Reaume Brothers Racing (RBR) will be fielding three full-time entries for the 2025 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series season.
The news comes as RBR took to social media on Thursday, January 9, to reveal its acquisition of the No. 2 from Rev Racing. As a result, RBR’s newly formed No. 2 Ford F-150 entry will be fielded alongside the Nos. 22 and 33 entries for the entire Truck schedule this upcoming season. While the drivers of the Nos. 2 and 22 entries remain to be determined, the team confirmed in mid-October that Frankie Muniz, a former actor and ARCA Menards Series competitor from Wood-Ridge, New Jersey, will pilot the No. 33 Ford entry for his first full-time Truck campaign in 2025.
The 2025 season will mark RBR’s eighth consecutive year participating in the Truck Series. This past season, Lawless Alan piloted the team’s No. 33 Ford entry on a full-time basis, where he recorded a fifth-place finish at Talladega Superspeedway in October before he finished 24th in the final driver’s standings. RBR also fielded the No. 22 Ford on a full-time basis, where the entry was piloted between nine competitors, and the No. 27 Ford on a part-time basis, the latter of which was driven between Muniz, Stephen Mallozzi and Keith McGee.
Through a combined 250 starts, RBR entries have achieved a total of two top-five results, four top-10 results, three laps led and an average-finishing result of 26.5 as they strive to gain a competitive edge for the upcoming Truck season.
We have acquired the #2 and will be running 3 full time trucks 😎 see you at Daytona here soon! 🏁 #2025 pic.twitter.com/hWoBg59a4p
Over the previous two Truck seasons, Rev Racing fielded the No. 2 as a full-time Chevrolet Silverado RST entry for Nick Sanchez, the 2022 ARCA Menards Series champion. After Sanchez captured the 2023 Rookie-of-the-Year title, he claimed his first two series victories at Daytona International Speedway and Charlotte Motor Speedway this past season. Sanchez would also make the Playoffs during both seasons and notched a career-best fifth place in the final standings in 2024.
Entering the 2025 season, Sanchez has graduated to the Xfinity Series and is set to drive the No. 48 Chevrolet Camaro entry for Big Machine Racing. Meanwhile, Rev Racing’s status of competing in the Truck Series for the 2025 season remains to be determined. The status of veteran crew chief Kevin “Bono” Manion, who was atop the No. 2 Rev Racing pit box in 2024, is also unknown.
The 2025 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series season for Reaume Brothers Racing is scheduled to commence at Daytona International Speedway on February 14, with the event’s broadcast time to commence at 7:30 p.m. ET on FS1.
On a night where the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series division achieved a milestone feat in series’ history, Nick Sanchez has 50,000 reasons to celebrate after storming to a late victory in the North Carolina Education Lottery 200 at Charlotte Motor Speedway on Friday, May 24.
The 2022 ARCA Menards Series champion from Miami, Florida, led the final nine of 134 scheduled laps in an event where he started 16th and spent the first half of the event mired outside the top 10 and trying to manage his way to the front. Initially poised for a top-10 run when the event was placed in a late caution period with 15 laps remaining, Sanchez was one of multiple competitors who opted to pit for fresh tires. Then after restarting in the fourth lane with nine laps remaining, Sanchez quickly bolted his way to the front as he overtook Christian Eckes for the lead through the frontstretch. From there, he fended off a late charge from Corey Heim to score his second Truck Series career victory in the series’ 700th event in history and cash in the first of three $50,000 bonuses as part of this year’s Triple Truck Challenge.
With on-track qualifying that determined the starting lineup occurring on Friday, Tanner Gray notched his first Truck Series pole position of the 2024 season and the second of his career after posting a pole-winning lap at 178.241 mph in 30.296 seconds. Joining him on the front row was teammate Corey Heim, who clocked in the second-fastest qualifying lap at 177.795 mph in 30.372 seconds.
Prior to the event, the following names that included Lawless Alan, Jeffrey Earnhardt, Christian Eckes and Tyler Ankrum dropped to the rear of the field due to unapproved adjustments made to their respective entries.
When the green flag waved and the race started, Tanner Gray gained the early advantage from the inside lane as he muscled his No. 15 Dead on Tools Toyota Tundra TRD Pro ahead from teammate Corey Heim through Turns 1 and 2. As the field behind jostled for early spots, Gray proceeded to lead the first lap ahead of a side-by-side battle between Heim and Ty Majeski while Rajah Caruth, rookie Layne Riggs, Jack Wood and Chase Purdy followed suit.
Three laps later, Heim zipped his No. 11 Safelite Toyota Tundra TRD Pro past teammate Tanner Gray to assume the lead from the backstretch through Turns 3 and 4. Heim would proceed to lead by nearly three-tenths of a second over Gray as Majeski, Caruth and Riggs followed suit in the top five through the first five scheduled laps. Behind, Wood retained sixth ahead of Purdy as Connor Mosack, Kaden Honeycutt and Ben Rhodes trailed in the top 10.
Through the first 10 scheduled laps, Heim was leading by nine-tenths of a second over teammate Tanner Gray followed by Majeski, Caruth and Riggs while Honeycutt, Purdy, Mosack, Wood and Rhodes continued to race in the top 10. Behind, Dean Thompson occupied 11th place ahead of Taylor Gray, Bayley Currey, Stewart Friesen and Ty Dillon while Matt Crafton, Grant Enfinger, Matt Mills, Christian Eckes and Nick Sanchez followed suit in the top 20. Notably, Brett Moffitt was in 22nd, Tyler Ankrum was mired in 25th ahead of Connor Jones and Jeffrey Earnhardt was down in 34th.
Ten laps later, Heim extended his advantage to more than three seconds over teammate Tanner Gray as Majeski, Caruth and Honeycutt were in the top five. Behind, Riggs dropped to sixth while Purdy, Rhodes, Thompson and Mosack were in the top 10.
When the first stage period concluded on Lap 30, Heim, winner of last weekend’s Truck Series event at North Wilkesboro Speedway, captured his fifth stage victory of the 2024 season. Honeycutt, who overtook Tanner Gray for the runner-up spot three laps earlier, settled in second ahead of Gray, Caruth and Majeski while Riggs, Purdy, Thompson, Rhodes and Mosack were scored in the top 10.
Under the stage break, the field led by Heim pitted for a first round of service. Following the pit stops, Tanner Gray reassumed the lead after exiting first ahead of Heim while Honeycutt, Purdy, Majeski, Caruth, Riggs, Taylor Gray, Thompson and Mosack followed suit. During the pit stop sequence, Caruth was forced into the grass amid a side-by-side contact with Majeski, who was trying to avoid Riggs as Riggs was exiting his pit stall. In addition, Stewart Friesen returned to pit road for his first service of the night after missing his pit stall during the first sequence with the field. Soon after, Caruth also pitted again to address a tire rub from the damage with Majeski’s contact.
The second stage period started on Lap 37 as teammates Tanner Gray and Heim occupied the front row. At the start, Gray and Heim battled dead even in front of two stacked lanes while Honeycutt, who restarted in the second lane, made a move to the outside lane in an attempted three-wide battle towards the front. With the field behind also fanning out to nearly three lanes through the backstretch, Tanner Gray barely managed to muscle ahead of Heim to retain the lead while returning back to the frontstretch. Behind, a series of battles ensued as Purdy and Majeski battled for third place, Thompson battled Honeycutt for fifth place, Riggs and Mosack battled for fifth place and Taylor Gray battled Jack Wood for 10th place.
On Lap 40, Heim, who kept teammate Tanner Gray within close distance over the previous four laps, drew his Toyota alongside Gray’s through Turns 3 and 4 and back to the frontstretch. Heim would then muscle ahead of Gray from the inside lane and through Turns 1 and 2 as he reassumed the lead.
At the Lap 45 mark, Heim was leading by three-tenths of a second over teammate Tanner Gray followed by Purdy, Majeski and Thompson while Riggs, Honeycutt, Mosack, Taylor Gray and Wood were in the top 10. Behind, Nick Sanchez trailed in 11th ahead of Daniel Dye, Dillon, Rhodes and Grant Enfinger while Caruth, Matt Mills, Eckes, Moffitt and Crafton were in the top 20.
By Lap 50, Heim slightly extended his advantage as he was leading by eight-tenths of a second over teammate Gray followed by Purdy, Thompson and Majeski while Honeycutt, Riggs, Mosack, Gray and Sanchez trailed in the top 10.
When the second stage period concluded on Lap 60, Heim swept both stage periods of the night while also claiming his sixth Truck stage victory of the 2024 season. Teammate Tanner Gray settled in second ahead of Purdy, Honeycutt and Thompson while Majeski, Riggs, Mosack, Sanchez and Daniel Dye were scored in the top 10.
During the stage break, the field led by Heim returned to pit road for another round of pit service. Following the pit stops, Heim retained the lead after exiting first ahead of Tanner Gray, Majeski, Mosack and Purdy as Sanchez, Taylor Gray, Riggs, Thompson and Honeycutt followed suit in top 10. Amid the pit stops, however, Honeycutt was penalized for dragging his gas can out of his pit stall.
Towards the halfway mark of the event, the final stage commenced as teammates Heim and Tanner Gray occupied the front row once again. As Heim retained the lead, the caution quickly returned for a multi-truck wreck that erupted just past the backstretch when contact from Moffitt got Ankrum loose as he spun his No. 18 LiUNA! Chevrolet Silverado RST below the apron in Turn 3 before his truck went right back towards the outside wall and was T-boned on the right side by Thad Moffitt as Keith McGee and Jeffrey Earnhardt were also involved while trying to avoid the wreckage.
During the following restart with 58 laps remaining. Heim gained the advantage from the inside lane and muscled ahead to retain the lead while Connor Mosack challenged Tanner Gray for the runner-up spot. As Gray and Mosack continued to battle for second in front of Taylor Gray, Majeski and Purdy, Heim led the field back to the frontstretch.
Four laps later, however, the caution returned after Matt Crafton lost a tire and slapped his No. 88 Menards Ford F-150 hard against the outside wall in Turn 3. During the caution period, the following names that included Purdy, Mason Massey, Stefan Parsons, Friesen, Connor Jones, Boyd, Eckes and Currey remained on the track while the rest led by Heim pitted. During the pit stops, Heim’s dominant run hit a braking zone after a slow pit stop due to a broken jack while his No. 11 team was trying to change the right-side tires plummeted to 28th place.
As the event restarted with 47 laps remaining, Purdy muscled ahead with a slight advantage over Eckes before Eckes made his move beneath Purdy and assumed the lead in his No. 19 NAPA Chevrolet Silverado RST exiting the backstretch and through Turns 3 and 4. As Eckes led Purdy, Stefan Parsons was in third place as he was racing in front of Connor Jones, Stewart Friesen and Ben Rhodes while Grant Enfinger was in seventh. With more battles ensuing within the field, Eckes, who was dealing with voltage issues earlier in the race, retained the lead with 45 laps remaining.
With 40 laps remaining, Eckes was leading by nearly a second over Purdy as they were being followed by Parsons, Friesen, Rhodes, Honeycutt and Sanchez. Meanwhile, Heim, who restarted 27th following his pit stop miscue, had muscled his way all the way up to eighth place while Jones and Moffitt trailed in the top 10 ahead of Majeski, Caruth, Enfinger, Dillon and Mosack.
Ten laps later, Eckes retained the lead by nearly seven-tenths of a second over Purdy while Parsons, Honeycutt and Friesen were scored in the top five. Behind, Heim was in sixth place and trailing the lead by more than three seconds while Sanchez, Rhodes, Moffitt and Majeski were in the top 10. By then, Tanner Gray was mired in 12th behind Caruth, Thompson was back in 16th behind Dillon and Mosack was battling Matt Mills for 17th along with Taylor Gray and Dye.
Another three laps later, the battle for the lead ignited as Purdy made a move beneath Eckes for the lead in Turn 1. Despite assuming the top spot, however, Purdy went wide, which allowed Eckes to pull a crossover move entering the backstretch as both he and Purdy battled dead even for the lead through Turns 3 and 4. Then as Eckes slid in front of Purdy entering the frontstretch, Purdy pulled a crossover move on Eckes through the frontstretch as they dueled for the lead again. Purdy then slid up the track in Turn 1 for a second time, which allowed Eckes to muscle ahead and maintain a reasonable advantage over a hard-charging Purdy. Amid the battle between Eckes and Purdy, third-place Honeycutt started to close in in his No. 45 R.C.D. Shoe Company Chevrolet Silverado RST while Heim was in fifth place and trailing the lead by more than two seconds.
Down to the final 20 laps of the event, Eckes, who was beginning to be mired in lapped traffic, retained the lead by three-tenths of a second over a hard-charging Purdy while Honeycutt made it a three-truck battle for the lead as he trailed by half a second. Behind, Heim trailed by more than three seconds in fourth place while Parsons was in fifth.
Four laps later, Purdy scrubbed the outside wall through Turns 1 and 2, which stalled his late momentum and his challenge on Eckes for the lead. Despite scraping the wall, Purdy remained on the track, but he would lose the runner-up spot to Honeycutt as Eckes continued to lead. A lap later, however, Purdy’s strong run went sour after he scrubbed the outside wall for a second time through Turns 1 and 2, which was enough for the event to be placed in a late caution period as Purdy, who lost a tire in the process, nursed his damaged No. 77 Bama Buggies Chevrolet Silverado RST back to pit road. The caution also erased Eckes’ six-second advantage over Honeycutt as Heim was up to third place.
During the caution period, a majority of the field led by Honeycutt and Heim pitted while the rest led by Eckes remained on the track. Amid the pit stops, Honeycutt and Heim both lost a bevy of spots after both endured slow pit services. For Honeycut, a broken air gun resulted in his tire changer having issues changing the right-rear tire. For Heim, the issue stemmed from his rear tire changer struggling to get the lug nuts tightened on the left-rear tire as Heim started to spin his tires, which left his No. 11 team uncertain if the lug nuts on the truck were tightened as Heim lined up in 11th place.
Down to the final nine laps, the event restarted under green as Eckes and Parsons occupied the front row. At the start, the field fanned out through the frontstretch as Eckes rocketed away with the lead followed by Caruth and Sanchez while Parsons was struggling to launch. Then through the frontstretch to complete the following lap, Sanchez, who pitted during the latest caution period and passed Caruth for the runner-up spot, overtook Eckes for the lead as Heim, who was charging to the front for a second time since the restart, bolted past Eckes through Turns 3 and 4 to move into third place. Heim would then overtake Friesen for the runner-up spot during the following lap as he set his sights on Sanchez for the lead and potential victory.
With five laps remaining, Sanchez maintained the lead by nearly three-tenths of a second over a hard-charging Heim while Friesen trailed in third place by eight-tenths of a second. As the field behind jostled for late spots, pole-sitter Tanner Gray spun sideways towards the apron in Turns 1 and 2, but the event remained under green flag conditions as Heim was trying to gain a run on Sanchez for the lead.
When the white flag waved and the final lap started, Sanchez, who had managed to keep his No. 2 Gainbridge Chevrolet Silverado RST in front of Heim’s Toyota, remained as the leader by four-tenths of a second over Heim. Through Turns 1 and 2, Heim ran his truck close towards the outside wall through Turns 1 and 2 in an effort to gain a run, but Sanchez maintained his advantage through the backstretch. With Heim unable to mount a final lap rally for two final turns, Sanchez was able to cycle back to the frontstretch victorious as he claimed the checkered flag to win by half a second over Heim.
With the victory, Sanchez, who notched his first career win at Daytona International Speedway in February, became the 82nd competitor overall to achieve multiple victories in the Truck Series and the 13th to win a Truck event at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
With Sanchez winning the series’ 700th event in recorded history, the Miami native joins an exclusive club of competitors to win during a milestone event for the series. Ron Hornaday Jr., a four-time champion of the series, won the 100th recorded Truck Series event in history at Evergreen Speedway in Monroe, Washington, in 1999 before winning the 300th series event at Dover Motor Speedway eight years later. Ted Musgrave, the 2005 champion, won the series’ 200th race at Memphis Motorsports Park in 2003, Clint Bowyer won the series’ 400th event at Kansas Speedway in 2011 and Austin Dillon won the series’ 500th event at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in 2015. Recently, Kyle Busch won the series’ 600th event at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in 2020.
As an added bonus, Sanchez, who recorded the 284th Truck victory for the Chevrolet nameplate and the second overall for Rev Racing, claimed the first of three Triple Truck Challenge bonuses and a $50,000 check.
Photo by John Knittel for SpeedwayMedia.com.
“It’s awesome,” Sanchez said on FS1. “What can I say more about this team? We started off bad. We knew it. [We] Did not let it affect us. We went to work. We put ourselves in position when it mattered most. It’s great to get [win] number two. [I’ll] Probably put the [$50,000 bonus] in the savings. I totally forgot about that, so yeah, added bonus. Sweet.”
Sanchez’s Charlotte victory was the most meaningful for Chris Showalter, the truck chief for both Sanchez and Rev Racing as he has been working through all 700 recorded events in the Truck Series since the first event at Phoenix Raceway in February 1995.
“[This race] just probably popped to number one [favorite],” Showalter, who fought tears of joy, said. “It’s a long battle. This is about people and I love this group of people. I’ll do anything for this group of people.”
Heim, who led a race-high 72 laps and swept both stages, settled in second place for his seventh top-three result of the 2024 season as he fell short of winning at Charlotte Motor Speedway for a second consecutive season.
“Obviously, an eventful day for us,” Heim said. “[I] Just felt like it got away from us on separate occasions there. We had control of the race and as soon as you don’t, you’re just victim to the leader and they can control the air. Nick [Sanchez] did a great job at just blocking my air the best he could. I felt like we had the best truck by a long shot. When you’re behind the leader, you can’t do much, but I feel like we were able to get through traffic so well. Glad I could make it entertaining at least, but it doesn’t really matter for us. We finished second.”
Shortly after, however, Heim was disqualified from the runner-up result due to his truck having three lug nuts not safely secured following his recent pit service. As a result, Stewart Friesen, who missed his pit stall and was running in the middle of the pack earlier in the day, was promoted to second place as Grant Enfinger, Matt Mills and Ben Rhodes ended up in the top five.
Finishing in the top 10 were Jake Garcia, Kaden Honeycutt, Connor Mosack, Dean Thompson and Christian Eckes. Notably, Chase Purdy ended up 13th behind Taylor Gray, Rajah Caruth fell back to 16th behind Brett Moffitt, pole-sitter Tanner Gray ended up 17th, Ty Majeski slid to 23rd and Stefan Parsons ended up 25th.
There were eight lead changes for five different leaders. The race featured five cautions for 31 laps.
Following the 11th event of the 2024 Craftsman Truck Series season, Christian Eckes leads the regular-season standings by 30 points over Corey Heim, 50 over Nick Sanchez, 64 over Ty Majeski and 99 over Taylor Gray.
Results.
1. Nick Sanchez, nine laps led
2. Stewart Friesen
3. Grant Enfinger
4. Matt Mills
5. Ben Rhodes
6. Jake Garcia
7. Kaden Honeycutt
8. Connor Mosack
9. Dean Thompson
10. Christian Eckes, 37 laps led
11. Connor Jones
12. Taylor Gray
13. Chase Purdy, five laps led
14. Bret Holmes
15. Brett Moffitt
16. Rajah Caruth
17. Tanner Gray, 11 laps led
18. Mason Massey
19. Daniel Dye
20. Spencer Boyd
21. Jack Wood
22. Timmy Hill
23. Ty Majeski
24. Ty Dillon
25. Stefan Parsons
26. Bayley Currey
27. Mason Maggio
28. Layne Riggs, one lap down
29. Memphis Villarreal, three laps down
30. Lawless Alan – OUT, Brakes
31. Matt Crafton, 15 laps down
32. Tyler Ankrum – OUT, Accident
33. Thad Moffitt – OUT, Accident
34. Keigh McGee – OUT, Accident
35. Jeffrey Earnhardt – OUT, Accident
36. Corey Heim – Disqualified 72 laps led, Stage 1 & 2 winner
Next on the 2024 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series schedule is the series’ annual visit to Gateway’s World Wide Technology Raceway in Madison, Illinois, for the Toyota 200. The event is scheduled to occur next Saturday, June 1, and air at 1:30 p.m. ET on FOX.
From being involved in an early multi-truck wreck to escaping a final lap multi-truck wreck, Nick Sanchez capped off his roller-coaster evening mired with on-track chaos to claim his first NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series career victory in the Fresh From Florida 250 at Daytona International Speedway on Friday, February 16.
The 22-year-old Sanchez from Miami, Florida, led three times for a race-high 26 of 101 over-scheduled laps in an event where he was involved in a multi-truck wreck on the fifth lap. Despite sustaining cosmetic damage to his No. 2 Gainbridge Chevrolet Silverado RST, Sanchez managed to continue as he methodically remained within distance of the front-runners through the draft. Amid more carnages ensuing, he assumed the lead for the first time with nearly 40 laps remaining and managed to remain upfront amid four additional late-race restarts amid four on-track carnages.
Then during an overtime shootout, Sanchez, who briefly lost the lead to Rajah Caruth, reassumed the top spot with drafting help from Taylor Gray before the final lap. During the final lap, Caruth ignited a multi-truck wreck entering the backstretch that sent a multitude of competitors piling into one another and Gray flipping in the air and on top of two competitors before rolling back on all four wheels. With Sanchez managing to drive away from the field prior to the incident, he was able to cruise back to the frontstretch under a cautious pace and claim his first checkered flag in his 24th series start.
With on-track qualifying that determined the starting lineup occurring on Friday, Ty Majeski started on pole position after posting a pole-winning lap at 178.767 mph in 50.345 seconds. Joining him on the front row was Johnny Sauter, who clocked in the second-best qualifying lap at 178.703 mph in 50.363 seconds.
Prior to the event, the following names that included Spencer Boyd, Ben Rhodes and Jason White dropped to the rear of the field due to unapproved adjustments made to their respective entries.
When the green flag waved and the 2024 Craftsman Truck Series season commenced, Majeski and Sauter battled dead even for the lead through the first two turns and the backstretch amid two tight-packed lanes. With the front-runners continuing to battle amid two tight-packed lanes through Turns 3 and 4 and through the frontstretch, Sauter managed to lead the first lap by a hair over Majeski while receiving drafting help from teammate Matt Mills.
Through the next four laps and as the field started to fan out to three lanes amid the draft, Sauter and Majeski duked back and forth for the lead until Sauter managed to muscle his No. 45 Niece Motorsports Chevrolet Silverado RST ahead of the pack with both lanes in his control. In the process, Majeski settled in second ahead of Corey LaJoie, Tyler Ankrum and Daniel Dye. Meanwhile, Mills, who sustained significant front nose damage to his No. 42 J.F. Electric/Utilitra Chevrolet Silverado RST by drafting Sauter hard in the early laps, was the lead competitor on the outside lane until he was shoved out of the draft amid a tight three-wide battle towards the front.
Then just past the fifth lap mark, the event’s first caution flew after Crafton, who was boxed in between Tanner Gray and Christian Eckes amid a stacked two-pack lane within the top 15, received a bump from Eckes into Gray that got Crafton’s No. 88 Menards Ford F-150 loose and bumping into the side of rookie Layne Riggs, which then carried forth into Crafton clipping Tanner Gray, who clipped Stewart Friesen, who then clipped Nick Sanchez through the backstretch. The chain reaction incident ended up triggering a multi-truck wreck that also included Ty Dillon, Thad Moffitt, Rajah Caruth, Lawless Alan, Keith McGee, Enfinger, and Jake Garcia. Amid the incident, Sauter was scored the leader ahead of Majeski, LaJoie, Ankrum and Daniel Dye while Bayley Currey, Taylor Gray, Bret Holmes, Toni Breidinger and Dean Thompson were running in the top 10.
During the caution period, some including Jason White, LaJoie, Grant Enfinger, Timmy Hill, Ben Rhodes, Crafton, Riggs, Mills and Tanner Gray pitted while the rest led by Sauter remained on the track.
When the race restarted under green on Lap 12, Sauter and Majeski dueled for the lead in front of two tight-packed lanes through the first two turns and the backstretch. They remained dead even for the lead through the frontstretch as Sauter tried to edge ahead before Majeski fought back on the inside lane. Amid the tight battle for the lead, Sauter had teammate Currey and Taylor Gray drafting him while Majeski had drafting help from Ankrum as he then muscled ahead with the lead through Turns 3 and 4 during the following lap. Majeski would continue to have both drafting lanes to himself with the lead and with drafting help from Ankrum by the Lap 15 mark.
Shortly after, the caution returned after Lawless Alan, who was involved in the event’s early multi-truck wreck, spun by himself below the apron entering Turns 1 and 2 after he blew a right-rear tire and damaged his front nose after his truck dug into the infield grass before he then spun back across the track and was dodged by oncoming traffic. During the caution period, some including Dye, Stefan Parsons, Cory Roper, Sanchez, Caruth, Codie Rohrbaugh and Boyd pitted while the rest led by Sauter remained on the track.
With a single remaining in the first stage period, the event restarted under green. At the start, Sauter and Majeski again dueled for the top spot through the first two turns until Sauter prevailed on the outside lane with drafting help from teammate Currey to assume the top spot for good through the backstretch. The field then fanned out through the backstretch as both Currey and Majeski tried to mount a late charge for the lead, but their momentum was not enough as Sauter managed to capture the first Truck stage victory of the 2024 season. Majeski and Currey duked for the runner-up spot while Ankrum, Taylor Gray, Holmes, Jack Wood, Eckes, Thompson and Heim were scored in the top 10.
Under the stage break, some led by Sauter pitted while the rest led by Majeski remained on the track.
The second stage period started on Lap 26 as Majeski and Ankrum occupied the front row. At the start, Majeski and Ankrum dueled for the lead until Ankrum muscled ahead with drafting help from teammate Eckes through Turns 1 and 2. With the field dispersed and the competitors trying to regather into a drafting file, Ankrum retained the lead over teammate Eckes and Rhodes while LaJoie, Crafton, Daniel Dye, Sanchez, Breidinger, Heim and Mills moved up the leaderboard as Majeski dropped out of the top 10.
At the Lap 30 mark, Ankrum retained the lead ahead of a hard-charging Rhodes, who received drafting help from LaJoie on the outside lane to challenge Ankrum for the lead through Turns 1 and 2 while Eckes continued to draft teammate Ankrum on the inside lane. Amid the stacked two-packed field, Crafton and Sanchez battled for fifth while Heim, Dye, Majeski and Breidinger were running in the top 10 ahead of Enfinger, Mills, Caruth, Sauter, Roper and Holmes.
A lap later and as both Ankrum and Rhodes continued to battle dead even for the lead, the caution flew due to debris in the form of a tire carcass from Stewart Friesen’s entry being spotted in Turn 3, with Friesen pitting for fresh tires. During the caution period, some including Sauter, Currey, Thompson, Tanner Gray, Breidinger, Mills and Holmes pitted while the rest led by Ankrum remained on the track.
During the following restart on Lap 37, Ankrum received another strong push from teammate Eckes to muscle ahead with the lead on the inside lane. Crafton and Dye would follow suit while Rhodes fell back into a side-by-side battle with teammate Majeski for fifth place amid the draft and two stacked lanes. With Rhodes picking up LaJoie as a drafting partner through the frontstretch, Ankrum maintained the lead ahead of teammate Eckes, Crafton and Dye through the proceeding lap.
The caution, however, would return on Lap 38 due to reports of mist around the superspeedway venue. With the field being directed to pit road and placed under a red flag period for more than seven minutes to await the track being dried, Ankrum was awarded the Stage 2 victory scheduled to conclude on Lap 40. Teammate Eckes settled in second while Crafton, Dye, Rhodes, Majeski, LaJoie, Enfinger, Sanchez and Heim were scored in the top 10.
Once the red flag lifted and the field proceeded under a cautious pace for the second stage break, nearly the entire field led by Ankrum pitted while the rest led by Bret Holmes and Sauter remained on the track. During the pit stops, Ankrum nearly collided with Spencer Boyd, who was trying to enter his pit stall. In addition, Jason White drove through multiple pit stalls while Majeski was penalized due to his pit crew jumping over his pit stall too soon.
With 56 laps remaining, the final stage commenced under green as Holmes and Sauter occupied the front row. At the start, Holmes marched ahead with the lead from Sauter, where the former moved in front of him to the inside lane before Tanner Gray gained a strong run amid the draft through the backstretch to claim the lead followed by Chase Purdy. Amid Gray’s early efforts, Holmes would maintain the lead amid the draft followed by Sauter for the next two laps before the caution returned as Keith McGee wrecked in Turn 4.
During the caution period, select names that included Sanchez, LaJoie and Cory Roper pitted while the rest led by Holmes remained on the track.
With the event restarting with 49 laps remaining, Sauter and Holmes engaged in another side-by-side battle for the lead and in front of two tight-packed lanes. Five laps later, however, the caution flew after Holmes slipped sideways while battling Sauter entering the frontstretch and spun towards the infield along with Currey, who spun off the front nose of Taylor Gray and made light contact with the inside wall towards the pit road entrance. This resulted in a majority of the field led by Sauter returning to pit road for service while the rest led by Enfinger pitted. Enfinger, however, would pit shortly after along with several other names during the caution period, thus handing the lead to Sanchez
With the event restarting with 39 laps remaining, Sanchez received a strong push from Taylor Gray to muscle away with the lead. As the field fanned out to two and three tight-packed lanes amid the draft, Sanchez had both lanes to his control as he retained the lead followed by Taylor Gray. Three laps later, however, Ben Rhodes received a strong shove from Eckes to march forward into the lead, where he would lead the next five laps before he was challenged by Sauter for the top spot.
Then with 30 laps remaining, Rhodes made an unscheduled pit stop under green due to a tire issue to his No. 99 Ranch Fuel Energy Drink Ford F-150 as a result of an earlier on-track contact with Ankrum, where Ankrum ran into the right side of Rhodes’ entry. Amid Rhodes’ issue, a three-way battle for the lead ensued between Chase Purdy, Sanchez and Eckes for the lead while LaJoie, Parsons, Taylor Gray, Ankrum and Jack Wood joined the battle amid two tight-packed lanes.
Two laps later, Rhodes’ event went from bad to worse after he slipped sideways and spun in Turn 4 while also making contact with Tanner Gray and Breidinger due to another tire issue to his entry. The issue occurred as Rhodes was lapped by the leaders entering Turns 3 and 4. With the damage to his entry, the reigning two-time Truck Series champion concluded his event in his pit stall.
During the proceeding restart with 23 laps remaining, Sanchez received a strong shove from Eckes to assume the lead from LaJoie as Taylor Gray followed suit in third place. Trouble, however, returned during the following lap when Eckes received a bump from LaJoie that sent his No. 19 NAPA Chevrolet Silverado RST sideways and into the side of Parsons while he also got rear-ended by Sauter, whose hood popped up as both he and Eckes spun entering the frontstretch.
The start of the next restart with 16 laps remaining featured Sanchez muscling away from the field on the inside lane with a strong push from Taylor Gray. They would be followed by Jack Wood while the rest of the field engaged to battling in two tight-packed lanes. The following lap, the caution returned after Dean Thompson ran into the rear of Mason Massey entering Turn 4 and slipped sideways while teammate Breidinger was also involved as she ran into the rear of Thompson, slipped up the track and spun her No. 1 Celsius Toyota Tundra TRD Pro.
During the following restart with nine laps remaining, Rajah Caruth received drafting help from teammate LaJoie to move into the lead entering the first two turns. Both Spire Motorsports competitors would muscle away from the field through the backstretch until Sanchez gained a massive draft to reassume the top spot with drafting help from Taylor Gray as they were followed by Wood, Ankrum and Purdy while Caruth and LaJoie briefly separated amid the draft.
Two laps later and as Sanchez and Taylor Gray started to battle dead even for the lead in front of the pack, the caution flew after Ankrum slipped sideways off the front nose of Purdy, with both collecting Eckes before spinning through the backstretch’s grass. The incident was enough to send the event into overtime as Sanchez was scored the leader ahead of Caruth, Taylor Gray, Wood, LaJoie and Crafton.
At the start of the first overtime attempt, Sanchez and Caruth battled dead even for the lead through the first two turns until Caruth assumed the lead from the outside lane as both he and LaJoie rocketed ahead from the outside lane. They then maintained the lead through the backstretch until Sanchez and Taylor Gray gained a run to the outside lane towards Turns 3 and 4, which was enough for Sanchez to reassume the lead entering the frontstretch.
When the white flag waved and the final lap started, Sanchez was leading ahead of Taylor Gray, Wood, Caruth and Heim as the field started to fan out to three lanes through the first two turns. Then entering the backstretch, a fiery multi-truck ignited after Caruth drove up the track and turned Wood into Taylor Gray, which sent Gray spinning and wrecking against the backstretch’s outside wall before he was T-boned by Daniel Dye and sent upside-down on top of Eckes and Tanner Gray before his No. 17 JBL Toyota Tundra TRD Pro rolled back on all four wheels. With the caution flag flying to end the event as nearly the entire field wrecked in the backstretch, Sanchez, who drove away from the incident, was scored the leader and declared the winner for his first series’ career victory.
With the victory, Sanchez, who claimed the 2023 Truck Series Rookie-of-the-Year title and just missed the Championship 4 cutline amid a winless season, became the 123rd competitor overall to achieve a victory in the Craftsman Truck Series and the seventh to do so at Daytona International Speedway. He also recorded the first victory across NASCAR’s top three national touring series for Rev Racing and the 100th points-paying victory in NASCAR at Daytona for the Chevrolet nameplate, with the Chevrolet nameplate also racking up its fourth victory at Daytona.
Photo by Patrick Sue-Chan for SpeedwayMedia.com.
“[The win]’s Pretty surreal, especially with how the race started,” Sanchez said on FS1. “A big thanks to my team, sticking with me all last year. We were winless. It hurt. We should’ve won, but we redeemed ourselves in the first race possible. [It’s] Definitely gonna be a good year.”
Amid the carnage, Corey Heim ended uo in second place followed by Rajah Caruth, who navigated his damaged No. 71 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet Silverado RST to a strong top-three result while Bret Holmes and Spencer Boyd ended up in the top five. Parsons, Crafton, Timmy Hill, Bryan Dauzat and Eckes finished in the top 10.
Taylor Gray, who ended up 19th following his final-lap upside-down wreck, emerged uninjured, though he, LaJoie, Dye, Roper, Thompson and Rohrbaugh were unable to finish.
There were 24 lead changes for 12 different leaders. The race featured 12 cautions for 52 laps.
Following the first event of the 2024 Truck Series season, Tyler Ankrum, who finished 11th at Daytona, leads the regular-season standings by a single point over Sanchez, four over Eckes, five over both Holmes and Crafton, seven over both Heim and Majeski and eight over Caruth.
Results.
1. Nick Sanchez, 26 laps led
2. Corey Heim
3. Rajah Caruth, one lap led
4. Bret Holmes, 13 laps led
5. Spencer Boyd
6. Stefan Parsons
7. Matt Crafton
8. Timmy Hill
9. Bryan Dauzat
10. Christian Eckes, one lap led
11. Tyler Ankrum, 16 laps led, Stage 2 winner
12. Jason White
13. Bayley Currey
14. Stewart Friesen
15. Ty Majeski, six laps led
16. Tanner Gray, one lap led
17. Grant Enfinger, two laps led
18. Jack Wood
19. Taylor Gray – OUT, Accident
20. Corey LaJoie – OUT, Accident, five laps led
21. Daniel Dye – OUT, Accident
22. Cory Roper – OUT, Accident
23. Codie Rohrbaugh – OUT, Accident
24. Dean Thompson – OUT, Accident
25. Mason Massey, one lap down
26. Matt Mills, two laps down
27. Tony Breidinger, four laps down
28. Chase Purdy – OUT, Accident, one lap led
29. Johnny Sauter – OUT, Accident, 24 laps led, Stage 1 winner
30. Ben Rhodes, – OUT, Accident, five laps led
31. Keith McGee – OUT, Accident
32. Lawless Alan – OUT, Overheating
33. Layne Riggs – OUT, DVP
34. Jake Garcia – OUT, Accident
35. Ty Dillon – OUT, Accident
36. Thad Moffitt – OUT, Accident
With the 2024 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series season underway, the next event on the schedule is the Fr8 208 at Atlanta Motor Speedway in Hampton, Georgia. The event is scheduled to occur next Saturday, February 24, and air at 2 p.m. ET on FS1.
Kevin “Bono” Manion will be joining Rev Racing to serve as Nick Sanchez’s new crew chief for the 2024 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series season.
The news comes as Rev Racing prepares to embark on its second season in the Truck Series and first in a technical alliance with Spire Motorsports. It also comes as Manion is coming off a full 2023 Truck Series schedule with Spire Motorsports, where he worked with nine different competitors while calling the shots atop the No. 7 Spire Chevrolet entry pit box.
“I am really looking forward to working with Nick [Sanchez] in the upcoming season,” Manion said. “He is incredibly committed to his craft and I know we are going to work really well together. We have a great group of guys surrounding this effort and we are positioned for success, we just need to execute.”
Manion, a native of Boylston, Massachusetts, joins Rev Racing amid an illustrious NASCAR career that includes two Xfinity Series championships with Martin Truex Jr. (2004-05), 17 Xfinity career victories, and five Cup career wins, including the 2010 Daytona 500 and Brickyard 400 titles with Jamie McMurray, all while being a crew chief.
In 2016, Manion became a crew chief in the Truck Series for the first time as he joined Kyle Busch Motorsports to lead the team’s No. 51 “all-star” entry that was piloted between four competitors. He would then spend the next two seasons at DGR-Crosley before transitioning to GMS Racing for the following two seasons as he led Zane Smith to three career victories and back-to-back runner-up results in the final driver’s standings. For the previous two seasons, Manion moved to Spire Motorsports, which expanded to the Truck Series for the first time, beginning on a part-time basis in 2022 before expanding to a full schedule in 2023. Throughout the two seasons, Manion worked with a total of 12 competitors and achieved two victories.
Manion achieved his first Truck victory as a crew chief with Daniel Suarez at Phoenix Raceway in November 2016 and has since compiled a total of nine Truck victories with six competitors, with his latest occurring with Kyle Larson at North Wilkesboro Speedway last May.
Manion’s move to Rev Racing brings excitement for Sanchez, who retains driving responsibilities of the No. 2 Gainbridge Chevrolet Silverado RST for a second full-time Truck campaign. The 22-year-old Sanchez from Miami, Florida, is coming off the first Truck campaign for himself and Rev Racing after winning the 2022 ARCA Menards Series championship. Throughout the 2023 season, Sanchez achieved five poles, two top-five results, 12 top-10 results, 309 laps led and an average-finishing result of 13.0, with his best result being a runner-up finish at Atlanta Motor Speedway in March. He qualified for the 2023 Truck Series Playoffs and settled in sixth place in the final driver’s standings after missing the Championship 4 cutline in a tie-breaker. Nonetheless, he managed to achieve the 2023 Rookie-of-the-Year title as he prepares for another bid for both a Championship 4 berth and his first series’ victory.
“I am thrilled to be returning to Rev Racing for a full season in the [NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series],” Sanchez said. “I certainly have some unfinished business. I am grateful for another opportunity to compete with [owner] Max [Siegel] and appreciative for the returning support of my partners at Gainbridge. They truly are catalysts in my career and continue to drive positive change in our sport. I am energized by the new talent I have surrounding me in 2024, but feel foundationally grounded by those that are returning for a second season. The team makeup is positioned for success and we are all focused on the same goal, to win a Championship.”
In addition to Manion, Allen Hart, a former engineer and technical director who recently served as crew chief for Sam Hunt Racing in the Xfinity Series, will join Rev Racing to serve as the team’s chief engineer.
Rev Racing’s 2024 Craftsman Truck Series season is set to commence at Daytona International Speedway for the Fresh From Florida 250. The event is scheduled to occur on February 16 and air at 7:30 p.m. ET on FS1.
Nick Sanchez has been officially named the 2023 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Rookie of the Year.
The 22-year-old Sanchez from Miami, Florida, capped off his rookie Truck Series season with Rev Racing in 10th place during the season-finale Craftsman 150 at Phoenix Raceway on Friday, November 3, where he led five of 179 over-scheduled laps and was able to finish in sixth place in the final driver’s standings with 2,319 points.
Sanchez, whose racing career commenced at age 12 with go-karts, joined Rev Racing as he competed in the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series and the ARCA Menards Series East divisions while being a member of NASCAR’s Drive for Diversity program in 2019. During the season, his top accomplishments included victories at Langley Speedway and Myrtle Beach Speedway in the Whelen All-American Series, his first pole position at Virginia’s South Boston Speedway and achieving the Wendell Scott Trailblazer Award.
The following season, the Floridian competed for Rev Racing on a full-time basis in the ARCA East division, where he finished in third place in the final standings on the strengths of two top-five results and four top-10 results in six scheduled starts. In addition, he made select starts across the ARCA Menards Series and ARCA Menards Series West divisions.
In 2021, Sanchez piloted the No. 2 Chevrolet for Rev Racing on a full-time basis in the ARCA Menards Series. After recording eight top-five results and 12 top-10 results in 17 starts, he notched his first career victory in the series in the season-finale event at Kansas Speedway and finished in third place in the final standings. The following season, Sanchez notched three victories throughout the 2022 ARCA season, which occurred at Talladega Superspeedway, Kansas Speedway and Michigan International Speedway. The trio of victories along with nine top-five results, 16 top-10 results, 115 laps led and an average-finishing result of 6.3 were enough for him to achieve the 2022 ARCA Menards Series championship by 14 points over Daniel Dye. By then, Sanchez, who had achieved his first championship in stock car racing, delivered the second championship for Rev Racing and the first since the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series champion Kyle Larson won the ARCA East title in 2012.
Nearly a month after the 2022 ARCA season concluded, Rev Racing announced its expansion to NASCAR’s top three national touring series for the first time by fielding a full-time Craftsman Truck Series entry for Sanchez to pilot as the team formed a technical alliance with Kyle Busch Motorsports. Driving the No. 2 Gainbridge Chevrolet Silverado RST, Sanchez secured the pole position for the season-opening event at Daytona International Speedway in February in his first stint in the Truck Series.
Despite finishing 26th at Daytona amid a rain-shortened event followed by a 30th-place finish at Las Vegas Motor Speedway after wrecking late, he rallied by notching a career-best runner-up result at Atlanta after being overtaken by Christian Eckes on the final lap. Two races later, Sanchez was within striking distance of achieving his first career victory at Texas Motor Speedway after starting on the pole, sweeping both stage periods and leading a race-high 168 of 172 laps.
However, during the second of two overtime attempts, Sanchez, who was locked in a heated battle with reigning series champion Zane Smith for the lead, slipped sideways at the start of the final lap and was bumped by Carson Hocevar exiting the frontstretch as Sanchez ended up wrecking with Smith and Eckes in Turn 1 and strapped with a 16th-place result.
Coming off the Texas result, Sanchez, who only managed three top-10 results during his next seven starts, achieved his second top-five career result after finishing third at Nashville Superspeedway in an event where he started in the pole position and led 37 laps. With respective finishes of ninth, 19th and eighth in the final regular-season events, the Floridian managed to claim a spot into the 2023 Truck Series Playoffs by 42 points. By then, he was the lone rookie competitor to make the Playoffs.
Despite recording respective finishes of 11th, 24th and eighth during the Playoff’s Round of 10, Sanchez transferred into the Round of 8 by 32 points. He commenced the Round of 8 by finishing ninth at Bristol Motor Speedway despite starting at the rear of the field due to unapproved adjustments made to his truck. Coming off a seventh-place result in the second Round of 8 event at Talladega Superspeedway, which was mired by a post-race fight involving three-time series champion Matt Crafton, Sanchez recorded his fifth pole position for the Round of 8 finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
Commencing the event four points above the top-four cutline to make this year’s Championship 4 round, he ended up finishing 17th during the main event and missed the cutline in a tie-breaker over the 2021 series champion Ben Rhodes. Nonetheless, Sanchez managed to capture his 12th top-10 result of the 2023 Truck Series season during the finale at Phoenix.
By claiming this year’s rookie title, Sanchez, who earned five poles, four stage victories, two top-five results and 12 top-10 results during his rookie season, became the first competitor from Florida to achieve the Truck Series rookie title since Ben Kennedy made the last accomplishment in 2014 and the first Chevrolet competitor to win the award since Zane Smith made the last accomplishment in 2020. He also became the first competitor from NASCAR’s Drive for Diversity program to achieve a rookie title within NASCAR’s top three national touring series since Daniel Suarez claimed the 2015 Xfinity Series rookie title.
Photo by Patrick Sue-Chan for SpeedwayMedia.com.
Sanchez’s rivals for this year’s Truck rookie title included Rajah Caruth, Daniel Dye, Jake Garcia and Bret Holmes.
With the rookie title achieved, Sanchez is currently slated to remain at Rev Racing for the 2024 Truck Series season as he will bid for both his first series victory and another run for the series title. Sanchez’s crew chief for next season remains to be determined as Danny Stockman Jr., the 2011 Truck Series championship-winning crew chief who guided Sanchez during his rookie campaign, will be returning to the Xfinity Series to crew chief the 2023 ARCA Menards Series champion Jesse Love Jr. for his first Xfinity campaign at Richard Childress Racing.
The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series teams and competitors enter an off-season period before returning to action at Daytona International Speedway on February 16, 2024, to commence a new season of racing. The event’s broadcast time is slated to occur at 7:30 p.m. ET on FS1.
Rev Racing will be making its inaugural presence within NASCAR’s top three national touring series in 2023 by fielding a full-time Craftsman Truck Series entry with reigning ARCA Menards Series champion Nick Sanchez named as the full-time driver for the organization.
As part of the announcement made at Phoenix Raceway ahead of championship weekend for NASCAR’s top three national touring series, Sanchez will be piloting the No. 2 Chevrolet Silverado RST with sponsorship support from Gainbridge, a Group 1001 company, as he and Rev Racing will attempt to make their official Truck Series debut at Daytona International Speedway on February 17, 2023.
The move comes as a pivotal moment for Rev Racing, which was founded in 2010 by Max Siegel, a former President of Global Operations for Dale Earnhardt Inc., and fields development entries in the ARCA Menards Series and Advance Auto Parts Touring Series while remaining actively involved with the Drive for Diversity program to increase minority and female involvement in motorsports competition. Notable names in NASCAR’s premier series, the Cup Series, whom commenced their stock car career with Rev Racing include Kyle Larson, Bubba Wallace and Daniel Suarez.
“This is a pivotal moment for our organization,” Max Siegel said. “With our unwavering focus on a commitment to diversify the sport while putting a model in place to train and prepare drivers for the next level of competition, and because of our strategic partnership with Gainbridge announced earlier this year, we have never been more prepared for this next stage of advancement. Working with our technical partners at KBM and Chevrolet, we know Rev Racing and Nick are positioned for competitive excellence.”
Sanchez, a 21-year-old native from Miami, Florida, first joined Rev Racing’s Youth Development Program in 2017 and 2018, where he piloted a Legend car in the Bojangles’ Summer Shootout at Charlotte Motor Speedway. In 2019, he made his ARCA Menards Series East debut with the organization during a South Boston Speedway Twin double feature weekend, where he earned his first career pole during the second feature event. At the conclusion of the 2019 season, Sanchez was named the recipient of the 2019 Wendell Scott Trailblazer Award. After competing the entire 2020 ARCA Menards Series East season with Rev Racing, he moved up to the ARCA Menards Series with Rev in 2021. Following a consistent season, he scored his first career victory in the season-finale event at Kansas Speedway in October.
Remaining as a full-time ARCA competitor for Rev Racing this season, Sanchez accumulated victories at Talladega Superspeedway in April, Kansas in May and at Michigan International Speedway in August en route to this year’s championship, which marked the first for Rev Racing in the ARCA Menards Series and second title overall after winning the 2012 ARCA East championship with Kyle Larson. He also achieved a total of nine top-five results and 16 top-10 results throughout the 20-race schedule as he claimed the title over GMS Racing’s Daniel Dye by 14 points.
While the 2023 season will mark Sanchez’s first stint in the Truck Series, he joins the series with previous experience competing in NASCAR’s top three national touring series as he has competed in seven Xfinity Series events this season between BJ McLeod Motorsports and Big Machine Racing Team. Coming off a career-best result of seventh place at Martinsville Speedway, Sanchez is set to pilot Big Machine Racing’s No. 48 entry for this weekend’s Xfinity finale at Phoenix.
“I’m very excited to continue driving for Max and Rev Racing in the Truck Series in 2023,” said Nick Sanchez.” To be able to join forces with our technical partner, KBM, is a great opportunity for me to learn how to win on a regular basis. Continuing my relationship with Chevrolet and Gainbridge is something that I value greatly and this is seemingly another step in our long-term plan/goal.”
Another person who was present for Rev Racing’s announcement was two-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Kyle Busch as his Truck Series team, Kyle Busch Motorsports, will be forging a technical alliance with the organization. Like for Rev Racing, the 2023 season is set to mark a new beginning for Busch as KBM will be fielding Chevrolet Silverados for the first time following a 13-year partnership with Toyota in the Truck circuit. KBM earlier revealed that Chase Purdy will be joining the organization as a full-time competitor along with Jack Wood, who will be serving as an anchor competitor with the rest of the team’s driver lineup to be determined.
“Unofficially, we’ve been a part of helping former Rev Racing drivers take the next step in their NASCAR careers in the Truck Series, with Bubba Wallace and Daniel Suárez both getting victories in a [Kyle Busch Motorsports] truck, so we’re looking forward to aligning with Max, Jennifer [Siegal] and everyone at Rev Racing to now officially be a part of the pipeline for young drivers in their diversity program to continue to advance into the National Series of NASCAR,” Busch said. “Nick is an impressive young driver, winning the ARCA title this year and has had some solid runs in the Xfinity Series as well, so we’re looking forward to having him be the trendsetter of what we’re confident will be a successful program for many years to come.”
Both Sanchez and Rev Racing are set to make their NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series debut at Daytona International Speedway on February 17, 2023, which will also commence a new season of Truck competition.
A significant milestone is in the making for Daniel Suarez, the 2016 NASCAR Xfinity Series champion and driver of the No. 96 Toyota Camry for Gaunt Brothers Racing in the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series season. By taking the green flag in this weekend’s Cup Series event at the Charlotte Motor Speedway Road Course for the Bank of America Roval 400, Suarez will reach 250 starts across NASCAR’s three major division series.
A native of Monterrey, Mexico, Suarez’s racing career started with karts, where he won two national karting championships in 2004 and 2008. He went on to compete and win races in mini-stock cars, a support series of the NASCAR Peak Mexico Series in 2008. Suarez’s early racing success led him to compete in the NASCAR Mexico Series in 2010, where he claimed the series Rookie-of-the-Year title and went on to achieve an abundant of on-track success and wins in the series along with the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East through 2013 while alternating between racing in Mexico and the United States of America.
Following the 2013 season, Suarez achieved a total of five victories in the NASCAR Mexico Series with a best result of second place in 2012. He had also completed his first full-time season in the K&N Pro Series East with Rev Racing, where he achieved his first win at Ohio’s Columbus Motor Speedway before he concluded the season in third place in the final standings and all while being a NASCAR Drive for Diversity and Next member.
Suarez started the 2014 racing season by winning the first two K&N Pro Series East races of the season, the first at Florida’s New Smyrna Speedway before backing it with a win at the UNOH Battle at the Beach around Daytona International Speedway’s mini oval backstretch course. He went on to record a total of four top-five results and seven top-10 results in 13 starts in the East Series. He also made his ARCA Racing Series at Kentucky Speedway with Venturini Motorsports in September, where he started third and finished fifth.
Two months after winning the UNOH Battle at the Beach, Suarez was selected by Joe Gibbs Racing to drive the No. 20 Toyota Camry for the NASCAR Xfinity Series spring event at Richmond Raceway. Starting in 12th place, Suarez went on to finish in 19th place in his series debut. He made his second series start at Chicagoland Speedway in September. Driving the No. 29 ARRIS Toyota for RAB Racing, Suarez started 18th and notched a 15th-place result. He also made his NASCAR Truck Series debut at Talladega Superspeedway in October, where he started 17th and finished 15th while driving the No. 35 ARRIS Toyota Tundra for Win-Tron Racing.
Four months after making his NASCAR Xfinity Series debut at Richmond, Joe Gibbs Racing announced that Suarez will be competing in the series on a full-time basis in 2015. Driving the No. 18 ARRIS Toyota Camry led by crew chief Eric Phillips, Suarez recorded three poles, two Dash 4 Cash bonuses, eight top-five results, 18 top-10 results and an average result of 11.7 before he finished in fifth place in the final standings. He ended up claiming the Rookie-of-the-Year title over Bubba Wallace by virtue of one additional top-10 result. As a result, Suarez became the first Mexican and second Drive for Diversity competitor to achieve a rookie title in any of NASCAR’s three major division series. He also made 13 starts in the NASCAR Truck Series with Kyle Busch Motorsports, where he achieved seven top-five results and 10 top-10 results. He also made four starts in the ARCA Series with Venturini Motorsports, where he recorded one pole, one top-five result and two top-10 results.
Suarez remained as a full-time competitor in the NASCAR Xfinity Series with Joe Gibbs Racing, piloting the No. 19 ARRIS Toyota Camry, and as a part-time competitor in the NASCAR Truck Series with Kyle Busch Motorsports in 2016. In 13 Truck starts, Suarez achieved his first career win at Phoenix Raceway in November and he also achieved one pole, three top-five results and six top-10 results. In the Xfinity Series and paired with crew chief Scott Graves, Suarez recorded 18 top-five results and 26 top-10 results through 32 of the 33-race schedule. By then, he also achieved his first two Xfinity career wins, the first at Michigan International Speedway in June and the second at Dover International Speedway during the inaugural Xfinity Playoffs in October. With his first win at Michigan, he became the first Mexican-born competitor to win within NASCAR’s three major division series. Suarez, ultimately, entered the season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway in November as one of four competitors contending for the championship. During the finale, Suarez led a race-high 133 of 200 laps and went on to beat Elliott Sadler, Justin Allgaier and teammate Erik Jones in a two-lap shootout to win the finale and the 2016 Xfinity championship. With his accomplishment, Suarez became the first foreign-born/Latin American competitor to win a championship within NASCAR’s three major division series and he recorded the second Xfinity drivers’ title for Joe Gibbs Racing.
Following the sudden departure of Carl Edwards, Suarez was named a full-time competitor of the No. 19 ARRIS/Stanley Tools/Subway Toyota Camry for JGR for the 2017 NASCAR Cup Series season, marking Suarez’s first opportunity in competing in NASCAR’s premier series. Suarez made his Daytona 500 debut in February, where he finished 29th after crashing out in the second half of the season. Three races later, he achieved his first top-10 result in the series by finishing in seventh place at Phoenix in March. He went on to achieve 11 additional top-10 results and a best result of third place at Watkins Glen International in August, where he also won a stage, for the remainder of the season. He also won the Monster Energy Open preliminary race at Charlotte Motor Speedway in May, where he transferred to his first All-Star Race appearance and went on to finish in 15th place of the 20-car field. When the season concluded, he finished in 20th place in the final standings and he ended up finishing in second place in the Cup Rookie-of-the-Year standings behind Erik Jones. Throughout the 2017 season, Suarez also made 14 starts in the Xfinity Series for JGR, where he achieved five top-five results and eight top-10 results. Following the 2017 season, Suarez surpassed 100 starts across NASCAR’s three major division series.
Suarez remained as driver of the No. 19 Toyota Camry for Joe Gibbs Racing in 2018. Throughout his sophomore season in the Cup Series, he achieved his first career pole position at Pocono Raceway in July and he went on to achieve a career-best second-place result during the main event following a late battle with teammate Kyle Busch. Another bright moment of Suarez’s 2018 Cup season occurred at Charlotte Motor Speedway in May, where he won the second stage of the Monster Energy Open preliminary event, transferred to his second consecutive All-Star Race appearance and settled in second place following a late battle with Kevin Harvick. Suarez also achieved a total of 12 top-10 results and he concluded the season in 21st place in the final standings. He also made two Xfinity Series with JGR, where he finished in the top 10 in both races. Following the 2018 season, however, Suarez was released from JGR in favor of Martin Truex Jr.
A month before the 2019 season started, Suarez was named driver of the No. 41 Haas Automation/ARRIS Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing in the NASCAR Cup Series season led by Billy Scott. He started the season on a low note by racking up his third consecutive DNF in the Daytona 500 after being involved in a late multi-car wreck. He rallied the following race at Atlanta Motor Speedway by finishing in 10th place. Four races later and following a three-race stretch of finishing no higher than 13th, he finished 10th at Martinsville before he recorded a strong third-place result at Texas Motor Speedway in April. Throughout the 26-race regular-season stretch, Suarez achieved nine top-10 results and one pole position. His late consistent surge on the track was not enough, however, to make the 2019 Cup Playoffs after he finished in 11th place in the regular-season finale at Indianapolis Motor Speedway and being beaten by Ryan Newman for the final spot to the Playoffs. It marked the third consecutive season where Suarez failed to make the Cup Playoff field as he has yet to do so. Nonetheless, he went on to achieve two additional top-10 results and finish the season in 17th place in the final standings. By then, he surpassed 200 starts across NASCAR’s three major division series. Despite a productive junior season in the Cup circuit, Suarez was released from SHR in favor of Cole Custer.
A month before the 2020 season started, Suarez joined forces with Gaunt Brothers Racing to drive the 96 Toyota Camry in the NASCAR Cup Series season. He started this season on a low note when he crashed out in the second Duel race at Daytona International Speedway in February and failed to make the Daytona 500. His first start with GBR was at Las Vegas Motor Speedway the following week, where he finished 30th after encountering mechanical issues at the start of the race.
Through 30 starts this season, Suarez has finished no higher than 18th place, which occurred twice at Bristol Motor Speedway in May and at Kansas Speedway in July. His average result is 26.4 and he is ranked in 31st place in the standings. While he has yet to achieve his first Cup Series win, he is set to drive for the newly formed Trackhouse Entertainment Group and in the No. 99 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE in 2021.
Catch Suarez’s milestone start in the Bank of America Roval 400 at the Charlotte Motor Speedway Road Course on Sunday, October 11, at 2:30 p.m. ET on NBC.
For 21 year old Jay Beasley, himself a track champion in the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series Super Late Model at The Bullring at Las Vegas, being chosen for the 2014 Drive for Diversity Class is nothing short of a dream come true.
“It’s amazing and I’ve been thinking about this my whole life being in NASCAR,” Beasley said. “For NASCAR to look at me and want me to be in this D4D family is a huge recognition.”
“It feels really amazing and it’s a blessing.”
Beasley was born and raised in Las Vegas and loves racing in the area. In addition to his home town track championship, he has also won the Series Nevada championship with eight victories in 14 starts. In addition, the young up and comer was the recipient of the 2013 Wendell Scott Trailblazer Award due to his early successes on the track.
“I love Las Vegas,” Beasley said. “It’s really cool racing out on the west coast.”
“The Bull Ring is a really tough track,” Beasley continued. “It seems like having that track under my belt helps me out at every other track that I go to.”
While Beasley is perfectly at home and has had great success at the Vegas Bull Ring, he will now be challenged to race in the K&N Pro Series East for Rev Racing on tracks where he has never been before in his life.
“I’ve only been on one track back east and that’s Langley for the combine,” Beasley said. “So, I’m really, really green. Everything is new to me.”
“This year, I’m really excited to be going to these different tracks and to be racing in the K&N East Series,” Beasley continued. “Everything is going to be different and I actually get a kick out of that and it fires me up even more.”
“I have to adapt quickly and be on the ball, because if I’m not, I’m going to struggle.”
Beasley is also looking to adapt to his team and is already hard at work on establishing that critical relationship with them, as well as crew chief Eddie Dickerson.
“My crew chief has been in the sport for a really long time, has worked for Hendrick, and has built a whole bunch of chasses,” Beasley said. “Everyone that is in the Rev Racing program has been in the NASCAR family for quite some time. So, when you get picked, it’s truly an honor to be working with these people because they have so much knowledge.”
“Coming into the shop and working with the guys, you are learning and gaining a relationship every day,” Beasley continued. “It’s really amazing.”
While Beasley admits that there are many racing idols that he looks up to, he is also committed to being his own individual on the track, as well as creating his own unique style and brand.
“I look at a lot of drivers and there are just things about drivers that make them who they are,” Beasley said. “Like Jimmie Johnson, he has won so many championships and he is so level-headed. Clint Bowyer is really a crazy guy but he’s himself and is not trying to put on a façade. Then you have the Busch boys and they are bad and then they are good and trying to be better and they’re fast.”
“I’m excited to change the sport and put some Jay Beasley into it and to make a name for myself and to put my brand out there.”
“My brand is going to be the Michael Jordan of NASCAR,” Beasley continued. “That means that I can have any age kid want to be like me. Or I can give them a good way to look at life, not just racing.”
“I just want to open people’s minds about racing and the passion for it,” Beasley said. “It’s not about the money or the fame because when you get into that race car, you are in bliss. You’re happy and you do it because you love to do it.”
“You’re not there to make it into the fame but to do it because it feels good in your heart,” Beasley continued. “That’s how I feel. Being in that race car is like that oxygen. For me to survive and for me to live, I need to be in that race car or I’m not living.”
“That’s just the way it is.”
Beasley has clear goals for 2014, as well as bringing balance to what he knows will be a challenging season.
“My goals for 2014 would be to finish every race and not get wrecked out,” Beasley said. “To get top-10s and top-5s and to even win a couple races would be amazing. To adapt and to be in the shop every day with my guys working on the car and working out are all goals to write down and keep digging on.”
“This is going to be more exciting to me,” Beasley continued. “I will have to take one day at a time, have fun and enjoy what’s going on.”
“I will have to really stop and smell the roses because this doesn’t happen every day,” Beasley said. “I’m just really excited and I need to thank NASCAR and everyone getting ready for the season so we can do what we love to do.”
A multi-year participant in NASCAR’s Drive for Diversity program, 21 year old Sergio Peña has set a high bar for himself in the K&N Pro Series East this year. In fact, the first generation Colombian American from Virginia, along with his Rev Racing team, intends to be the champion.
“I definitely have my goals set high this year,” Peña said. “This is my fourth full-time season in the K&N Pro Series East and I want to go out and win as many races as I can and hopefully the championship.”
Peña already has three career K&N Pro Series East wins under his belt, as well as a pair of top-10 finishes in the point standings and 19 top-10 finishes in 39 East starts. But he yearns for the big prize in 2014, just like one of his racing idols and former Rev Racing driver Kyle Larson.
“I know Rev Racing is capable of doing it because they’ve done it with Kyle Larson,” Peña said. “They’ve had strong programs every year.”
“Any up and coming driver right now wants to imitate what Kyle Larson is doing,” Peña continued. “He’s kind of set the standard.”
“So to be doing it with the same team that he had and his same group of guys is exciting,” Peña said. “Everyone works together and it’s a big family here at Rev Racing so I’m excited to be a part of it and hopefully I can follow in his footsteps for sure.”
Although Peña is excited about working with his Rev Racing team, he admits that they are a totally new group and he and his team have much to learn about one another.
“I’ve got a whole new group this year so that will be interesting to get to know everyone,” Peña said. “I’ve been in the shop a few times and got to meet my crew chief, car chief, and a couple of the guys who will be working on the car.”
“I’ll have to get to know those new faces as quickly as possible so that we can click as a group,” Peña continued. “If you don’t have a good relationship with your guys, it just doesn’t work out very well.”
“So, I’ve been in the shop and we’re getting along great,” Peña said. “I’m excited to get going here and do some racing.”
Many, including East Series Director Kip Childress, have described Peña as a very calculating, very precise racer. So, how does Peña prepare himself for the 2014 season?
“I go to the gym every single day,” Peña said. “That’s something that I’ve been doing since high school.”
“I’m really into sports and I play basketball almost every day too,” Peña continued. “Staying physically fit is something that I stay on stop of a lot.”
Peña is also very exacting as far as his mental approach to the sport. And for this up and coming driver, it is all about maintaining his focus.
“I would say this is more of a mental sport than any sport there is,” Peña said. “When you’re driving on the edge at one hundred plus miles per hour, you definitely need to be focused.”
“It’s something that you train yourself over the years from when you first start racing,” Peña continued. “You learn how to focus, how to stay focused in those longer races, and throughout the years, I’ve just learned how to stay focused.”
While Peña is focused on winning the K&N Pro Series East championship, he also has his eye on another prize, that of moving up to the next level in the sport.
“I definitely have a relationship with several Truck Series and Nationwide teams,” Peña said. “As we all know, a lot in this sport is about funding. It’s hard to find sponsorship to do that so I definitely want to leave many doors open as I can to find some rides like that.”
While Peña has been competing since he was four years old, when his father bought him a dirt bike, he credits his success in NASCAR to date to the Drive for Diversity program.
“My involvement with the Drive for Diversity program has definitely helped me,” Peña said. “NASCAR is trying to get more diverse and this program is proven to work very well.”
“I believe that being a part of this program is definitely helping factor into my success,” Peña continued. “In fact, it can be the deciding factor in not only NASCAR since the whole entire country is trying to diversify in every angle.”
“It’s an awesome opportunity to be a part of and I’m really thankful that I’m selected again to participate,” Peña said. “I’m ready to help them spread diversity through the sport.”
“And I’m definitely ready to win that championship.”
NASCAR Drive for Diversity (D4D) recently announced its 2014 class of young, up and coming multicultural and female drivers and one of the headliners of the group is Ryan Gifford.
Gifford, a 24 year old from Tennessee, made history in 2010 by becoming the first African-American driver to win a NASCAR K&N Pro Series East pole position. He also scored his first East win at Richmond last year, as well as making his Nationwide debut for Richard Childress Racing.
“First of all, it’s awesome to be back with the team,” Gifford said as he returns to his same Rev Racing team from last season. “It’s rare to get this opportunity this many times and I’m looking forward to having a really good year.”
“I think we’re going to bring back most of the same guys on the team and I’ll have the same crew chief Mark Green,” Gifford continued. “We had a good run last year and I really like all my guys.”
“They work their guts out for me and I think that’s what it takes.”
“I know Mark’s really excited and they’ve put a lot of work into the cars over the winter,” Gifford continued. “Really for me, I’m excited to have new cars coming together. And when I go to the shop and see everyone working, I think it will be a really cool year.”
While Gifford admits that he learned many lessons from last year, the biggest lesson learned sounds easier said than done.
“I’ve learned just to be confident in myself really,” Gifford said. “To know that I can go out there and be fast and know I’m capable of doing it this year, which means everything to me.”
“I want to go out and win the championship this year.”
Gifford has also learned a great deal about the tracks on which he has competed. This has been especially challenging for the young D4D competitor as his background has primarily been on the local dirt tracks.
“For me, my best tracks where I feel most comfortable are the companion races and the faster tracks,” Gifford said. “I don’t have a lot of experience on pavement even though I’ve driven in the K&N Series for four years.”
“Before that, I raced all dirt,” Gifford continued. “So, all those kinds of race tracks compare more to the dirt than the little, slower short tracks that we go to. I think the slower places are the ones I struggle at more.”
“But last year, I did really well there too so I think this year will be fun,” Gifford said. “I know I still have a lot to learn but I’ve learned some of them the hard way. I think I’ve got a little experience under my belt and I’m ready to go for it.”
While Gifford will most certainly be concentrating on asphalt racing, his heart and roots remain in dirt and he will continue to race late models whenever possible.
“I think I’m looking at about 15 races this year,” Gifford said. “So, it will be exciting to fit all that into the schedule and try and make everything work.”
“But I’m really excited to be able to do all that and it really helps to stay in the seat when we have two or three weeks off.”
How does the young D4D competitor intend to balance the rigors of racing so often and on so many different surfaces?
“I think just staying in the race car is the biggest thing that helps me balance it all,” Gifford said. “And staying in different kinds of race cars helps me adapt.”
“I need to be a really versatile driver so that part will keep me mentally focused and not thinking about other things,” Gifford continued. “Aside from that, I stay busy at the shop and every now and then I try to squeeze in a work out to try to keep myself in shape. That keeps me comfortable when I’m in a race car.”
Gifford has been significantly influenced by Richard Childress Racing, from the choice of his racing idol to his two best friends in the sport.
“In the past, my racing idol has always been Dale Earnhardt but then, once I moved here, I’ve gotten to know the Dillon brothers and they are kind of like my brothers now,” Gifford said. “They have let me live with them for a couple of years and they’re really good friends.”
“Seeing them go up through the ranks and handle everything has been really cool and I really look up to both of them.”
Fans of the up and coming racer may also be surprised with his day job and his ability to work on his own race cars.
“I still work at the shop and I still work on Austin and Ty’s cars,” Gifford said. “That’s pretty much my during the week job.”
“Even K&N racing is still not the big time yet so you have to do what you can to pay the bills,” Gifford continued. “It’s a lot of fun to work on those cars.”
“I can pretty much build a race car from the ground up so I’m for sure a gear head,” Gifford said. “I’ve always had to work on my own race cars and to build them and keep them up so, I’ve learned pretty much every angle of the sport that I can, including building the cars and servicing them.”
“I think that’s a cool fact for fans to know.”
But what Gifford really wants fans to know is how he intends to approach his 2014 Drive for Diversity K&N Pro Series season.
“If I could choose one word to describe how I feel about the year and participating in the Drive for the Diversity Program it would be confident,” Gifford said. “I’m really excited for this year and can’t wait to get started.”
