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Tag: William Sawalich

  • Joe Gibbs Racing reveals driver-crew chief lineup for 2024 Xfinity Series season

    Joe Gibbs Racing reveals driver-crew chief lineup for 2024 Xfinity Series season

    Joe Gibbs Racing revealed its highly anticipated driver lineup for the 2024 NASCAR Xfinity Series season that will feature two new full-time additions, a notable veteran and a combination of new and familiar part-time faces that will result into a four-car expansion for the organization.

    The organization’s first new addition features Sheldon Creed, who will be piloting the No. 18 Toyota GR Supra on a full-time basis. The 26-year-old Creed from Alpine, California, joins JGR following a two-year campaign at Richard Childress Racing, where he recorded seven runner-up results, 11 top-five finishes and 28 top-10 results during the stint. He also made the 2023 Xfinity Series Playoffs before settling in a career-best seventh place in the final standings.

    The 2024 season is set to mark Creed’s first campaign driving a Toyota within NASCAR’s top three national touring series as he spent his entire career piloting a Chevrolet (2016-23). Having previously won the 2018 ARCA Menards Series and the 2020 Craftsman Truck Series championships, Creed approaches the 2024 season with aims of both achieving his first victory in the Xfinity circuit and returning to the Playoffs.

    Another new full-time addition to JGR’s lineup for next season is Chandler Smith, who will be assuming the reigns of the No. 81 GR Supra. Smith’s move to JGR comes as the 21-year-old native from Talking Rock, Georgia, is coming off his first full-time campaign in the Xfinity circuit with Kaulig Racing, where he notched his first career victory at Richmond Raceway in April. He also claimed three poles, eight top-five results, 13 top-10 results, an average-finishing result of 15.6 and a spot in the 2023 Xfinity Playoffs, where he ended up in ninth place in the final standings. Despite being initially locked into a three-year deal with Kaulig, Smith ended up paying a buyout of his contract to depart the organization early, with the official announcement of his departure from Kaulig being made last October.

    Smith’s move to Joe Gibbs Racing also marks his return to the Toyota Racing family following a one-year absence. He previously achieved 10 ARCA Menards Series victories with Venturini Motorsports (2018-20 & 2022) and five Craftsman Truck Series victories with Kyle Busch Motorsports (2021-22), all while piloting Toyota entries. With the 2024 season within the horizon, Smith, who ended up in the runner-up spot in the 2023 rookie standings, strives to return to the Playoffs and contend for both additional victories and the title in the Xfinity circuit.

    With Creed and Smith locked in as full-time competitors, Joe Gibbs Racing will also be fielding two additional entries that will each be piloted by multiple competitors throughout the 2024 season.

    The first All-Star entry features the No. 20 Toyota GR Supra that will be primarily split between Aric Almirola and John Hunter Nemechek.

    The 39-year-old Almirola from Tampa, Florida, is coming off his 12th full-time campaign in the NASCAR Cup Series and sixth driving for Stewart-Haas Racing, where he settled in 22nd place in the 2023 final driver’s standings on the strength of two poles, two top-five results and five top-10 results. Despite announcing his retirement from full-time NASCAR competition following the 2023 season in late October, Almirola remained interested in pursuing a part-time campaign within the Xfinity circuit for the 2024 season.

    Almirola’s upcoming part-time campaign with JGR reunites both parties as the Floridian commenced his NASCAR career with the organization between 2005 and 2007. Having achieved three victories in 460 career starts in the NASCAR Cup Series, Almirola has also made 104 career starts in the Xfinity circuit. During the span, he recorded a total of four victories, with his latest occurring at Sonoma Raceway in June as he delivered the first victory for RSS Racing. The move to JGR will mark his first campaign in a Toyota since the 2010-11 Truck Series seasons.

    Meanwhile, Nemechek returns for his third Xfinity campaign with at least one start in the series for JGR. He will commence the 2024 campaign by competing in the series’ first two-scheduled events at Daytona International Speedway and at Atlanta Motor Speedway, both in mid-February, before returning to compete at Nashville Superspeedway in late June, all while sponsored by Pye-Barker Fire & Safety. The events at Daytona, Atlanta and Nashville are just three of 10-scheduled starts planned for Nemechek, with the remaining seven venues yet to be revealed. The 26-year-old Nemechek from Mooresville, North Carolina, is coming off a full-time campaign with JGR in the Xfinity Series, where he drove the No. 20 entry to a season-high seven victories, two poles, 17 top-five results, 24 top-10 results, 1,083 laps led and an average-finishing result of 9.5. He would also make the Playoffs and claim a Championship 4 berth, where he would settle in fourth place in the final driver’s standings. In addition to his part-time Xfinity campaign, Nemechek is set to compete in the Cup Series on a full-time basis for Legacy Motor Club.

    For JGR’s second All-Star entry, the following names that include Joe Graf Jr., Taylor Gray, William Sawalich and Ryan Truex will be splitting driving responsibilities of the No. 19 Toyota GR Supra.

    For Truex, the 31-year-old native from Mayetta, New Jersey, is coming off his second consecutive part-time campaign with JGR, where he achieved his first career victory both in the Xfinity circuit and within NASCAR’s top three national touring series at Dover Motor Speedway in April. He also recorded two additional top-five results in six total starts, all occurring in JGR’s No. 19 entry.

    The 2024 season will mark Truex’s fifth part-time Xfinity campaign with JGR (2011-12, 2022-23). In 24 Xfinity starts with JGR, Truex has achieved one victory, six top-five results and 14 top-10 results. In total, he has made 90 career starts in the Xfinity Series, where he has accumulated eight top-five results and 30 top-10 results.

    For Graf, the 25-year-old native from Mahwah, New Jersey, returns for a second part-time campaign with JGR after making his first six starts with the organization this past season. During the stint, he recorded two top-10 results while making the rest of his 27 series starts at RSS Racing as he ended up in 23rd place in the final standings. Currently, he has made 126 career starts in the Xfinity Series and has accumulated a total of five top-10 results.

    For Gray, the 18-year-old native from Artesia, New Mexico, joins both JGR and the Xfinity Series as a newcomer, though his first part-time schedule with the organization has yet to be announced. In addition to the Xfinity Series, Gray is set to compete on a full-time basis in this year’s Craftsman Truck Series season with TRICON Garage after competing in nearly the entire schedule this past season, where he recorded six top-10 results and settled in 15th place in the final standings. He previously recorded nine victories across the ARCA Racing Series divisions, including three in the ARCA Menards Series.

    Lastly, Sawalich, another newcomer to the Xfinity Series, will compete in the closing stretches of the upcoming Xfinity schedule once he turns 18 years of age on October 3. His schedule will involve the final three events at Homestead-Miami Speedway in mid-October followed by Martinsville Speedway and Phoenix Raceway, respectively, in early November.

    The 17-year-old Sawalich from Eden Prairie, Minnestoa, is coming off a 25-race schedule across the ARCA Racing Series for JGR. Throughout his stint, Sawalich secured the 2023 ARCA Menards Series East championship on the strength of four victories and finishing no lower than fourth place throughout the eight-race schedule. He would also record four victories in the ARCA Menards Series and a single victory in the ARCA West finale at Phoenix Raceway in November.

    In addition to his part-time Xfinity schedule, Sawalich will pilot JGR’s No. 18 entry for a majority of the 2024 ARCA Menards Series schedule as he will share the ride with Tanner Gray, who competes in the Truck Series for TRICON Garage.

    The amount of races that will occur between Almirola, Graf, Gray, Nemechek and Truex between the Nos. 19 and 20 entries remain to be determined.

    Photo by John Knittel for SpeedwayMedia.com.

    “Over the last couple of months, we’ve been working diligently to put together our 2024 Xfinity program which will include the addition of a fourth team,” Steve DeSouza, EVP NASCAR Xfinity Series/Development at JGR, said. “Our 2024 roster has a great balance of experience, youth, wisdom, and talent. We believe the veteran drivers will continually benchmark our program, compliment, and challenge each other, as well as assist our younger drivers to further develop their skill set. We are also excited about our crew chiefs and the teams they have assembled. We take a lot of pride in not only our program’s on-track success, but also in the opportunity to develop and promote our team members.”

    The crew chief lineup for JGR’s four-car entry will feature a bevy of first-timers alongside a notable name. Veteran Jeff Meendering returns for his sixth season with JGR as he will be paired with Chandler Smith and the No. 81 entry. Meanwhile, Tyler Allen, a former Xfinity and Cup engineer for JGR, will graduate to the role of crew chief for the No. 20 entry that will be split between Almirola and Nemechek while Seth Chavka, a former lead race engineer for JGR, will campaign in his first full-time season as a crew chief for the No. 19 entry that will be split between Graf, Gray, Sawalich and Truex. Lastly, Sam McAulay, who previously served as a lead race engineer for veteran Denny Hamlin in the Cup Series, will assume the role as crew chief for JGR’s No. 18 entry that will be piloted by Creed.

    With the driver and crew chief lineup set, Joe Gibbs Racing’s campaign in the 2024 NASCAR Xfinity Series season is scheduled to commence at Daytona International Speedway for the United Rentals 300. The event’s broadcast time is scheduled to occur on February 17, 2024, at 5 p.m. ET on FS1.

  • Enfinger dominates in Truck’s return at Milwaukee Mile, clinches Playoff’s Round of 8 spot

    Enfinger dominates in Truck’s return at Milwaukee Mile, clinches Playoff’s Round of 8 spot

    With his racing plans for next season undetermined amid the announcement of GMS Racing’s closure at this season’s conclusion, Grant Enfinger made a pivotal statement in a pair of quests to fight for this year’s championship and to keep his name on the grid by scoring a dominant victory in the Clean Harbors 175 at the Milwaukee Mile on Sunday, August 27.

    The 37-year-old Enfinger from Fairhope, Alabama, led three times for a race-high 95 of 175-scheduled laps in an event where he qualified on the pole position and dominated the event by sweeping both stage periods. Despite losing a handful of spots on pit road during both stage breaks and pitting for fresh tires along with the majority of the field that dropped him from the top five to 16th, Enfinger benefited through two late-race restarts and the fresh tires to muscle his way back to the front and withstand a battle against Playoff contender Carson Hocevar with 16 laps remaining to drive away and cruise to his third NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series victory of the 2023 season and advance to the Playoff’s Round of 8.

    With on-track qualifying that determined the starting lineup occurring on Sunday, Playoff competitor Grant Enfinger started on the pole position for the first time this season after posting a pole-winning lap at 122.848 mph in 29.744 seconds. Joining him on the front row was Playoff competitor Nick Sanchez, who clocked in the second-best qualifying lap at 122.601 mph in 29.804 seconds.

    Prior to the event, Playoff contender Ty Majeski, who won the previous Truck event at Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park, dropped to the rear of the field and was assessed a pass-through penalty at the start of the event after NASCAR confiscated a right-rear tire in pre-race inspection, a penalty that resulted with crew chief Joe Shear Jr. being ejected from the event. In addition, Greg Van Alst, Josh Reaume and Playoff competitor Matt DiBenedetto dropped to the rear of the field for missing driver introductions along with Matt Mills, whose No. 51 Kyle Busch Motorsports entry faced unapproved adjustments.

    When the green flag waved and the race commenced, Enfinger used the outside lane to retain the lead ahead of Sanchez through the first two turns and entering the backstretch. As the field behind jostled for early positions, Enfinger was able to fend off another charge from Sanchez, who was running on the inside lane, to lead the first lap as Taylor Gray trailed closely behind in third.

    Through the second lap, Sanchez tried to draw even against Enfinger’s No. 23 Champion Power Equipment Chevrolet Silverado RST through the first two turns, but Enfinger was able to gain the advantage from the outside lane to retain the top spot through the backstretch. As Majeski served his pass-through penalty, Taylor Gray continued to trail closely behind the two leaders as Enfinger retained a narrow advantage over Sanchez.

    Through the first five scheduled laps, Enfinger was leading by half a second over Sanchez followed by Taylor Gray, Christian Eckes and Carson Hocevar while Corey Heim, Chase Purdy, Ben Rhodes, William Sawalich and rookie Jake Garcia were in the top 10. By then, Tanner Gray was in 11th ahead of Tyler Ankrum, rookie Daniel Dye, rookie Rajah Caruth and Bayley Currey while Zane Smith, Derek Kraus, Matt Crafton, Hailie Deegan and Dean Thompson occupied the top 20. In addition, Majeski was in 36th, dead last, and trailing the lead pack by nearly 21 seconds.

    Then on the 10th lap, the first caution of the event flew when Josh Bilicki blew a tire and collided his No. 02 Insurance King Chevrolet Silverado RST against the outside wall in Turn 2 as he became the first retiree of the event.

    When the race restarted on Lap 17, Enfinger used the outside lane to his advantage as he fended off Sanchez to retain the lead through the backstretch while Taylor Gray mounted a challenge for the runner-up spot on Sanchez through Turns 3 and 4. As Enfinger proceeded to lead by nearly four-tenths of a second, Majeski continued to mount his charge back to the front as he moved his No. 98 Road Ranger Ford F-150 up to 26th while Hocevar, Heim and Eckes occupied the top six on the track.

    At the Lap 25 mark, Enfinger was leading by four-tenths of a second over Sanchez followed by Taylor Gray, Hocevar and Heim while Eckes, Purdy, Sawalich, Rhodes and Garcia battled within the top 10. By then, Playoff competitors Crafton and Zane Smith were in 14th and 15th, Majeski carved his way towards 16th and DiBenedetto was mired back in 26th behind newcomer Sean Hingorani, who was piloting Hattori Racing Enterprises’ No. 61 entry.

    Ten laps later, Enfinger extended his advantage over Sanchez while Taylor Gray, Hocevar and Heim remained in the top five. With Eckes, Purdy, Sawalich, Rhodes and Garcia remaining in the top 10, Kraus was in 11th ahead of Tanner Gray and Zane Smith while Majeski moved up to 14th ahead of Ankrum and Crafton.

    Another 10 laps later, Enfinger continued to extend his advantage as he was more than two seconds ahead of Sanchez while Taylor Gray, Hocevar and Heim retained the top on the track. Eckes, Sawalich, Purdy and Rhodes also retained positions sixth through ninth while Kraus moved up to 10th over Garcia. In addition, Majeski was in 12th, Zane Smith was back in 14th, Crafton fell back to 17th ahead of Matt Mills and DiBenedetto was mired a lap down in 29th.

    When the first stage period concluded on Lap 55, Enfinger notched his second Truck stage victory of the 2023 season. Sanchez settled in second as he trailed Enfinger by nearly two seconds while Taylor Gray, Heim, Eckes, Hocevar, Sawalich, Kraus, Purdy and Rhodes were scored in the top 10. By then, 24 of 36 starters were scored on the lead lap while Majeski was up to 11th. Majeski, however, joined teammate Crafton, Zane Smith and DiBenedetto as Playoff competitors to not score stage points during the first stage period.

    Under the stage break, the lead lap field led by Enfinger pitted for service. Following the pit stops, Heim exited first and assumed the lead for the first time in the event followed by Enfinger, who was boxed in behind Purdy during his pit service. Eckes, Hocevar, Matt Mills, Sawalich, Taylor Gray and Sanchez, who lost six spots on pit road, followed suit. Amid the pit stops, Majeski plummeted to 23rd after enduring a slow pit service from his pit crew.

    The second stage started on Lap 64 as Heim and Enfinger occupied the front row. As Heim and Enfinger dueled for the lead through the first two turns, the caution quickly returned after Greg Van Alst, who was running towards the rear of the field, locked up his tires due to an apparent mechanical issue and collided into Brad Perez as both competitors wrecked against the Turn 1 outside wall, with both having their events coming to an end.

    When the event restarted under green on Lap 71, Heim and Enfinger again dueled for the lead through the first two turns until Heim was able to muscle ahead from the outside lane and clear the field through the backstretch. As Heim retained the lead, Enfinger fended off Eckes to remain in the runner-up spot while Sawalich, who won the ARCA Menards Series East event at Milwaukee earlier in the day, battled Eckes for third. With the field fanning out behind, Eckes fended off Sawalich for third place and Sanchez moved up to fifth in front of Hocevar, Taylor Gray and Purdy while Heim started to extend his advantage to eight-tenths of a second over Enfinger nearing the Lap 75 mark.

    At the Lap 85 mark, Heim stabilized his advantage to two-tenths of a second over a hard-charging Enfinger, who had managed to close the gap from trailing half a second a lap earlier. Enfinger then drew himself into a duel against Heim through the frontstretch a lap later, but Heim maintained the advantage as he continued to run on the outside lane while third-place Eckes trailed by nearly three seconds. With Enfinger continuing to trail by within two-tenths of a second, Heim retained the lead just past the Lap 90 mark.

    Then on Lap 95, Enfinger was able to race his way around Heim’s No. 11 Safelite Toyota Tundra TRD Pro to reassume the lead. Enfinger would proceed to extend his advantage to nine-tenths of a second over Heim at the Lap 100 mark while Eckes, Sawalich and Hocevar were in the top five. Behind, Sanchez, Majeski, Crafton, Zane Smith and Tanner Gray occupied the top 10 while Taylor Gray, Rhodes, Purdy, Kraus and Ankrum followed suit in the top 15. With nine of 10 Playoff competitors running in the top 12 on the track, DiBenedetto was mired back in 27th and not on the lead lap category.

    When the second stage period concluded on Lap 110, Enfinger notched his third Truck stage victory of the 2023 season and second of the day after retaining the lead by more than two seconds over Heim, who settled in second. Eckes, Hocevar, Sawalich, Sanchez, Majeski, Crafton, Tanner Gray and Zane Smith were scored in the top 10. By then, 23 of 36 starters were scored on the lead lap.

    During the stage break, the lead lap field led by Enfinger pitted for service. Following the pit stops, Eckes emerged as the new leader after exiting first followed by Hocevar and Sanchez while Enfinger fell back to fourth after losing three spots on pit road in front of Rhodes and Heim, who lost four spots on pit road.

    With 57 laps remaining, the final stage started under green as Eckes and Hocevar occupied the front row. At the start, Eckes and Hocevar dueled for the lead until Hocevar rocketed ahead with the lead from the inside lane through the first two turns. As the field fanned out to three lanes through the backstretch, Hocevar retained the lead by two-tenths of a second over Eckes while Sanchez retained third ahead of Enfinger, a hard-charging Rhodes and Tanner Gray as Crafton challenged teammate Majeski for seventh place. A few laps later, Majeski went wide in Turn 1, which allowed Crafton, Kraus, Heim and Sawalich to overtake him.

    Following another caution period with 52 laps remaining when Spencer Boyd spun entering Turn 2, the race restarted under green with 46 laps remaining. At the start, Hocevar and Eckes dueled for the lead for a second time through the first two turns until Hocevar managed to zip ahead in his No. 42 Worldwide Express Chevrolet Silverado RST on the outside lane. As the field fanned out behind, Sanchez overtook Eckes through the frontstretch while Hocevar muscled ahead by three-tenths of a second. In addition, Enfinger retained fourth ahead of Kraus, Heim overtook Tanner Gray for sixth place and Crafton followed suit in seventh during the proceeding laps. By then, Majeski battled Sawalich for 10th while Rhodes was in ninth.

    Then with 41 laps remaining, Sawalich, who was having a stellar race in 10th place, got loose underneath Rhodes in a bid for ninth place, spun backward and crashed against the Turn 1 outside wall as he emerged with significant rear-end damage to his No. 1 Starkey/Soundgear Toyota Tundra TRD Pro. During the caution period, some led by Hocevar and including Kraus, Tanner Gray, Ankrum, Sean Hingorani, Rajah Caruth and Hailie Deegan remained on the track while the rest of the lead lap field pitted.

    During the proceeding restart with 35 laps remaining, where Hocevar and Kraus occupied the front row, Hocevar retained the lead after gaining a strong start from the outside lane while Tanner Gray dueled against Kraus for the runner-up spot. Shortly after, however, the caution quickly returned when Sanchez, who was trying to carve his way back to the front from the top 10, got boxed in behind Deegan and hit by Heim entering Turn 3 as he spun his No. 2 Gainbridge Chevrolet Silverado RST backward and hit the outside wall, which spoiled his strong run towards the front.

    With the race restarting under green with 28 laps remaining, Hocevar muscled ahead of Tanner Gray from the outside lane to retain the lead through the first two turns and the backstretch. As the field fanned out to three and four lanes through the backstretch, Hocevar was leading by three-tenths of a second during the following lap while Kraus overtook Tanner Gray for the runner-up spot. In addition, Enfinger bolted his way into third as he used the outside lane to gain momentum and overtake both Tanner Gray and Eckes for spots. With Enfinger moving up the leaderboard, Crafton also boosted his way into the top five as he navigated his No. 88 Menards Ford F-150 in fifth while Heim was mired in seventh in between Tanner Gray and Ankrum with 25 laps remaining.

    Down to the final 20 laps of the event, Hocevar was leading by three-tenths of a second over a hard-charging Enfinger, who was running on fresher tires than Hocevar, while Kraus, Eckes and Crafton engaged in a fierce three-truck battle for third place, with Eckes and Crafton moving up to third and fourth while Kraus fell back to fifth. By then, Heim was in sixth while Majeski was mired in seventh and trailing by more than four seconds.

    Three laps later, Enfinger gained a run on Hocevar through Turns 3 and 4 as both dueled for the lead through the frontstretch. Enfinger then rocketed ahead entering Turns 1 and 2 before he went wide, which allowed Hocevar to pull a crossover move and try to challenge Enfinger again for the lead on the inside lane. Enfinger, though, managed to withstand a side-by-side duel and near bump from Hocevar exiting the backstretch and entering Turns 3 and 4 before muscling ahead with 16 laps remaining. Enfinger would retain the top spot during the proceeding laps, but not by a large margin as Hocevar kept Enfinger’s No. 23 Chevrolet within his sights while mounting repetitive challenges through the turns.

    Down to the final 10 laps of the event, Enfinger was leading by seven-tenths of a second over Hocevar followed by Eckes, Crafton and Heim while Kraus, Majeski, Purdy, Garcia and Tanner Gray were in the top 10. By then, Zane Smith was in 11th, Rhodes was in 16th, Sanchez was mired back in 24th and DiBendetto was down in 27th while two laps behind.

    With five laps remaining, Enfinger managed to extend his advantage to nine-tenths of a second over Hocevar while third-place Eckes trailed by more than a second while also starting to close in on Hocevar for the runner-up spot. By then, Heim moved up to fourth while Crafton fell back to fifth. In addition, Purdy and Majeski pulled a three-wide move on Kraus through the frontstretch to move up to sixth and seventh on the track.

    When the white flag waved and the final lap started, Enfinger remained as the leader by more than a second and a half over Hocevar. With both Hocevar and Eckes unable to gain ground to mount a final lap charge, Enfinger was able to smoothly navigate his way around the Milwaukee circuit for a final time and cross the finish line to claim his third checkered flag of the 2023 Truck season after winning by more than a second and a half over Hocevar.

    With the victory, Grant Enfinger, who won the first Truck event at the Milwaukee Mile since the circuit’s return spanning back to 2009, achieved his 10th career victory in the Craftsman Truck Series, his third of the season and first since winning at Worldwide Technology Raceway in early June. The Alabama native also recorded the 45th Truck career victory for GMS Racing, a two-time Truck championship-winning organization that announced four days earlier that it would cease operations at the conclusion of the 2023 season.

    By virtue of winning the second Truck Playoff event of the 2023 season, Enfinger became the second competitor to clinch a spot for the Playoff’s Round of 8 alongside Ty Majeski as he continues his pursuit for his first Truck championship.

    “I don’t want to hear anybody asking if we’re going to lay down again,” Enfinger said on FS1. “[Crew chief] Jeff Hensley’s been focused the whole year. There’s been distractions going on all year long, so if anything, that’s clarity. None of these guys, including me, have a job next year, but I feel like we proved we deserve one. We had a heck of a Champion Power Equipment Chevy. I don’t know if we had a dominant truck, but we had a winning truck. [I] Got put behind the 8-ball there at the end, but it was fun racing. I hope the fans enjoyed it. This [win] is special for a lot of reasons.”

    “Did we execute perfectly today?” Enfinger added. “No, but we’ve had speed all year long. When we’ve hit it, when the guys hit it, we’ve done this twice now this year. We’ve got three wins, but we’ve had three trucks like this in my opinion. This is a brand-new truck. I can’t say thank you enough for GMS Fabrication, GMS Racing, not just this year and not just lately, but the whole year last year. They were just as much effort put into this stuff. I’m glad some of our fruits are showing.”

    Hocevar managed to fend off Eckes to finish in the runner-up for the first time and for his ninth top-five result of the season. With the result, Hocevar is 56 points above the top-eight cutline entering the upcoming Round of 10 finale at Kansas Speedway.

    “Our No. 42 Chevy was really fast,” Hocevar said. “I was finding lines. I was driving like a dirt car, sliding myself, running the top [lane]. I don’t know how good the fans loved it or how good the racing, but I had a lot of fun being able to move around when I didn’t think we were gonna be able to. Just kind of a bummer to run second. Luckily, we’ve been fortunate to win some races. Just close.”

    Playoff contenders Christian Eckes and Corey Heim finished third and fourth at the Milwaukee Mile, but both were able to secure spots for the Round of 8 based on points as they will proceed forward to the Playoff’s second round along with Enfinger and Majeski.

    Matt Crafton came home in fifth place for his second top-five result of the season and first since finishing fourth at the Bristol Motor Speedway Dirt Course in April. As a result, he is currently nine points above the top-eight cutline.

    Chase Purdy, Ty Majeski, Derek Kraus, rookie Jake Garcia and Bayley Currey completed the top 10 on the track. In addition, Playoff competitors Zane Smith, Ben Rhodes, rookie Nick Sanchez and Matt DiBenedetto finished 12th, 16th, 24th and 27th, respectively, as Rhodes and DiBenedetto are below the top-eight cutline in the Playoff standings.

    There were five lead changes for four different leaders. The race featured seven cautions for 44 laps. In addition, 26 of 36 starters finished on the lead lap.

    Results.

    1. Grant Enfinger, 95 laps led, Stages 1 & 2 winner

    2. Carson Hocevar, 40 laps led

    3. Christian Eckes, five laps led

    4. Corey Heim, 35 laps led

    5. Matt Crafton

    6. Chase Purdy

    7. Ty Majeski

    8. Derek Kraus

    9. Jake Garcia

    10. Bayley Currey

    11. Tanner Gray

    12. Zane Smith

    13. Taylor Gray

    14. Rajah Caruth

    15. Dean Thompson

    16. Ben Rhodes

    17. Colby Howard

    18. Connor Jones

    19. Bret Holmes

    20. Tyler Ankrum

    21. Lawless Alan

    22. Hailie Deegan

    23. Sean Hingorani

    24. Nick Sanchez

    25. Matt Mills

    26. William Sawalich

    27. Matt DiBenedetto, two laps down

    28. Daniel Dye, two laps down

    29. Tyler Hill, two laps down

    30. Stewart Friesen, three laps down

    31. Derek Lemke, three laps down

    32. Spencer Boyd, three laps down

    33. Josh Reaume, four laps down

    34. Greg Van Alst – OUT, Accident

    35. Brad Perez – OUT, Accident

    36. Josh Bilicki – OUT, Accident

    *Bold indicates Playoff contenders

    Playoff standings.

    1. Grant Enfinger – Advanced

    2. Ty Majeski – Advanced

    3. Corey Heim – Advanced

    4. Christian Eckes – Advanced

    5. Carson Hocevar +56

    6. Zane Smith +29

    7. Matt Crafton +9

    8. Nick Sanchez +3

    9. Ben Rhodes -3

    10. Matt DiBenedetto -20

    The Round of 10 in the 2023 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Playoffs is set to conclude at Kansas Speedway on September 8, which will determine the Playoff’s Round of 8 field. The event’s broadcast time is scheduled to commence at 9 p.m. ET on FS1.

  • Majeski wins Truck Playoff opener at IRP; snaps yearlong winless drought

    Majeski wins Truck Playoff opener at IRP; snaps yearlong winless drought

    After enduring a winless drought throughout the regular-season stretch, Ty Majeski commenced the 2023 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Playoffs with an emphatic statement after notching a dominant victory in the TSport 200 at Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park on Friday, August 11.

    The 28-year-old Majeski from Seymour, Wisconsin, led twice for a race-high 179 of 200-scheduled laps in an event where he started on the front row and quickly assumed the lead by the fourth lap. Proceeding to sweep both stage periods and fending off several restart challenges, including from ones by Playoff rivals Christian Eckes and Corey Heim, Majeski capitalized on a restart with 52 laps remaining to muscle his No. 98 ThorSport Racing Ford entry away from the field and claim the Playoff opener victory by more than three seconds over Eckes.

    With on-track qualifying that determined the starting lineup occurring on Friday, August 11, Playoff contender Christian Eckes secured his second Truck pole position of the 2023 season after posting a pole-winning lap at 107.918 mph in 22.884 seconds. Joining him on the front row was Playoff contender Ty Majeski, who posted the second-best qualifying lap at 107.739 mph in 22.922 seconds.

    Prior to the event, the following names that included Playoff contender Zane Smith, Lawless Alan, Matt Mills and Logan Bearden dropped to the rear of the field due to unapproved adjustments to their respective trucks. Tyler Ankrum also dropped to the rear of the field in a backup truck.

    When the green flag waved and the race commenced, Eckes muscled ahead with an early advantage on the inside lane followed by Majeski and Corey Heim as the field fanned out through the first two turns. As the field continued to fan out and jostle early for positions, Eckes proceeded to lead the first lap in his No. 19 NAPA Chevrolet Silverado RST while Majeski and Heim battled for the runner-up spot.

    Through the second lap and as the field continued to jostle early for positions, Eckes maintained the lead by a tenth of a second over Majeski with Heim following pursuit. By the third lap, however, Majeski drew himself even against Eckes in an early battle for the lead. He continued to duel with Eckes for the following lap until Majeski muscled ahead from the outside lane. Another lap later and at the fifth lap mark, Heim moved into the runner-up spot over Eckes as he began his pursuit on Majeski for the lead.

    At the Lap 10 mark, Majeski was leading by nine-tenths of a second over Heim followed by Eckes, Carson Hocevar and Grant Enfinger while rookie Jake Garcia, rookie Nick Sanchez, rookie Rajah Caruth, Matt Crafton and Layne Riggs were in the top 10. Behind, William Sawalich was in 11th ahead of Tanner Gray, Colby Howard, Ben Rhodes and Stewart Friesen while Jake Drew, Dean Thompson, rookie Daniel Dye, Chase Purdy and Connor Jones battled in the top 20. Meanwhile, Zane Smith was mired in 21st ahead of Matt DiBenedetto.

    Nearing the Lap 14 mark, the first caution of the event flew for a multi-truck wreck involving Greg Van Alst, Landen Lewis and Hailie Deegan in Turn 3.

    When the race restarted on Lap 21, Majeski received a push from Eckes on the inside lane to emerge ahead by a hair before Eckes and Heim took Majeski three-wide in Turn 1. With Majeski and Heim breaking away from the field entering the backstretch, Heim gained the advantage on the outside lane through Turns 3 and 4 as he assumed the lead in his No. 11 Safelite Toyota Tundra TRD Pro for the following lap, though Majeski kept pressuring him for the lead. Majeski and Heim would then battle dead even for the proceeding laps until Heim muscled ahead by Lap 23. As Heim fended off Majeski for the lead, Eckes retained third while Hocevar and Enfinger were in the top five.

    Nearing the Lap 30 mark, the battle for the lead intensified as Majeski made several attempts to draw even with Heim through the turns and the straightaways from the inside lane, though Heim managed to remain ahead while running on the outside lane. While both continued to battle nearly dead even for the lead, Eckes was under pressure by Hocevar for third place as Enfinger retained fifth ahead of Garcia, Riggs, Caruth, Sanchez and Tanner Gray.

    By Lap 40, Majeski, who pulled the slide job on Heim in Turn 1 to assume the lead a lap earlier, was leading by two-tenths of a second in his No. 98 Road Ranger Ford F-150 over Heim followed by Eckes, Hocevar and Enfinger while Garcia, Riggs, Sanchez, Caruth and Tanner Gray were in the top 10. Behind, Zane Smith was up to 11th ahead of Rhodes, Jake Drew, Sawalich and Crafton while Thompson, Purdy, DiBenedetto, Taylor Gray and Deegan were running in the top 20.

    Six laps later, contact was made on Lap 46 as Garcia, who was trying to overtake Enfinger for fifth, got loose, slid up the track and forced Enfinger to scrape the outside wall through Turns 1 and 2. Both, though, continued to run in the top 10 as Majeski extended his advantage to two seconds over Heim.

    When the first stage concluded on Lap 60, Majeski, who ran into the rear bumper of rookie Daniel Dye in Turn 1 to get him loose and lap him several laps earlier, claimed his fifth stage victory of the 2023 Truck season. Heim settled in second followed by Eckes while Riggs, Garcia, Hocevar, Enfinger, Caruth, Tanner Gray and Zane Smith were scored in the top 10. By then, 23 of 36 starters were scored on the lead lap while Rhodes, Sanchez, Crafton and DiBenedetto did not score any stage points from the first stage period.

    Under the stage break, the lead lap field led by Majeski pitted for service. Following the pit stops, Majeski retained the lead after exiting first followed by Heim, Hocevar, Enfinger and Tanner Gray while Eckes exited sixth after losing three spots on pit road.

    The second stage started on Lap 70 as Majeski and Heim occupied the front row. At the start, Majeski rocketed ahead with the lead from the outside lane as the field fanned out entering Turn 1. Through the backstretch, Majeski retained the lead over Heim while Enfinger was in third ahead of Hocevar and Eckes amid the field still fanning out and jostling for positions.

    At the Lap 75 mark, Majeski was leading by more than a second over Heim while Enfinger, Hocevar and Eckes remained in the top five. Behind, Sawalich was in sixth followed by Rhodes, Tanner Gray, Zane Smith and Riggs while Jake Drew, Sanchez, Crafton, DiBenedetto and Caruth occupied the top 15 on the track.

    Ten laps later, Majeski extended his advantage to more than two seconds over Heim while third-place Enfinger trailed by more than three seconds. Meanwhile, Hocevar and Eckes remained in the top five while Playoff contenders Rhodes and Zane Smith were in eighth and ninth. By then, the remaining Playoff contenders that included Sanchez, Crafton and DiBenedetto were mired in 11th, 13th and 16th, respectively.

    At the halfway mark on Lap 100, Majeski continued to extend his advantage as he was leading by more than three seconds over Heim while Enfinger, Eckes and Hocevar continued to run in the top five. Behind, Sawalich, Tanner Gray, Zane Smith, Rhodes and Riggs were in the top 10 as 23 of 36 starters were scored on the lead lap. Notably, Sanchez and Crafton were in 11th and 12th, DiBenedetto was mired in 15th ahead of Garcia and Shane van Gisbergen, the debutant winner of the NASCAR Cup Series event at the Chicago Street Course who was making both his Truck and oval debut for Niece Motorsports, was in 22nd behind Jack Wood.

    Ten laps later, Majeski, who lapped van Gisbergen a few laps earlier, retained the lead by more than five seconds over Heim while third-place Enfinger trailed by more than six seconds. As Eckes and Hocevar remained in the top five, Zane Smith moved up to seventh over Tanner Gray while Sanchez cracked the top 10 ahead of Crafton.

    Another five laps later, the caution flew when Chris Hacker, a Noblesville, Indiana, native got loose and spun entering the backstretch as he barely managed to keep his No. 30 UBPN/Morgan & Morgan Toyota Tundra TRD Pro off the wall before continuing. Hacker’s incident was enough for the second stage period scheduled to conclude on Lap 120 to finish under caution as Majeski captured his sixth Truck stage victory of the 2023 season and second of the night. Heim settled in second while Enfinger, Eckes, Hocevar, Sawalich, Zane Smith, Tanner Gray, Riggs and Sanchez were scored in the top 10. By then, 20 of 36 competitors were scored on the lead lap while Playoff contenders Crafton, DiBenedetto and Rhodes were scored outside the top 10.

    Under the stage break, the lead lap field led by Majeski returned to pit road for service. Following the pit stops, Majeski retained the lead after exiting pit road first followed by Heim, Enfinger, Zane Smith, Sawalich, Eckes and Hocevar. Amid the pit stops, Heim was sent to the rear of the field for a safety violation after a crew member fell over his pit box while trying to retrieve a tire due to his pit stop. In addition, Enfinger made another pit stop to address missing lug nuts to his No. 23 Champion Power Equipment Chevrolet Silverado RST.

    With 73 laps remaining, the final stage started under green as Majeski and Zane Smith occupied the front row. At the start, Majeski and Smith dueled for the lead until Majeski managed to rocket ahead from the outside lane through the first two turns and the backstretch. As the field fanned out and jostled for late positions, Eckes moved up to second while Hocevar, Sawalich and Riggs battled behind Smith. Amid the racing, Tanner Gray, who was running in the top 10, was black-flagged by NASCAR for a restart violation as he changed lanes prior to reaching the start/finish line to restart the event.

    Shortly after and just as Tanner Gray was serving his penalty through pit road, the caution returned with 70 laps remaining when Dean Thompson got squeezed towards the outside wall through the backstretch. As Thompson’s truck was slowly sliding to a halt, he was then T-boned by Spencer Boyd as both competitors were left with heavy damage to their respective trucks.

    Following an extensive caution period, the event restarted with 60 laps remaining. At the start, Majeski muscled ahead of Eckes from the outside lane to retain the lead as the field fanned out through the first two turns. With Majeski leading by nearly half a second during the proceeding laps, Eckes retained second while Zane Smith, Riggs and Hocevar were in the top five. The caution, however, returned with 59 laps remaining when Hailie Deegan spun off the front nose of Landen Lewis and rear-ended her No. 13 Ford Performance Ford F-150 into the outside wall in Turn 1 as her event came to a late end.

    During the proceeding restart with 52 laps remaining, Majeski and Eckes dueled for the lead through Turn 1 as Eckes tried to muscle ahead from the inside lane. Eckes, however, slid up the track entering the backstretch, which allowed Majeski to regain the advantage and reassume the lead as the field jostled for positions throughout the following lap. With Majeski leading with 50 laps remaining, Eckes retained second ahead of Hocevar while Riggs and Zane Smith battled for fourth in front of Sawalich. In the midst of the battles towards the front, ThorSport Racing’s Rhodes and Crafton battled for seventh.

    With 40 laps remaining, Majeski was leading by more than a second over Eckes followed by Hocevar, Riggs and Zane Smith while Sawalich, Caruth, Heim, Crafton and Sanchez were running and battling in the top 10. Behind, Rhodes was in 11th ahead of Enfinger, DiBenedetto, Garcia and Purdy while van Gisbergen, Jake Drew, Tanner Gray, Taylor Gray and Jack Wood were mired in the top 20.

    Ten laps later, Majeski continued to lead by more than two seconds over Eckes while Riggs, who moved up to third place, trailed by nearly four seconds ahead of Hocevar and Zane Smith. Behind, Sawalich and Caruth retained sixth and seventh while Heim was still scored in eighth ahead of Sanchez and Crafton.

    Down to the final 20 laps of the event, Majeski stabilized his advantage to more than two seconds over runner-up Eckes while third-place Riggs continued to trail by more than four seconds. By then, seven of 10 Playoff contenders were running in the top 10 while the remaining Playoff competitors that included DiBenedetto, Rhodes and Enfinger were mired in 11th through 13th, respectively.

    With less than 15 laps remaining, Majeski retained the lead by nearly three seconds over Eckes and more than four seconds over third-place Riggs. Majeski would continue to lead by more than two seconds over Eckes with 10 laps remaining as Hocevar and Zane Smith remained in the top five ahead of Sawalich.

    Down to the final five laps of the event, Majeski was leading by more than three seconds over Eckes and more than four seconds over third-place Riggs as the laps continued to dwindle.

    When the white flag waved and the final lap started, Majeski remained as the leader by more than three seconds over Eckes. With Eckes not gaining ground to mount a final lap charge for the win, Majeski, who also had a clear racetrack in front of him, managed to cycle his way around the circuit for a final time and return to the frontstretch victorious for the first time in 2023.

    With the victory, Majeski notched his third career victory in the Craftsman Truck Series, all occurring throughout the Playoffs, and his first since winning at Homestead-Miami Speedway in October 2022. He also became the 14th different competitor to win at Indianapolis Raceway Park as he recorded the third victory of the season for ThorSport Racing and the fifth for Ford.

    By winning the Playoff opener at Indianapolis Raceway Park, Majeski became the first competitor to transfer to the Round of 8 as he continues his pursuit for his first NASCAR Truck Series championship.

    “Man, that was awesome. How about that, Indy?! Yeah!” Majeski said on FS1. “So cool. [Owners] Duke and Rhonda Thorson put the support into this race. They wanted [Indianapolis Raceway Park] to come back and they’re a huge reason behind that. Just so proud of everybody. Obviously, a heartbreaking loss last week at Richmond, but we win and lose as a team. This is so cool. Proud of the effort, but this is just the start of our Playoff run.”

    Eckes, the pole-sitter who led three laps, settled in the runner-up spot for the second time this season and leaves Indianapolis Raceway Park with a 39-point advantage above the top-eight cutline to commence the Playoffs while Layne Riggs achieved a career-best third-place result in his sixth career start in the Truck Series and first with Spire Motorsports.

    “I thought our NAPA AutoCare Chevrolet was really good there,” Eckes said. “[Majeski]’d fire off a little bit better, then would be just a little bit better throughout. They’ve kind of been the classes of the field on these style of races from the last two years. We got a little bit of homework to do on this style stuff, but overall, just really proud of my guys for bringing what we had.”

    “[Tonight]’s huge,” Riggs said. “I feel like this proves that I deserve to be here every weekend. I love truck racing, I love NASCAR racing. I wanna do it more. It’s a rare occurrence when I can do this. It was a really good truck tonight. Thank you so much to everybody. I hope I can be at one soon.”

    Hocevar came home in fourth place while Zane Smith ended up fifth as both competitors leave Indiana above the cutline.

    William Sawalich, rookie Rajah Caruth, Heim, Crafton and DiBenedetto finished in the top 10. Notably, Playoff competitors Nick Sanchez, Grant Enfinger and Ben Rhodes finished 11th, 12th and 16th, respectively, while Shane van Gisbergen ended up 19th in his Truck Series debut.

    There were three lead changes for three different leaders. The race featured five cautions for 41 laps. In addition, 18 of 36 starters finished on the lead lap.

    Results.

    1. Ty Majeski, 179 laps led, Stage 1 & 2 winner

    2. Christian Eckes, three laps led

    3. Layne Riggs

    4. Carson Hocevar

    5. Zane Smith

    6. William Sawalich

    7. Rajah Caruth

    8. Corey Heim, 18 laps led

    9. Matt Crafton

    10. Matt DiBenedetto

    11. Nick Sanchez

    12. Grant Enfinger

    13. Jake Garcia

    14. Chase Purdy

    15. Tanner Gray

    16. Ben Rhodes

    17. Jake Drew

    18. Jack Wood

    19. Shane van Gisbergen, one lap down

    20. Taylor Gray, one lap down

    21. Logan Bearden, one lap down

    22. Daniel Dye, one lap down

     23. Matt Mills, two laps down

    24. Lawless Alan, two laps down

    25. Bret Holmes, three laps down

    26. Tyler Hill, three laps down

    27. Connor Jones, four laps down

    28. Landen Lewis, four laps down

    29. Chris Hacker, five laps down

    30. Stewart Friesen, 17 laps down

    31. Hailie Deegan – OUT, Accident

    32. Dean Thompson – OUT, Accident

    33. Spencer Boyd – OUT, Accident

    34. Tyler Ankrum – OUT, Electrical

    35. Colby Howard – OUT, Suspension

    36. Greg Van Alst – OUT, Accident

    *Bold indicates Playoff contenders

    Playoff standings.

    1. Ty Majeski – Advanced

    2. Corey Heim +47

    3. Christian Eckes +39

    4. Carson Hocevar +35

    5. Zane Smith +29

    6. Grant Enfinger +24

    7. Ben Rhodes +4

    8. Nick Sanchez +2

    9. Matt Crafton -2

    10. Matt DiBenedetto -3

    With the 2023 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Playoffs underway, the second Round of 10 Playoff event is set to occur at the Milwaukee Mile in West Allis, Wisconsin, which will mark the series return to the venue since 2009. The event is scheduled to occur on August 27 at 4 p.m. ET on FS1.