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  • KBM teammates collide on last lap in controversial finish

    KBM teammates collide on last lap in controversial finish

    Two Kyle Busch Motorsports teammates, Todd Gilliland and Noah Gragson, were racing for the first and second position on the last lap at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park. Gilliland had worked hard all day to get his truck in position for the win.

    After slipping back and dominating most of the race by sweeping two stages, Gragson had slipped back a little after a restart to begin the final stage. However, with a late race caution, the No. 18 driver came back and was running in the second position.

    Gragson, who will be is a playoff driver, while Gilliland is not, caught the No. 4 in the final corner on the last lap. Since it was the last lap, all bets were off and with past history, something was going to happen. And that something ended up being, Gragson making a dive bomb move on the inside of Gilliland to try and advance on to the next round. Unfortunately, the move didn’t work out as planned and Gragson ended up taking out his teammate coming to the finish. Both were unable to recover from it and Gragson finished ninth while Gilliland had to settle for 11th after contact was made.

    Needless to say after having a shot at the win, Gilliland was not too happy with Gragson after being taken out for his first potential race win.

    “He (Noah Gragson) drove through me on the last corner, like we’ve seen in the past 12 years here,” Gilliland told MRN Radio. “That sucks. We had a really fast Frontline Enterprises Toyota Tundra. Can’t thank everyone at KBM. I hate he (Gragson) cost us the 1-2 finish. It’s very frustrating, but we just need to refocus and go get a win next week, and go win the rest of them.”

    Gragson, after starting on the front row in second and winning both stages, was disappointed after the contact was made with his teammate Gilliland.

    “I was making that move work all through the race,” Gragson told MRN Radio. “Most of the blame is on me. Ultimately, I wasn’t fully there. Todd (Gilliland) was a nose ahead of me, so he claimed the position, but was expecting his spotter to say inside getting into that last corner to his back wheel. That’s part of it. Unfortunately, I hate it for the 4 guys. I wasn’t trying to take him out. I was just trying to race hard, side-by-side to the finish line. Just not a lot of room when it came down to it. Strong Safelite Toyota Tundra. We’ll move to Vegas, but mainly just want to apologize to Todd, the 4 team, and everyone at Kyle Busch Motorsports. That one is on me.”

    Gragson wound up finishing ninth and now sits fourth in the playoff standings 24 points above the cut line.

    The NASCAR Camping World Truck Series take two weeks off and will head to Las Vegas Motor Speedway for the second race of the Playoffs in the Round of 8.

  • Justin Haley wins at Canada after controversial finish between KBM teammates

    Justin Haley wins at Canada after controversial finish between KBM teammates

    “Oh Canada” is Canada’s national anthem. However, some might be saying, Oh Brother, instead, after another wild finish at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park.

    For PG references, that’s what was going on between the minds of KBM teammates Todd Gilliland and Noah Gragson after Gragson made a move in the last turn of the race, spinning Gilliland and taking both of them out in the process, for the win. Neither could recover to win and fell back to finish ninth and 11, respectively.

    Noah Gragson and Todd Gilliland collide as Justin Haley speeds to the win at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park. Photo by Tim Jarrold for SpeedwayMedia.com.

    With the incident, it saw 2018 playoff driver Justin Haley break through and take the checkered flag for his second career win in the series and his first at CTMP.

    “I knew those KBM guys were gonna rough it up, especially Noah (Gragson) in there,” Justin Haley told MRN Radio. “He just wants a win as bad as we all do. So, I knew we were in the catbird seat and I liked where I was, and liked being third for that restart, kind of that plan. Gotta hand it to these guys. Hats off. We’ve been chasing this one for a long time and road courses, and finally got it done. It’s all them guys (GMS Racing) not me.”

    Qualifying took place in the rain yesterday evening and with that, it saw playoff drivers, Ben Rhodes and Noah Gragson on the front row. As the race began with Stage 1 being 20 laps, the action was fast and furious from the start.

    Rhodes got out to the lead, but Gragson followed him closely behind until he took the lead on Lap 7. From there, Gragson dominated and went on to win the first stage. There were a couple of incidents without yellows due to the nature of the road course. Jordan Anderson spun around, Stewart Friesen spun, and Myatt Snider spun around after contact with Johnny Sauter. With the road course being long enough and allowing drivers to get back to speed, there were no cautions for these incidents.

    Stage 2 got underway on Lap 24 and went to Lap 40.

    After falling back shortly on the restart, Gragson was able to take the lead once more on Lap 25 and he held on for nine laps. The second caution of the day came out on Lap 32 for the 20 of Max Tullman who stalled on the track. This saw playoff drivers, Sauter and Grant Enfinger pit for strategy and track position. Unfortunately, Enfinger’s truck pulled the gas can with him and was penalized for removing equipment, and had to serve a stop and go penalty.

    The restart came with six to go in Stage 2. With no more incidents in the second stage, Gragson collected his ninth stage win of the year.

    After a lengthy cleanup and caution, the final stage resumed with 16 laps to go. Sauter took the lead on the restart from Gragson. However, another caution flew for the 22 of Austin Wayne Self who spun out after contact with Friesen and John Hunter Nemechek on the backstretch.

    After the restart with 13 to go, Gilliland took the lead two laps later. Gragson passed Rhodes and Enfinger for second. But, a caution came with four to go after Wayne Self had contact with Jason White in Turn 3, setting up NASCAR overtime for a two-lap restart.

    As seen in recent history, most finishes come down to the very last lap and the very last turn and that was the case again for this year’s running at CTMP.

    With the contact made between the teammates, Haley scored his first ever win at CTMP and advanced himself into the Round of 6.

    “I don’t know if we’re going to take a break,” Haley told MRN Radio. “It’s definitely going to be a lot less heavy breathing. We don’t got to worry about it. Like I said, Las Vegas is our best track and at Talladega, we’re good and it’s a wildcard, so, this is what we came here to do and we accomplished our mission.”

    There were five cautions for 18 laps with six leaders among eight lead changes.

    There will be a two-week break for the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series until the series returns to Las Vegas Friday night September 14 for the second race in the Round of 8.

    Here’s where the rest of the playoff contenders finished in the annual running of the Chevrolet Silverado 250.

    3. Brett Moffitt
    5. Matt Crafton
    6. Johnny Sauter
    7. Stewart Friesen
    9. Noah Gragson
    14. Ben Rhodes
    17. Grant Enfinger

    Playoff Point Standings
    1. Justin Haley
    2. Johnny Sauter +35
    3. Brett Moffitt +29
    4. Noah Gragson +24
    5. Matt Crafton +1
    6. Stewart Friesen +1

    Below the cut line
    7. Ben Rhodes -1
    8. Grant Enfinger -12

  • NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Power Rankings-Bristol

    NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Power Rankings-Bristol

    As the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series completed their 16th race of the season, the 2018 Truck Series Playoff grid is set and eight drivers will compete for the championship beginning at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park on Sunday, Aug. 26.

    While a familiar foe ended up in victory lane at Bristol Motor Speedway Thursday night, others who needed a strong night got their wish and some had their best career finish.

    Here’s a look at this week’s power rankings.

      1. Johnny Sauter – By just starting the race, Sauter clinched the 2018 Truck Series regular season championship. He didn’t stop there, however, as he went on to win his fifth race of the season. Sauter finished second in both stages. He took the lead twice throughout the race. With 15 to go, he and GMS ally, Stewart Friesen battled each other and raced each other hard for the second position. This allowed race leader John Hunter Nemechek to pull away late, but issues in the No. 8 truck saw him fade to third place and saw Sauter take the lead. He was able to fend off Friesen by .236 seconds and was crowned 2018 Truck Series regular season champion. With his fifth win of the season, he will be able to carry over 42 points into the 2018 Playoffs. Sauter continues to be the guy to beat in the 2018 season. Previous Week Ranking: 2nd
      2. Stewart Friesen – Friesen was a Playoff bubble driver until the middle of Stage 2. With enough points and a couple of stage wins this year, he was able to clinch a spot in the Playoffs which allowed the No. 52 team to breathe easy and gave the okay to chase for his first possible win. Friesen finished seventh and fourth in both stages, respectively. He’ll be racing in his first ever race at his home track this weekend at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park, the site of the first Playoff race. Nonetheless, Friesen will have to have finishes like Bristol this past weekend in order to be a Championship 4 contender at Homestead-Miami. Friesen is placed fifth in the Playoffs standings. Previous Week Ranking: Not Ranked
      3. Todd Gilliland – Gilliland continues to shine in the 2018 Truck Series season in the No. 4 Kyle Busch Motorsports Toyota Tundra. In a lot of the tracks where he is making his first start in a truck, he looks like a seasoned veteran. After starting in the eighth position, Gilliland fell back quickly due to a loose truck and wound up 13th. In Stage 2, he was involved in an incident when he spun around in Turn 4 collecting the 97 of Jesse Little. While Gilliland didn’t collect any stage points, he was able to rebound to finish in the top five for his third top five of the year. He missed out on the Playoffs, but that doesn’t mean he can’t play spoiler in the Playoffs by winning races. Previous Week Ranking: 3rd
      4. Ben Rhodes – Rhodes continued his consistent success by finishing in the top-10 this past week at Bristol. He started second on the front row and finished fifth and seventh in both stages, collecting stage points. With his win at Kentucky, Rhodes was already locked into the Playoffs. He just needed to win and have a solid night in order to prepare for the Playoffs. And after a rocky start to the season, the tide is starting to turn for the No. 41 ThorSport Racing team with a seventh-place finish. This was Rhodes ninth top-10 of the 2018 season. He’ll be a part of the eight driver Playoff grid at Canada, where he is the fourth seed. Previous Week Ranking: 4th
      5. Justin Haley – Haley is another driver who continues to carry consistency in each race. He hasn’t had a bad finish since Iowa where he finished 16th. Since then, Haley has finished in the top-10 with a win at Gateway. The No. 24 GMS Racing team finished 10th and ninth in both stages respectively earning stage points. As the 16th race of the season completed at Bristol on lap 200, Haley and the No. 24 Fraternal Order of Eagles finished sixth after starting 11th. It was his 12th top-10 of the 2018 season. GMS Racing now has two trucks in the Playoffs, three if you include the GMS ally, Friesen. They are the team to beat in the 2018 Truck Series Playoffs. Previous Week Ranking: Not Ranked

    Fell Out

      1. Noah Gragson – Gragson finished ninth in the first stage, but did not collect any points in Stage 2. But, he did come back to finish ninth for his 12th top-10 of the year and is now in the Playoffs. He’ll be seeded in the third position.
      2. Brett Moffitt – After a thrilling win at Michigan the week before, Moffitt and the No. 16 team was brought back to reality on Thursday night. He had a tough qualifying outing by qualifying in the 14th position. Not all was lost, however, as he was able to finish third in Stage 2. But the night continued to get worse for the Hattori Racing team as they continued to slip back and finish in the 18th position. With four wins this year, Moffitt is now locked into the Playoffs and is seeded in the second position.
  • 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.

     

  • Four Takeaways From The NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Race At Michigan

    Four Takeaways From The NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Race At Michigan

    The NASCAR Camping World Truck Series visited the two-mile racetrack located in Irish Hills of Brooklyn, Michigan, Michigan International Speedway. It proved to be another exciting race for the 15th race of the season and that action will be intense come Thursday night at Bristol Motor Speedway.

    Here are four takeaways from the Corrigan Oil 200.

    1. Last Lap Excitement – The Truck Series continued to put on another exciting race this past weekend at Michigan. It started with qualifying Saturday morning when John Hunter Nemechek beat Todd Gilliland for the pole by 0.01 seconds. This would set the tone for the day and the end of the race. In what would look like Johnny Sauter’s fifth win of the year, Noah Gragson and Nemechek hooked up with each other to catch Brett Moffitt and Sauter. It did not go as planned for them but it worked for eventual race winner Moffitt, who backed up to Nemechek’s front bumper and made a last lap pass on Sauter coming to the finish line. It was Moffitt’s fourth win of the year. If everything continues to go Moffitt’s way and sponsorship continues to come, we could see him and the No. 16 Hattori Racing team in the final four spot at Homestead-Miami in November.
    2. Stewart Friesen Continues Solid Season – Friesen continued his solid season to date on Saturday afternoon. He can breathe a little easier after winning the first stage and finishing ninth in the second stage. If Friesen and the No. 52 Halmar racing team has a clean race at Bristol and finish where he’s been finishing, then he should be able to lock himself into the Playoffs and challenge for the championship.
    3. Playoffs Set In Stone – After Michigan and with one race remaining until the Playoffs begin, the standings are pretty much set in stone. Of course, it’s not over until the checkered flag drops and we have seen stranger things happen, but the standings should stay the way they are unless one of the three bubble drivers have trouble and fail to finish. Other than that, what we see currently, will be what see for the 2018 playoff standings.
    4. Johnny Sauter One To Beat – As we’ve already seen this season and saw again on Saturday, 2016 champion, Johnny Sauter continues to be the man to beat for the championship this year. Saturday could have been his fifth win of the year but he is still sitting in good shape to clinch the regular season championship on Thursday night at Bristol. With four wins, 11 top fives, 12 top 10 finishes and 340 laps led this season, Sauter should end up in the Championship 4. If anyone wants to win the championship, they’ll have to go through Sauter and the No. 21 GMS Racing team.
  • NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Power Rankings-Pocono

    NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Power Rankings-Pocono

    The NASCAR Camping World Truck Series continued their mid-season run this past weekend by visiting the Pocono Raceway in Long Pond, Pennsylvania.

    In what was the 14th scheduled race of the season, a few new drivers shined and one almost collected their first win, while familiar foes posted a top-10 finish continuing their race to the playoffs. With an off-weekend coming up, there will be two races left until the Playoffs begin.

    Here’s a look at this weeks power rankings.

    1. Justin Haley – Haley continues his strong 2018 Truck Series season by posting another top-five finish at the 2.5-mile racetrack. He started third and finished second in the first stage after almost pulling off a last lap pass to win. But he fell out of the top-10 in the second stage due to some late-race pit stops. Haley eventually fought his way back into the top-five, finishing fifth and posting his fifth top-five of the year. He continues to be a quiet contender in the run to the Playoffs and ultimately could end up being a contender in the final four as they race for the championship at Homestead-Miami. Previous Week Ranking: 5th
    2. Stewart Friesen- Friesen is oh so close to getting that first win of the season. He continues to post strong finishes inside the top-five throughout the season and continues to be a bubble driver of potentially making/not making the Playoffs in 2018. However, Friesen could breathe a little easier, but not by much, with just two races to go. On Saturday afternoon, he ran a quiet race and didn’t make too much noise. In Stage 1, he finished eighth, while he won the second stage after leading four laps to the end of the second stage, earning one playoff point. After having to pit at the end of stage two and getting shuffled back, as other leaders pit for strategy, Friesen fought his way to a fourth-place finish. Previous Week Ranking: 2nd
    3. Dalton Sargeant – If anyone could challenge the race leaders for the win, it was GMS Racing driver, Dalton Sargeant who had the best career finish of his career so far. After a qualifying effort of fourth, Sargeant stayed there for much of the race. In Stage 1, he finished third not too far behind Todd Gilliland and Haley. However, like other race leaders, he pitted near the end of Stage 2 to have track position for the end of the final stage. As soon as Stage 3 started, Sargeant took the lead from Friesen and led for four laps until getting passed by eventual race winner Kyle Busch. Ultimately, he finished third for his first top-five of the year. If the team continues to run like they did at Pocono, they could surprise the field and be in the Playoffs. Previous Week Ranking: Not Ranked
    4. Grant Enfinger – After coming close to a win at Eldora last week, Enfinger is hungry for a win as he too sits on the cut line for the Playoffs. He placed fifth in Stage 1 and second in Stage 2, respectively. However, on a track where it is tough to pass and with the field getting so spread out, Enfinger had a hard time challenging for the win. He would have to settle for a sixth-place finish, earning him his fourth top-five of the year. He’ll need to continue to have days like Saturday in order to point his way into the Playoffs. Previous Week Ranking: 1st
    5. Todd Gilliland – Gilliland made his first ever career track start at Pocono this past weekend. He had a lot of track time by racing in the shortened ARCA race on Friday where he finished sixth after pitting early on. He had two practice sessions as well to keep him busy in trying to figure out The Tricky Triangle. With the added seat time, it looked liked it helped as Gilliland started on the outside pole with his teammate Kyle Busch. Gilliland led one lap before getting passed by Busch. But toward the end of the stage, Busch, along with others, pitted to have track position for the second stage. Gilliland stayed out and won the first stage after leading seven laps. In the final stage, the No. 4 KBM driver stayed out and restarted in the 11th position. As the checkered flag fell at the end of 60 laps, Gilliland and the No. 4 KBM team found themselves finishing seventh. Previous Week Ranking: Not RankedFell Out
      1. Brett Moffitt – Moffit had right front suspension problems at the end of Stage 1 and finished 26th.
      2.  Matt Crafton – Crafton continues to have his most challenging season to date since 2012. Starting 20th, Crafton didn’t place inside the top-10 at all during either stage but fought his way to ninth place. He continues to be winless in 2018.
  • NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Preview-Pocono

    NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Preview-Pocono

    With just three races until the Playoffs begin at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park on Aug. 26, the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series continues their exciting season this weekend at Pocono Raceway.

    With five drivers locked in by virtue of wins, three drivers find themselves on the bubble of not making it. From this weekend until Bristol could make the difference and provide the opportunity to lock themselves into the Playoffs.

    Currently, there are 32 trucks on the preliminary entry list.

    Here’s a look at who to expect that might end up in victory lane Saturday afternoon in The Tricky Triangle.

    1. Kyle Busch – Busch will be back in the series for the first time since Charlotte in May. He’ll be looking to make history on Saturday afternoon as he’ll be searching to tie Ron Hornaday’s all-time Truck Series wins list at 51. Busch has been close this season to tying or surpassing the record. Aside from the tire issue at Atlanta, Busch won at Las Vegas and finished second twice at Kansas and Charlotte. We could already be talking about a different story if he had won at those racetracks, but Busch will be more hungry than ever to get back to victory lane in the Truck Series. Pocono could be the track he could tie Hornaday’s records due to recent past success. He has only competed in three races at The Tricky Triangle and has had so-so finishes. In his first race in 2011, Busch finished second to race winner Kevin Harvick. He never competed again until 2015 where he won the race after starting second. In the previous race, Busch was involved in an accident on lap 36 thus ending his shot at a win. He’s led 85 laps and has an average finish of 9.3 with an average start of 2.0. He’ll be looking for the weekend sweep at Pocono this weekend.
    2. Johnny Sauter – After a dismal week at Eldora last week, Sauter is glad to be out of Ohio and back on the normal series circuit. Like Busch, Sauter is looking to get back to victory lane after a couple of bad finishes. Sauter hasn’t won since Texas in June and hasn’t had a top-five finish since Chicago where he finished third. Since then, however, he’s had finishes of 15th at Kentucky and 16th at Eldora. At Pocono, Sauter will try to find victory lane. In eight races, he has three top fives and five top-10 finishes, along with 16 laps led. En route to his 2016 championship, he started 11th and finished eighth. In the previous outing at Pocono, Sauter finished fifth after starting seventh. His best finish at the 1.5-mile raceway was second back in 2014. Whether it will be Saturday afternoon or later on in his career, Sauter will cross Pocono off the tracks where he hasn’t won. It’s only a matter of time for the No. 21 GMS Racing Chevy driver.
    3. Todd Gilliland – It will be a learning curve for Gilliland this weekend at Pocono, as he will be making his first ever Truck Series start. However, if past history has told us anything, nothing is new for the Kyle Busch Motorsports driver. In his first ever 1.5 mile start at Charlotte, he finished 10th after starting third but had late-race contact that settled him back a little bit in the finishing order. He’ll be competing in the ARCA Racing Series Friday afternoon to gain more practice and knowledge about Pocono. The truck Gilliland will be driving has finished second and ran at Texas and Chicago. This truck has led 62 laps.
    4. Ben Rhodes – After a tough outing at Eldora last week, Rhodes will be looking to get back in victory lane since Kentucky and this weekend could be his chance to do it. He only has two starts at the 1.5-mile racetrack dating back to 2016, where he finished 11th. His best finish was second in last years race after starting on the pole. He has an average start of 2.0 and an average finish of 6.5. In the two stages last year, Rhodes finished third and fourth respectively en route to his second-place finish.
    5. Brett Moffitt – Moffitt will be back racing at Pocono this weekend for the first time since 2016. In his only race here, he competed for Red Horse Racing driving the No. 11 where he finished third after starting 15th. Moffitt has had success at 1.5-mile tracks this year, however. His first success was back in February when he won at Atlanta. A third-place finish at Las Vegas, fourth at Charlotte and a win at Chicago were his best finishes at those 1.5-mile tracks this season. It’ll be interesting to see how Moffitt performs for the first time since 2016.

    Since the first event in 2010, there have been eight different winners in eight races. The winners include Elliott Sadler, Kevin Harvick, Joey Coulter, Ryan Blaney, Austin Dillon, Kyle Busch, William Byron, and Christopher Bell.

    The lowest a race winner has ever come was sixth back in 2013 and was won by Ryan Blaney. The race winner has won from the pole three times with Elliott Sadler, Kevin Harvick, and William Byron.

    There are two practice sessions scheduled for Friday afternoon with the first one taking place at noon ET with the final practice at 2 p.m. ET, with no live TV coverage. Qualifying is slated for Saturday morning at 10 a.m. ET on Fox Sports 1.

    Race coverage begins at 1 p.m. ET Saturday with an approximate green flag at 1:15 p.m. ET and will be live on Fox Sports 1 and MRN Radio. The first stage ends on Lap 15, with the second stage ending on Lap 30 and the checkered flag flying on Lap 60.

  • NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Preview-Chicago

    NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Preview-Chicago

    After another exciting race at Gateway last weekend, the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series continues its season and reaches the halfway point at Chicagoland Speedway.

    Last year, this race was held prior to the eight race Playoffs and decided the regular season champion. However, this year, it is now a summertime race but it is still an important race as stage points and a race win are still up for grabs.

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

    Here’s who to expect on might end up in victory lane in Friday nights Overton’s 225.

    1. John Hunter Nemechek – Nemechek will pilot the No. 8 NEMCO Motorsports truck this weekend. He’ll be hungry for a win after exiting the race late last week at Gateway due to an issue. Chicago could be the place where he will break the drought and end up in victory lane. In three races, Nemechek has an average start of 13.7 and an average finish of 7.3. In that time span, he had one win which came in 2015 and he finished 14th and seventh in the last two races. Nemechek will be a prime contender in this week’s race if all the cards fall in the right place.
    2. Johnny Sauter – How could one ever overlook a four-time winner this year going for win number five? Sauter has nine starts dating back to 2009 and is the previous race winner.  He also has an average start of 9.1 and an average finish of 8.0 and has led 106 laps. Sauter earned a pole here back in 2014 where he finished 14th. In last year’s race, the No. 21 GMS Racing team finished second and fourth in the first two stages, respectively, before taking the lead on Lap 123 en route to victory after leading the final 28 laps.
    3. Myatt Snider – While Snider only has one start at Chicago which came last year after finishing 10th, he’ll have his Thorsport Racing teammates to lean on for advice, especially two-time champion, Matt Crafton, who has nine starts. He is also carrying momentum from last week’s fourth-place finish, which was his first top five of the year. .
    4. Todd Gilliland – After turning 18 a few weeks ago, Gilliland has been consistent with his finishes, despite not finishing at Iowa and being relegated to 29th. It will be his first start at Chicago, but it is also another 1.5-mile track where he does have experience. At Charlotte, he finished 10th with a sixth-place finish the following week at Fort Worth, both 1.5-mile tracks. It will be a little bit of a learning curve with it being his first start, but if past finishes say anything, Gilliland will be a contender for the win. He will also be competing in Thursday night’s ARCA race.
    5. Stewart Friesen – Friesen has been a solid contender this year in the Truck Series. If not for issues late in previous races this year, he could have had multiple race victories in 2018. At the 1.5-mile race tracks, he finished sixth at Atlanta, fifth at Las Vegas after leading 31 laps, third at Kansas (led six laps), sixth at Charlotte, won the pole and finished second at Texas while leading 13 laps. He has certainly been a contender for the win this year at these tracks, but for whatever reason, can’t quite get the No. 52 truck to victory lane yet. If he wins this weekend, not only will it be his first win, but it could be the first of many this season and he could be a prime contender at Homestead for the championship.

    The trucks have competed at Chicagoland nine times with five different winners, those being Kyle Busch, Austin Dillon, James Buescher, Nemechek, and Sauter. Busch is the only repeat winner at the track with five wins.

    The trucks will have two practice sessions scheduled for Thursday afternoon. The first practice takes place at 5:30 p.m. ET and the final practice will be held at 6:35 p.m. ET with no live TV coverage.

    Qualifying is slated for Friday afternoon at 5:40 p.m. ET on Fox Sports 2.

    Race coverage begins at 8:30 p.m. ET and with the approximate green flag taking place at 9:19 p.m. ET, both on Fox Sports 1 and MRN Radio. Stages will be broken up into 35/70/150 laps.

  • NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Power Rankings-Gateway

    NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Power Rankings-Gateway

    The NASCAR Camping World Truck Series visited Gateway Motorsports Park this past weekend for race number 10 of 22 for the series.

    Just like last week’s finish at Iowa, the Truck Series regulars once again didn’t disappoint in the Eaton 200. Here’s a look at this weeks power rankings.

    1) Johnny Sauter – Sauter tops the power rankings this week with a third-place finish. While he didn’t win at Gateway, Sauter was a force to be reckoned with throughout the race. Despite not leading any laps, he placed in the top-10 in both stages and finished third after having a shot at the win in a late race restart. This was his ninth top-five finish of the year. Previous Week Ranking: 2nd

    2) Todd Gilliland – After last week’s troubles at Iowa in a crash, the Kyle Busch Motorsports driver and recent high school graduate, Gilliland, was able to celebrate a career-best finish of second. The 18-year-old driver started eighth but battled handling issues in Stage 1. He made a pit stop during the first caution and worked his way up to 12th for the first stage. Stage 2 was much better as he stayed inside the top-10 and finished third. When all was said and done, Gilliland placed the No. 4 Royal Canin Toyota second for his best career finish. Previous Week Ranking: Not Ranked

    3) Noah Gragson –  Gragson had the truck to beat in Saturday night’s race. With a strong qualifying effort of third, the Las Vegas Nevada driver finished second and fourth, respectively, in both stages. He had a dominant truck as Gragson led twice for 63 laps. However, late-race cautions hurt his chances for a shot at the win. In a restart with six to go, he drove into Turn 1 a little too wide and had to pit for tires with another late caution. Ultimately, Gragson had to settle for a 10th place finish and will have to wait another week to grab his second win of the season. Previous Week Ranking: 3rd

    4) Myatt Snider – Snider quietly posted his first top-five finish of the year. His team qualified 14th. After some varying pit strategy and cautions fell in their favor, Snider and his No. 13 Thorsport Racing team finished fourth. This puts him ninth in the standings and one spot below the cut off line. He now heads to Chicago for his first Truck Series start there, but he does have experience there racing in the ARCA Racing Series. Previous Week Ranking: Not Ranked

    5) Jesse Little – Just like Snider, Little had another quiet night inside the top-10. The small funded No. 97 team started ninth and finished ninth, and seventh, respectively in both stages. At the end of the night, Little finished seventh for his fourth top-10 of the year. Previous Week Ranking: 4th

    Fell Out of Power Rankings:

    1) Brett Moffitt – Moffitt had a strong truck throughout most of the race, however, with two to go for the restart, after the inside line had trouble restarting, Little had accidentally got lose and got into the No. 16 team who had spun out after that contact. Moffitt had to settle for a disappointing 14th place finish. The team is searching for sponsorship and is still unsure if they will be at Chicagoland this weekend.

    2) Harrison Burton- Burton did not compete in this weeks race due to age restriction and requirements

  • NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Preview-Iowa

    NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Preview-Iowa

    The NASCAR Camping World Truck Series heads to the midwest again this weekend, as the series regulars head to Iowa Speedway. This is the second standalone event of the season for the series.

    Currently, there are 35 trucks on the preliminary entry list this weekend for the annual M&Ms 200.

    Fifteen drivers will be making their first track debut. These include Camden Murphy, Austin Hill, Cory Roper, Todd Gilliland, Reid Wilson, Myatt Snider, Bobby Reuse, Brett Moffitt, Tanner Thorson, Dalton Sargeant, Justin Fontaine, Christian Eckes, Stewart Friesen, Bo LeMastus and Bayley Currey.

    Note: Christian Eckes will be making his Truck Series debut driving the No. 46 Mobil 1 Toyota Tundra for Kyle Busch Motorsports.

    Here’s a look at who might be challenging for the win this weekend at the small .875-mile track.

    1. Johnny Sauter – It should be no surprise that Sauter, once again, tops the chart this week but it’s hard to overlook someone who has done so much in a sport that’s called, ‘What Have You Done for Me Lately?’ Lately, he has earned season win number four last week at Texas Motor Speedway. It’s also hard to stop someone who has been on a roll and carrying so much momentum this season. However, Iowa will be a little challenge and a curve-ball this week for the No. 21 GMS Racing. Sauter has no wins in 11 races, but he does have seven top fives and eight top-10 finishes, along with an average start of 9.8 and an average finish of 7.4. His last five finishes have been second, 10th, 17th, 18th, and fourth, respectively. But if he does pull out the win this Saturday night, it shouldn’t be surprising due to the fact that he’s been the Kevin Harvick of the Truck Series.
    2. John Hunter Nemechek – John Hunter Nemechek returns to pilot the No. 8 Nemco Motorsports Chevy. He is high on the list this week because Nemechek is the recent race winner of the event. In last year’s race, he started fifth and led just six laps. He also finished seventh and third, respectively in both stages. Nemechek has also led 59 laps in total at the track, including obtaining a 5.5 average start and an average finish of 11.5. Other finishes include 12th, 23rd (DNF), and 10th in his four starts at the track. He also has one top-five finish and two top-10 finishes. Nemechek will certainly be a challenger for the win this week at Iowa.
    3. Stewart Friesen – After last week’s performance, it’s hard to not count Friesen out to contend for the win. He and his No. 52 Halmar Racing is slowly but surely, becoming more and more of a contender each week in challenging for race wins. Friesen came up .092 seconds short of his first win to Johnny Sauter. This will be his first-ever start at Iowa Speedway this weekend.
    4. Todd Gilliland – Gilliland will be making his first ever Truck Series start at Iowa, but he does have previous starts and experience at the racetrack. His starts came in the NASCAR K&N Series as well as the ARCA Racing Series. In last year’s race, Gilliland started fourth and won after dominating the whole race by leading 147 laps. He has also made one start in the ARCA Racing Series driving for Venturini Motorsports starting 11th and finishing ninth. Gilliland has already proven himself as a contender for the win and if the opportunity strikes, he could end up in victory lane this weekend. What a win that would be for the recent high school graduate.
    5. Matt Crafton – Crafton will be making his 12th career start at Iowa this weekend and is still searching for the first win of the 2018 season. At Iowa, he has made 11 career starts and posted one win which came in 2011, seven years ago. He also has five top-five finishes and along with 10 top-1os. Crafton has also led 89 laps throughout his career at this place and has an average start of 9.7 and an average finish of 6.3. However, in the recent outing, he did not finish after getting involved in a late-race crash and salvaged a 19th place finish. While it seems as though the No. 88 Menards Ford F-150 is still searching for speed this season if they play their cards right and right calls happen, Crafton will earn his first win of the season and lock himself into the Playoffs.

    Iowa Speedway has seen 11 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series ever since the series went there in 2009. Erik Jones and Timothy Peters have been the only repeat winners. Other winners include Mike Skinner, Austin Dillon, Matt Crafton, James Buescher, William Byron and defending race winner, John Hunter Nemechek. Qualifying will be important if you want to collect a race win as previous race winners have started, fifth twice, first, second, and third.

    Stages will be broken up into 60/120/200.

    The Truck Series will have a one day show with first practice beginning at 9:35 a.m. ET on Fox Sports 1 and final practice at 11:00 a.m. ET on Fox Sports 2. Qualifying is slated for Saturday afternoon at 4:30 p.m. ET on FS2.

    Race coverage begins at 7 p.m. ET on Fox Sports 1 and MRN Radio, with the green flag scheduled to drop at 7:19 p.m. ET, approximately.