kyle Busch and Ron Hornaday with Busch having the most wins at five, and he is also the previous race winner.

    The lowest a driver has ever started to win the race is 12th back in 2003 by Travis Kvapil. The highest a driver has ever come from to win was the pole and that has been done five times by Ron Hornaday (twice), Kyle Busch (twice) and Mark Martin.

    The field of 38 that will turn into a field of 32 will have an all-day event Thursday.

    Two practice sessions will start the day for the truckers. First practice is scheduled for 9:05 a.m. ET while final practice takes place at 11:05 a.m. ET, both on Fox Sports 1. Qualifying is slated later in the afternoon at 4:10 p.m. ET on Fox Sports 1.

    Race coverage begins on FOX and MRN Radio at 8:30 p.m. ET with the approximate green flag at 8:45 p.m. ET.

     

  • NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Preview-Kentucky

    NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Preview-Kentucky

    It will be the 12th race of the scheduled 22 race season for the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series once the trucks hit the track Thursday night for the annual Buckle Up in Your Truck 225 at Kentucky Speedway.

    Currently, there are 33 trucks entered on the preliminary entry list this week.

    Here’s a look at who might be competing for the win in Thursday night’s truck race.

    1. Matt Crafton – Crafton has competed in 19 races at Kentucky, earning one win, five top fives and 14 top-10 finishes, along with an average start of 9.9 and an average finish of 10.3 and he has also led 79 laps in his career. He’ll need a win here soon before the Playoffs start at Bristol and Kentucky just might be the place where Crafton will break out and earn his first win of the year. If he doesn’t win this week, the next race at Eldora will mark one year since he has won. In the past five races, he finished eighth twice, won in 2015, sixth, and 10th, respectively. When the stages were implemented last year, Crafton finished third but fell out of the top-10 in the second stage after getting involved in an accident early on. Despite the finishes this year, he could sneak his way into victory lane Thursday night in the Bluegrass state.
    2. Parker Kligerman – While Kligerman might not end up in victory lane, he is certainly the one to watch when it comes to the Trucks Series when running a part-time schedule. At Kentucky, he has made six starts with the best finish of second coming in his first race in 2011 driving for Brad Keselowski. However, times have changed since then, and he now drives the No. 75 Henderson Motorsports entry. In last year’s race, Kligerman started 30th and finished seventh after running as high as sixth. In the 2018 season, he only has four starts coming at Daytona, Atlanta, Dover and Charlotte, with the best finish coming at Charlotte placing seventh. It’s easy to overlook drivers like Kligerman, but he could finish inside the top-10 once more, or possibly earn a top-five finish.
    3. Johnny Sauter – Kentucky hasn’t really been Sauter’s cup of tea, as he’s had mixed results at the 1.5-mile racetrack in Sparta. In the previous five races, he has finishes of ninth, fifth, 12th, ninth, and 12th. His best finish at the track came in 2010, finishing second and his worst finish was 24th in 2011 after having transmission issues. In the past two years, however, Sauter led a combined 40 laps. But with the way his 2018 season has been going so far, it’s hard to stop someone who has been dominant and having his career best season to date. Sauter just might cross Kentucky off the tracks he hasn’t won at yet. If he doesn’t do it this year, Sauter will definitely win here before his career is over.
    4. Brandon Jones – Jones could continue with the Jones name to victory lane this weekend after Erik Jones won at Daytona last Saturday night. He has three starts here earning one top five and three top-10 finishes, with his best finish of second coming in last year’s race. His average finish at Kentucky is 6.3. In the 2018 season, however, Jones has made three starts with two top fives and three top-10 finishes for Kyle Busch Motorsports. His best finish is third at Charlotte. He’ll pilot the famed the No.51 KBM entry with sponsor SoleusAir/Menards.
    5. Noah Gragson – Another driver who has been close to victory lane multiple times this year, has been the No. 18 Kyle Busch Motorsports driver Noah Gragson. Gragson competed in this race last year as a rookie. He started 11th and finished fifth after leading 32 laps. Gragson ran as high as first and as low as 20th. This earned him a driver rating of 95.5 and he has made 22 quality passes. Kyle Busch Motorsports has won the last two races at Kentucky.

    The Truck Series has competed here since 2001 and has a list of who-who when it comes to visiting victory lane. The list of winners includes Greg Biffle, Scott Riggs, Mike Bliss, Carl Edwards, Bobby Hamilton, Dennis Setzer, Ron Hornaday Jr, Mike Skinner, Johnny Benson, Todd Bodine, Kyle Busch, James Buescher, Ty Dillon, Matt Crafton, William Byron, and Christopher Bell.

    Of those winners, only three drivers have been able to repeat. Those include Kyle Busch, James Buescher, and Ron Hornaday Jr.

    Qualifying will be important here as the past five races, the winners have come from second, third, first (twice), and 22nd. The highest a race winner has come was first with those coming in 2015, 2014, and 2009. The lowest a race winner has ever come from was 22nd in 2006 and 2013.

    Thursday’s event will be an all-day show with a busy day on tap. Two practice sessions are scheduled for 9:05-9:55 a.m. ET with the final practice at 11:05-11:55 a.m. ET with no live coverage.

    Qualifying is slated for Thursday afternoon at 5:10 p.m. ET on FOX Sports 1.

    Race coverage is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET with an approximate green flag at 7:49 p.m. ET on FOX Sports 1 and MRN Radio. Stages will be broken up into 35/70/150.

  • The Final Word – NBC and race fans were the big winners in Chicago

    The Final Word – NBC and race fans were the big winners in Chicago

    I was wrong. That is something you do not hear me say very often. How about this, then? The broadcast from Chicago was the best I have seen in years. That is something I do not ever remember saying, writing, or thinking. I did not think Chicago would be much worth watching. Boy, was I wrong.

    Racing is exciting. The NBC crew of Rick Allen, Jeff Burton, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Steve Letarte sounded like they were excited by what they were watching. Pit reporters Marty Snider, Dave Burns, Kelli Stavast and Parker Kligerman sounded like they were involved in one hell of an event, one they believed we should want to follow closely. Because of them, I did. Even the camera shots, be it the focus on those in the pits, the in-car footage and how it was used, and even the lap by lap coverage of the action seemed to be a step above. Hard as I may, I could not skip ahead. I had to watch and listen. NBC did its job. It is about time someone in the sport finally did. Amen. Amen.

    Clint Bowyer looked heaven sent. Then things went to hell. After charging to the lead, his green flag stop resulted in a penalty for exiting the pits too quickly. When he came in to do his drive-through penance, be damned if the lad did not speed through that, too. Now, he needed to do a stop and go penalty, but he did not stop. Guess what? Yes, back he had to come in yet again. That is one way to turn one’s day into nothing but a pile of frozen horse pucks. In no time, he had gone from first to 35th and three laps down. Well, the car looked nice. So will the one he drives next week.

    It might be cooler in Florida. It was close to 90 degrees Fahrenheit in Chicago on Sunday. It was over 155 degrees in the cars, as we discovered through yet another in-car shot. I am sure Bowyer was hot enough due to how his day was going. Chances are, he was more like a dog on the grill, and we were still in the opening stage.

    No one got stage points due to someone else’s pit strategy. They earned them, with Aric Almirola taking the maximum 10. Among those in our top 10 in the standings, Kyle Busch, Bowyer, Austin Dillon, and Denny Hamlin came up empty, replaced by Almirola, Ryan Blaney, Chase Elliott, and Erik Jones. Only 16 were on the lead lap come break time.

    Almirola remained the story, and with 10 left in the stanza, he recorded his best lap only to pull into the pits. He was sure he had a loose wheel. The team was not sure he did. It was. A smart call by the driver, though he dropped just off the lead lap to 26th. That left it to his teammates, Kurt Busch and Kevin Harvick to decide the stage. It literally came down to the final yards heading to the line, with Harvick taking it by .28 of a second. Pretty exciting stuff, and we still had over a hundred laps to go.

    Once again, no one not already in a Chase place picked up any bonus points. Almirola and Jones dropped out this time around, with Hamlin and Bowyer joining the party. A combination of driving like a bat out of hell, strategy, and good fortune delivered through a debris caution that allowed Clint to get back on the lead lap, and he took advantage of it to sit eighth at this point. Blaney took only two fresh tires under the same caution, and that move gained him five spots, to fifth, as they set their sights on the checkered flag run.

    They also had their sights set on the radar. Wet weather was coming in front the west. Hamlin went for a skid, that brought out a caution. That allowed Kyle Busch to finally put his previously ailing beast in the lead coming out of the pits. As he had been with Bowyer, Almirola, and Rowdy’s brother, Harvick was again the hunter.

    Then he became the hunted. Kyle Larson was strong all day, finishing among the top three in the opening two stages. He was stout late and got around Harvick for second. Once again, it was the two Kyles. NBC brought it home with commentary that matched the excitement on the screen as they described the duel to the finish. There was contact as Larson went to the front. Behind him, Busch put on the blade and started up the bulldozer. That contact sent Larson for a skid, yet he finished second. Busch, with his right front flat and about to depart the auto, went to the line for his 48th career victory, his fifth of the season.

    There were boos from the stands. They better have been disappointed Larson fans, as Busch did what the greats have done for decades. Larson, by his own admission, began the car-to-car contact. All Busch did was finish it.

    One Kyle may have won the race, but the other topped the day’s points with 52. Harvick’s 50 came next, followed by the 48 claimed by Martin Truex Jr., who always was among the top five it seemed, as those two finished third and fourth respectively. As for Bowyer, he showed that with a fast car and a p***** off attitude, a man can do amazing things, like finishing fifth.

    I thought Chicago was going to be a dud. I was wrong. The best race of the season, bar none. The chemistry of this broadcast team; the excitement, the information they provided, and the humor is the best we have been blessed with for many, many years. If this is what NBC can deliver from Chicago, just imagine how freaking awesome Daytona is going to be next week.

    Thanks to NBC, NASCAR is back. It is about time.

  • NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Power Rankings-Charlotte

    NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Power Rankings-Charlotte

    The NASCAR Camping World Truck Series had a home race this past Friday night at Charlotte Motor Speedway. It was the seventh race of the season with a first-time winner at the track, but it was a familiar foe that ended up in victory lane.

    Here’s a look at this weeks power rankings.

      1. Johnny Sauter – Sauter tops off the power rankings list this week by notching his third career win of 2018, the 20th of his career and his first time ever at Charlotte. He continues to dominate the 2018 season by having six top fives and six top 10 finishes. Sauter even started from the pole after qualifying was washed out due to thunderstorms earlier in the day. With a 59 point lead over Noah Gragson in the regular standings, the sky is the limit for the No. 21 GMS Racing team and they will be tough to beat for the championship. Previous Week Ranking: 3rd
      2.  Brett Moffitt – Moffitt had a solid career night at the 1.5-mile track. After starting sixth based on owner points, the No. 16 Hattori Racing driver worked his way up to the lead by Lap 27, with just four laps to go in Stage 1. Moffitt was able to remain in the lead for those four laps to win the first stage and collect 10 championship Playoff points. He would take the lead two other times in the race to lead 28 laps and ultimately finishing in the fourth spot for his fourth top five of the year. Previous Week Ranking: Not Ranked
      3.  Ben Rhodes – Rhodes finished in the fifth position rounding out the top five in Friday night’s race. It was just his third top five of 2018. While only finishing sixth in Stage 2, Rhodes battled changing track conditions all night long and had a tough time restarting on the inside for the restart. Nonetheless, it’s only a matter time before the No. 41 Alpha Energy Solutions Ford driver breaks out and earns his first win of the season and career. Previous Week Ranking: Not Ranked
      4. Stewart Friesen – Friesen continues to be part of the talk this year finishing inside the top 10 once more after almost winning the previous week at Kansas. He didn’t finish in the top 10 in either stages, but Friesen worked his way up to finish sixth and earned his fourth top 10 of the year. Previous Week Ranking: Not Ranked
      5. Noah Gragson – Gragson comes down in the power rankings this week with his finish of eighth, but that wasn’t from the lack of trying. For most of the race, it was him and Sauter battling for the race lead, at least in the early laps. From Laps 1-22, Sauter and Gragson traded the lead five times before Sauter took over. When Gragson took the lead on Lap 10, it would be the last time he led for the rest of the night. He didn’t finish in the top 10 in Stage 1 due to a pit road speeding penalty, which set him back to finish 14th in the first stage. Stage 2 was just a little better for the No. 18 Safelite Tundra, finishing 10th. However, it was the last restart of the night that cost Gragson a shot at winning as he spun his tires and he almost spun out. After losing a few spots on the restart, the 19-year-old driver climbed his way back into the top 10, finishing eighth. Previous Week Ranking: 1st

    Honorable Mentions:

      1. 1. Parker Kligerman – After a disappointing finish at Dover a couple of weeks ago, Kligerman rallied back to finish seventh. He even finished seventh in the first stage. While the team doesn’t run all the races, they seem to be a potential threat to win when the cards fall in their favor.
      1. 2. Todd Gilliland – Gilliland will finally be able to race full time after turning 18-years- old this past week. It was his first start on a 1.5-mile track and he did alright for the most part. He finished eighth and fourth, respectively in both stages. Gilliland was running well until late race contact with two-time champion Matt Crafton. This ultimately put the Pedigree driver 10th on the scoring pylon at the end of the night.
      1. 3. Grant Enfinger – Enfinger is once again in the honorable mentions this week. He was one of the first cautions of the night after cutting down a right rear tire and leaving debris on the racetrack. It was an uphill battle for the Thorsport driver the rest of the night as he didn’t finish in the top 10 in either stage. Enfinger finished 12th.
  • NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Preview-Daytona

    NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Preview-Daytona

    The NASCAR off-season is officially over for the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series with the first practice kicking off Thursday morning 11:35 a.m. ET on FS1.

    Currently, there are 36 Trucks entered on the preliminary entry list.

    With a new year, comes new faces in new places. Here are some notables.

    Jordan Anderson will be fielding his own team in 2018 by driving the No. 3. An interesting twist for Daytona, David Gilliland will be driving the No. 4 for Kyle Busch Motorsports, Korbin Forrister in his teams owned No. 7, Myatt Snider takes over the No. 13 for Thorsport Racing, Dalton Sargeant in the 25 for GMS Racing. Ben Rhodes is now the 41, not the 27 as in previous years. To round out the unique entry list, Bo Le Mastus will be competing in the new David Gilliland Racing team driving the No. 54. Got that? Good. Now let’s take a look at who will be hot at Daytona International Speedway this Friday night.

    In the last three races, there have been three different winners ranging from Tyler Reddick, Johnny Sauter and last year’s winner, Kaz Grala. Reddick and Grala will not be competing in this year’s event as they have moved on to the NASCAR XFINITY Series.

      1. Johnny Sauter – Sauter is the highest active driver stat wise at Daytona. In the past three races, he owns one win, one top five and two top 10 finishes, with 64 laps led. However, in last year’s race, he was involved in the infamous big one at Daytona on the last lap. Unless you’re a stat nerd, then they really don’t mean anything at Daytona but you have to be there at the end to win the race. Nonetheless, never count Sauter out at plate tracks.
      2. Matt Crafton – Crafton will be back competing in his 19th year for the Truck Series. It’s hard to believe that in the last 17 races at Daytona, the No. 88 Thorsport driver does not have a win at Daytona. His best finish came eight years ago in 2010, where Crafton finished fifth. In the past three races, he has put up only two top 10 finishes and has led seven laps, with an average finishing position of 10.7. Despite going up and over on the last lap in last year’s race, he wound up 14th. In 2015 and ’16, Crafton finished eighth and 10th, respectively. Crafton and Sauter are realistically the only highly experienced drivers in the field.
      3. John Hunter Nemechek – Nemechek will be back behind the wheel of his family’s team-owned No. 8 Fleetwing Corporation Chevy. He only has two career starts at Daytona that came in 2017 and ’16. During those two race spans, Nemechek has completed 99.5 percent of the laps, scored one top five and one top 10 finish, and has an average finish of 10.5. Nemechek’s best finish came in last year’s race, where he placed fourth.
      4. Myatt Snider – New Year, New Look, New Team for the young 23-year old Myatt Snider. After competing for Kyle Busch Motorsports last year, Snider will adorn the No. 13 Liberty Tax Toyota for Thorsport Racing. It will be interesting to see how Snider does with his new team in 2018. Regarding stats, he only has one start that came last year where Snider finished 10th. He finished eighth in Stage 2.
      5. Parker Kligerman – Kligerman has become quite the restrictor plate racer as of late. In fact, the last time the Truck Series competed on a superspeedway, Kligerman was the winner at Talladega last fall. In four races, he has finishes of 15th, 11th, 29th in 2014 and third in 2016. Kligerman could very well be an upset winner once again Friday night in Daytona.

    There are three practice sessions scheduled for Thursday. First practice takes place at 11:35 a.m. ET, with the second practice slated for 2:25 p.m. ET and the final practice at 4:35 p.m. ET. All taking place on Fox Sports 1.Qualifying is Friday afternoon at 4:45 p.m. ET with the green flag scheduled for 7:52 p.m. ET on FS1.

  • Driver Analysis: Parker Kligerman

    Driver Analysis: Parker Kligerman

    The 2017 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series driver analysis continues with Parker Kligerman.

    Kligerman, the 27-year-old out of Westport, Connecticut made seven starts in the Truck Series this season, including grabbing an upset win at Talladega. This was his seventh season racing in the Truck Series. Before the 2017 season, he had 11 starts in 2016 scoring one top five and three top 10 finishes, with a best finish of third at the famous Daytona International Speedway.

    However, 2017 got off to a rocky start for the No. 75 team of Kligerman and Henderson Motorsports. The team missed the first race of the season at Daytona by not being able to qualify for the event, which was disappointing not only for Kligerman who finished third in that race last year but for the team as well. A week later at Atlanta Motor Speedway, he qualified 19th but was relegated to a 31st place finish due to a fuel pump problem on Lap 28.

    But, the season started to turn around little by little for Kligerman and the No. 75 team. At Charlotte Motor Speedway, he placed 10th after starting ninth. Then, there was another setback at Dover where he was involved in a crash on Lap 96 and finished 21st.

    After a few rocky starts, the team started to pick up during mid-season. At Kentucky, Kligerman started 30th and finished seventh, and did the same thing at Bristol but finished one spot behind in eighth. He had a shining moment at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park, where he had a shot to win the race on a late race restart after staying out but was shuffled to eighth.

    Kligerman would not race for the next three races until Talladega. The last time he won was at Talladega in 2012 when he scored his first ever career win. On this very weekend, he would wind up in victory lane again at Talladega, to capture his second career win. It was a sort of redemption for Kligerman as he missed the race last year by not qualifying for the race. It would also be his last race of the 2017 season in the Truck Series.

    At the end of the year, he averaged one top five and five top 10 finishes in seven starts. He led 11 laps and had two DNFs with an average start of 14.1 and an average finish of 12.3.

    You can follow Parker Kligerman on Twitter @Pkligerman and on Instagram @Pkligerman. For team news, you may follow Henderson Motorsports on Twitter @HendersonMotor1.

  • Four Takeaways From The Ford Ecoboost 200 At Homestead-Miami

    Four Takeaways From The Ford Ecoboost 200 At Homestead-Miami

    The NASCAR Camping World Truck Series held its last race of the year this past Friday night in Southern Florida. As the sun set and nighttime fell, the action only intensified as the 2017 season neared its end. After the checkered flag flew, here are four takeaways from the championship event.

    1. Christopher Bell Earns Championship – In his second full year, Christopher Bell finally earned the championship after finishing second. He ended the season with five wins, 15 top fives and 21 top 10 finishes, with five pole awards. That was enough to earn him a championship. It would not be surprising if he challenges for the XFINITY Series championship in 2018, let alone win it all. After all, Bell has one win in eight starts this year in that series, along with three top fives and five top 10 finishes.
    2. Veterans Still Dominate in Series – In a year of new stars and rookies, veterans and champions, such as Matt Crafton and Johnny Sauter were still dominant and age was no factor. Crafton qualified for the playoffs with a win on the dirt at Eldora and Sauter early at Dover. Sauter got in the Championship 4 for the second consecutive year after winning at Texas and Crafton got in on points. The two finished third and sixth, respectively, in the final race of the year. Crafton ended with one win, five top fives and 16 top 10 finishes, while Sauter ended with four wins, 13 top fives and 19 top 10 finishes. It just goes to show that veterans still can dominate the series and age is only a number.
    3. Grant Enfinger and Justin Haley Earn Top 10 Finishes – When it’s the final race of the year, racecar drivers like to end it on a high note. Enfinger and Haley did just that by finishing eighth and ninth, respectively. Both of them finished in the top 10 in Stage 1, while Haley was the only one to finish in the top 10 in Stage 2. At the end of the day, the scoring loop showed them in the top 10. This was Haley’s 12th top 10 of the year and Enfinger’s 15th top 10 of the year.
    4. Exciting Playoffs – The 2017 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series playoffs might go down as one of the most exciting in its series history. Throughout the eight race round, we saw six different winners including an upset at Talladega by Parker Kligerman, which was very exciting for the fans to watch. Sauter was the only repeat winner after victories at Texas and Phoenix. Bell won at the opening round in Loudon but carried through with points and stage wins. The season, as always, ended in the bright Florida sun and showed a new champion, and a first-time race winner. The 2017 season, no doubt, was most likely one of the most exciting seasons yet for the Camping World Truck Series.
  • NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Power Rankings-Talladega

    NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Power Rankings-Talladega

    The NASCAR Camping World Truck Series was back in action this weekend at Talladega Superspeedway and the action sure didn’t disappoint. There was drama between the playoffs spots, an upset winner and some surprise faces in the top 10.

    1. Parker Kligerman – It shouldn’t be a surprise that Kligerman added another win to the Talladega column on Saturday. It was the second win of his career and the first since 2012 where he won with Red Horse Racing at the same track. After starting 14th, the Toyota Tundra driver worked his way up to 10th in the first stage. Despite not finishing at all in the top 10 in Stage 2, Kligerman stayed up there with the top teams and took the lead on Lap 94 and went on to win. It was a feel-good moment for Kligerman and the Henderson Motorsports team.
    2. Christopher Bell – Bell does what he does best this past weekend at ‘Dega. The JBL Tundra driver finished third in Stage 1, but like Kligerman fell outside the top 10 due to varying pit strategies near the end of the stage. However, after all the craziness was done and settled, Bell placed second, his 13th top-five of the year.
    3. Myatt Snider – Snider came home with a career-best finish and survived the chaos. The way the young 23-year-old raced, it looked liked he had raced at Talladega before Saturday. In Stages 1 and 2, Snider placed fifth and third, respectively. At the end of the day, the scoring pylon showed a strong third place. Not bad for his first race at Talladega.
    4. Vinnie Miller – Miller made his first ever career NASCAR Camping World Truck Series start this past Saturday. Before making that start, he has been a standout star in the K&N Pro Series East and the ARCA Racing Series. It was shown on Saturday as Talladega is unpredictable and you don’t who finishes where until the drop of the checkered flag. This was the case for the 20-year-old. Having not raced before in the truck series, Miller came home with a seventh-place finish.
    5. Clay Greenfield – Greenfield is another one of those drivers who you don’t hear too much about. He did not compete in any races last year but has competed in three races this season, with a best finish of 24th at Gateway prior to Talladega. However, Greenfield upped that finish this past weekend and, after the carnage was over, came home eighth, his best career finish to date.
  • Kligerman Wins Talladega Truck Race

    Kligerman Wins Talladega Truck Race

    TALLADEGA, Ala. — Before the season started, at the Henderson Motorsports shop in Abingdon, Virginia, I asked NBC Sports analyst Parker Kligerman why he was taking a part-time NASCAR Camping World Truck Series ride. His response was “Why the hell not?” Today I asked him if this win validated that response, he said it didn’t need validating because he’s having a hell of a lot of fun.

    Getting a push down the backstretch from Grant Enfinger, Kligerman took the lead from Bell coming to the white flag. Entering Turn 1, Justin Haley made contact with Noah Gragson and Johnny Sauter, sending either Gragson or Sauter into Stewart Friesen and triggering the five-car wreck that ended the Fred’s 250 at Talladega Superspeedway.

    “It was just crazy. Every move worked,” Kligerman said of his closing laps. “And it’s just sometimes, they’d click. Those last 10 laps, no matter if I went high and I’d separate a pack, or I’m trying to get the bump and the run. Every move just works.”

    It’s his 12th victory in 68 career starts.

    Bell finished second and Myatt Snider rounded out the podium.

    Enfinger and Austin Cindric rounded out the top-five.

    John Hunter Nemechek, Vinnie Miller, Clay Greenfield, Matt Crafton and Tyler Young rounded out the top-10.

    RACE SUMMARY

    Bell led the field to the green flag at 1:16 p.m., but lost the lead immediately to Sauter, who led the first stage from start to finish and won it.

    DJ Kennington and Cindric led during the first stage break, but Sauter took back the lead on the ensuing restart and led all the remaining laps of the second stage on his way to winning it.

    The intensity picked up from the drop of the green for the final stage, with 48 laps to go. Snider edged out Bell at the line to take the lead with 47 to go. Sauter shoved Snider ahead of Bell, but Kligerman shoved Cody Coughlin to the front coming to the line with 46 to go. Kligerman went to the inside of Coughlin and took the lead with 45 to go. Friesen was shoved by Bell to the front down the backstretch with 43 to go.

    On the restart, following a three-truck wreck in Turn 3, Kligerman got a push from Bell to the front around Friesen through Turn 1 35 to go.

    A multi-truck wreck in the tri-oval with 23 to go set up the run to the finish.

    CAUTION SUMMATION

    Caution flew for the first time on Lap 20 for a one-truck wreck exiting Turn 4. The second caution on Lap 42 was for the end of the second stage. A three-truck wreck in Turn 3 on Lap 55 brought out the third caution. Caution flew on Lap 71 for a multi-truck incident, coming to the start/finish line. The final caution flew in Turn 1 on the final lap, ending the race.

    NUTS & BOLTS

    The race lasted one hour, 57 minutes and 18 seconds, at an average speed of 129.258 mph. There were 17 lead changes among 11 different drivers and six cautions for 27 laps.

    Bell leaves with a 52-point lead over Sauter. Chase Briscoe and Kaz Grala fail to advance on in the Truck Series Playoffs.

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