Pit Stops : World Wide Technology Raceway

• Wednesday, May 29th, 2024
• NASCAR Wire Service -

‘The Trip’ continues at World Wide Technology Raceway

The NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series is returning to World Wide Technology Raceway this weekend for the 24th running of the Toyota 200 and the second race of the Triple Truck Challenge (Saturday, June 2, at 1:30 p.m. ET on FS1, MRN, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) this season.

The 23 previous races at the 1.25-mile track have produced 21 different race winners and 14 different pole winners. Four races have been won from the pole or first starting position, most recently by Corey Heim in 2022.

Of NASCAR’s three national series, the CRAFTSMAN Truck Series has competed at World Wide Technology Raceway the most. Let’s take a look at the drivers who have carved their names into the track’s record books:

• Race record:Jack Sprague 113.726mph (05/07/2000)
• Qualifying record:Grant Enfinger 138.867mph (06/23/2018)
• Most races:Matt Crafton (20)
• Most poles:Greg Biffle and Ted Musgrave (2)
• Most wins:Ted Musgrave and Sheldon Creed (2)
• Most top fives:Johnny Sauter (9)
• Most top 10s:Matt Crafton (10)
• Laps led:Ted Musgrave (382)

The Toyota 200 will be broken up into three stages. The first two stages will be 35 laps each and the final stage will be 90 laps for a race total of 160 laps (200 miles). 

Also, whoever wins this weekend at World Wide Technology Raceway will bank an additional $50,000 thanks to the Triple truck Challenge. Unless your name is Nick Sanchez, who won last weekend’s race at Charlotte taking home the first $50,000 bonus, and if he were to win again this weekend the bonus jumps $150,000.

Practice will begin Friday, May 31 at 6:05 p.m. ET on FS1 and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio followed by Cometic Gasket Pole Qualifying at 6:35 p.m. ET.

Halfway Point: CRAFTSMAN Truck Series talent to watch at WWTR

As the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series hits the halfway mark of the season, the heat is on for the competitors to get their trucks into Victory Lane. Two previous winners are returning to World Wide Technology Raceway this weekend, but there is a plethora of talent among the field in this weekend’s Toyota 200 looking for their first win at World Wide Technology Raceway.

Grant Enfinger:The veteran behind the wheel of the No. 9 CR7 Chevrolet has had his luck turn around as he’s managed to post back-to-back top-five finishes at North Wilkesboro and Charlotte. In seven starts at the 1.25-mile Gateway track, Enfinger’s captured one win, two top fives, four top 10s, and has led 157 laps. The 39-year old is the most recent winner at Gateway (2023).

Corey Heim:Despite a disqualification last weekend, the driver of the No. 11 TRICON Garage Toyota has had a tremendous season thus far. The Marietta, Georgia native has only made one start at World Wide Technology Raceway where he won the race from the pole (2022). The 21-year old missed last year’s race due to illness.

Christian Eckes:The series’ current points leader, who pilots the No. 19 McAnally-Hilgemann Racing Chevrolet, has consistently ran in the top 10 each week – the only exception being at Atlanta (32nd) due to brake failure. The Middletown, New York native has made six starts at the 1.25-mile track and has posted back-to-back runner-up finishes in 2022 and 2023.

Stewart Friesen:The driver of the No. 52 Halmar Friesen Racing Toyota managed to record his first top five finish of the season last weekend. The 40-year-old will look to carry his momentum to World Wide Technology Raceway. In six starts at the 1.25-mile track, Friesen has posted five top fives, five top 10s, and has led 43 laps. Last season, Friesen finished third.

Nick Sanchez:The 2023 Sunoco Rookie of the Year is having his career-best season – two wins, six top-five, and eight top-10 finishes in eleven races. Although the driver of the No. 2 Rev Racing Chevrolet has only made one start at World Wide Technology Raceway, he posted an eighth-place finish last year. If Sanchez wins this weekend, he will become only the second driver to win two races in the Triple Truck Challenge and the first to win back-to-back.

Ben Rhodes:The reigning 2023 NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series champion had a slow start to the year but has been gaining momentum little by little. The driver of the No. 99 ThorSport Racing Ford has made eight starts at Gateway posting one pole (2016), two top-five, and six top-10 finishes. Rhodes finished seventh at the 1.25-mile track last season.

Regular Season Title Watch: Eckes leads point standings with five to go

McAnally-Hilgemann Racing’s Christian Eckes continues to have a breakout year as he holds onto the driver points lead in the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series with five races left in the regular season. The 23-year old is currently 30 points up on Corey Heim.

Eckes’ points lead began after a strong showing at Darlington – earning himself a total of 50 points to jump over Heim. The Middletown, New York Native has accumulated two wins, five top-five, and 10 top-10 finishes. He also leads the field with 462 laps led this season.

wins available.

TRICON Garage’s Corey Heim also continues to have an impressive season. The driver of the No. 11 Toyota has collected three wins, seven top fives, nine top 10s and has led 343 laps on the season. The 21-year old was the 2023 Regular Series Champion.

Repeat winners leave six spots available in the Playoffs

Through eleven races this season, four drivers have earned their spot in the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series Playoffs by virtue of their wins – Christian Eckes, Corey Heim, Nick Sanchez and Rajah Caruth – leaving six spots still up for grabs heading into World Wide Technology Raceway.

With only five races in the regular season remaining, the battle for the final postseason transfer spot is heating up.

Following Charlotte, Stewart Friesen is ranked 11th in the Playoff outlook, 32 points back from Ben Rhodes in the 10th and final postseason transfer spot on points. Just behind Friesen is Matt Crafton, 33 points back from the postseason cutoff.

ARCA Menard Series points leader Andres Perez de Lara to make Truck Series career debut –Current ARCA Menards Series points standings leader Andres Perez de Lara, from Mexico City, Mexico, will be attempting to make his NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series career debut this weekend piloting the No. 7 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet.

Perez, a NASCAR Driver for Diversity participant, currently leads the ARCA Menards Series point standings by 16 points over Greg Van Last in second.

2024 Sunoco Rookie of the Year breakdown –Layne Riggs continues his lead in the Sunoco Rookie of the Year standings following eleven races in the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series.

The driver of the No. 38 Front Row Motorsports Ford now sits 102 points over Connor Jones and 114 points over Thadd Moffitt. Jones, driver of the No. 66 ThorSport Racing Ford was the highest finish rookie at Charlotte (11th).

Clint Bowyer to make CRAFTSMAN Truck Series return at Nashville –FOX Sports TV Analyst and former NASCAR driver, Clint Bowyer will pilot the No. 7 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet in the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series race at Nashville Superspeedway on June 28, 2024.

Bowyer, who retired from full-time NASCAR Cup Series competition following the 2020 season finale at Phoenix Raceway, is currently an analyst for NASCAR on FOX. He is a 10-time Cup Series race winner who also boasts three Truck Series checkered flags.

The 44-year old will reconnect with crew chief Brian Pattie who guided Bowyer’s Cup Series efforts from 2012-2015. 

“For me, it’s the tie between working with (Brian) Pattie and the good old days,” said Bowyer. “Putting the band back together, so to speak, and having some fun. Nashville is a cool racetrack that has meant a lot to me over the years. Separate from that, it’s about the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series. That’s a really fun series. It’s a fun vehicle to drive. There’s a lot of drag and you can drive them hard and get away with it. You can really hustle a truck. This race should be right in my wheelhouse.”

• Toyota 200
• Pole Winner: Ty Majeski
• Age: 29
• Team : No 98 - Road Ranger/ Bucked Up Ford
• Owner: Mike Curb
• Crew Chief: Joe Shear Jr
• Ty Majeski won the Pole Award for the Toyota 200 with a lap of 32475 seconds, 138568 mph
• This is his eighth pole in 78 NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series races
• This is his third pole and 10th top-10 start in 2024
• This is his second pole in five races at World Wide Technology Raceway
• Christian Eckes (second) posted his 10th top-10 start of 2024 and his seventh in seven races at World Wide Technology Raceway
• Nick Sanchez (third) posted his second top-10 start at World Wide Technology Raceway It is his ninth in 12 races this season
• Layne Riggs (17th) was the fastest qualifying rookie

• Saturday, June 1st, 2024
• NASCAR Wire Service - Reid Spencer

Corey Heim rebounds with timely NASCAR Truck win at World Wide Technology Raceway

The early bird got the victory on Saturday afternoon at World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway.

In a long green-flag run to start the final stage of the Toyota 200 NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series race, Corey Heim brought his No. 11 TRICON Garage Tundra to pit road before any of the other top trucks made green-flag stops, and the move paid off with optimum track position.

Heim held the top spot for a restart on Lap 138 of 160 and led the rest of the way, beating runner-up Christian Eckes to the finish line by 1.854 seconds, earning a $50,000 bonus as the winner of the second leg of the Triple Truck Challenge.

The victory was a welcome turnaround after Heim’s truck was disqualified from second place May 24 at Charlotte for three lug nuts not safe and secure. Heim won for the fourth time this season—all within the last eight races—the second time at Gateway and the ninth time in 53 career starts.

“Total team effort today,” Heim asserted. “We struggled a bit yesterday (in practice and qualifying) and worked a bit overnight on it. I have to say the pit crew redeemed themselves. Last week we could have won the race, and they made some mistakes, but they redeemed themselves today, and that’s what it’s all about.”

Heim started ninth and finished fifth in the first two stages. After a quick pit stop at the Stage 2 break, Heim restarted third on Lap 78 and grabbed the lead before the end of the circuit. He held the top spot until he pitted on Lap 115, one lap earlier than pole winner Ty Majeski who was chasing him in second place.

Vicente Salas’ spin on Lap 129 interrupted the cycle of green-flag stops, but Heim regained the lead on Lap 134 when drivers who had not yet pitted brought their trucks to pit road under the caution. Heim battled Majeski on the Lap 138 restart and prevailed.

“Corey was a little bit better, and I knew it,” said Majeski, who swept the first two stages and led 43 laps to Heim’s race-high 65. “I thought if I could get track position on him, maybe I could hold him off. I threw it into Turn 1, and he cleared me off of 2, and I had a couple other opportunities.

“I got into him a little bit. Probably needed a little bit harder for me to get enough of a run to get side-by-side with him down the back. But, yeah, just a little bit short balance-wise. Sometimes when you’re the best truck in the beginning of the race, you’re gun-shy to make changes.”

Majeski faded to fourth in the final 23 laps, losing positions to Eckes and third-place finisher Nick Sanchez on lap 151.

Eckes lost track position with a slow pit stop in the second stage break, restarted 11th on Lap 78 and finished second at Gateway for the third straight year.

“I definitely feel like we let that one slip,” Eckes said. “Disappointing, for sure… It sucks. I thought we had the best truck here.”

Layne Riggs finished fifth, followed by Chase Purdy, reigning series champion Ben Rhodes and Stewart Friesen. Two drivers making their series debuts—Andrés Pérez de Lara and Luke Fenhaus—came home ninth and 10th, respectively.

Note: The start of the race was delayed for two-and-a-half hours by rain… The final Triple Truck Challenge race is scheduled for June 28 at Nashville Superspeedway. Heim and Sanchez, last week’s Charlotte winner, could collect an additional $100,000 as the winners of two of three events in “The Trip.” A $50,000 bonus is available to all other drivers.

• Drivers Entered: 32
• Laps Scheduled: 160
• Margin of Victory: 01.854 Seconds
• Time of Race: 2 Hours 1 Minutes 27 Seconds
• Average Speed: 98.806
• Cautions: 5 for 32 laps
• Lead Changes: 13
• Green Flag Passes: 1,352 (10.6 passes per green flag lap)

• Toyota 200
• Race Winner: Corey Heim
• Age: 21
• Team : No 11 - Safelite Toyota
• Owner: Johnny Gray
• Crew Chief: Scott Zipadelli
• Corey Heim won the Toyota 200, his ninth victory in 53 CRAFTSMAN Truck Series races
• This is his fourth victory and 10th top-10 finish in 2024
• This is his second victory and second top-10 finish in two races at World Wide Technology Raceway
• Christian Eckes (second) posted his third top-10 finish in seven races at World Wide Technology Raceway It is his 11th top-10 finish in 2024
• Nick Sanchez (third) posted his second top-10 finish in two races at World Wide Technology Raceway
• Layne Riggs (fifth) was the highest finishing rookie
• Christian Eckes leads the point standings by 31 points over Corey Heim