Practice #1 : Milwaukee Mile

• Thursday, August 22nd, 2024
• NASCAR Wire Service - Holly Cain

NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series Playoffs get underway at historic Milwaukee Mile

After a thrilling regular season finale two weeks ago, the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series begins its 2024 Playoff run this Sunday in the LiUNA! 175 at the historic Milwaukee Mile Speedway (4 p.m. ET, FS1, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

It’s the first time the seven-race run featuring the top-10 ranked drivers on the season begins the high-stakes elimination format on the famed Wisconsin one-miler. And Wisconsin’s own, ThorSport Racing’s Ty Majeski would love nothing more than to start his Playoffs by answering his win at the track last year. He just won the regular season finale at Richmond, Va. two weeks ago and certainly brings the momentum up North.

The opening round of the Playoffs features races at the mile-long Milwaukee track, the half-mile Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway and the 1.5-mile Kansas Speedway. The two lowest ranked drivers among the 10 will be eliminated following the Kansas race.

Eight drivers will compete in the next three-race elimination round – at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway, Homestead-Miami Speedway and Martinsville (Va.) Speedway – and the top-four competitors emerging from that round will race for the big trophy during the sport’s Championship Weekend at Phoenix Raceway.

Qualifying for this year’s Playoffs are the season’s five-race winner TRICON Garage driver Corey Heim, who starts the championship run with a 10-point advantage on the regular season champion, McAnally-Hilgemann Racing’s Christian Eckes, a three-time winner. Majeski, who is coming off back-to-back wins joins race winners Rev Racing’s Nick Sanchez and Spire Motorsports’ Rajah Caruth next in the standings.

CR7 Motorsports’ veteran Grant Enfinger, Eckes’ McAnally-Hilgemann Racing teammate Tyler Ankrum, TRICON Garage’s Taylor Gray, defending series champ, ThorSport Racing’s Ben Rhodes and McAnally-Hilgemann Racing’s 20-year-old Daniel Dye, round out the Playoff field based on points earned.

• LiUNA! 175
• Pole Winner: Ty Majeski
• Age: 30
• Team : No 98 - Road Ranger/Soda Sense Ford
• Owner: Mike Curb
• Crew Chief: Joe Shear Jr
• Ty Majeski won the Pole Award for the LiUNA! 175 with a lap of 29815 seconds, 122556 mph
• This is his ninth pole in 83 NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series races
• This is his fourth pole and 15th top-10 start in 2024
• This is his first pole in two races at The Milwaukee Mile
• Tanner Gray (second) posted his seventh top-10 start of 2024 and his first in two races at The Milwaukee Mile
• Christian Eckes (third) posted his second top-10 start at The Milwaukee Mile It is his 15th in 17 races this season
• Layne Riggs (16th) was the fastest qualifying rookie

• Sunday, August 25th, 2024
• NASCAR Wire Service - Holly Cain

Layne Riggs Captures First Truck Series Win at Milwaukee Mile

For the second-straight day, a second-generation rising NASCAR racing star earned his first-career win. This time it was 22-year-old Layne Riggs claiming the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series victory in Sunday’s Playoff-opening LiUNAI 175! at the historic Milwaukee Mile.

Riggs, son of former NASCAR competitor Scott Riggs, took the lead from Ty Majeski with 53 laps remaining and pulled away to a solid 1.547-second victory over the Wisconsin native and a super-motivated group of Playoff drivers, making the rookie driver’s effort all the more impressive.

Riggs victory in the No. 38 Front Row Motorsports Ford comes a day after 23-year-old Harrison Burton – son of former NASCAR star Jeff Burton – earned his first-career win in the NASCAR Cup Series race at Daytona International Speedway.

“I don’t even know how to describe it,’’ said an emotional Riggs, making only his 23rd start in the series, saying he knew in practice his truck was going to be in contention. “It’s awesome.’

“We’ve had a terrible year, it’s been an awful year, but I’ve learned so much though in my rookie season. After the start I thought there’s no way we’re going to get a win, we’ll do the best we can and just learn for next year. But I knew in practice this thing [today] was awesome.’’

Riggs was so happy and demonstrative that he dislocated his shoulder pumping his arms high in celebration – his team rushed over to help. And it certainly appeared Riggs was okay by the time he hugged his father trackside.

“Dislocated my shoulder I was celebrating so hard, but it was worth it,’’ Riggs said smiling.

Eight of the 10 Playoff drivers finished just behind Riggs, including Majeski, the defending race winner and polesitter who led 45 of the 175 laps in the No. 98 ThorSport Racing Ford. McAnally-Hilgemann Racing’s Christian Eckes was third – leading a race high 71 laps in his No. 19 Chevrolet. REV Racing’s Nick Sanchez and TRICON Garage’s Taylor Gray rounded out the top-five.

McAnally-Hilgemann’s Tyler Ankrum, TRICON Garage’s Corey Heim, McAnally-Hilgemann’s Daniel Dye and reigning series champion, ThorSport Racing’s Ben Rhodes rounded out the top-nine finishers – all Playoff drivers. Three-time series champion Matt Crafton was 10th.

“I was leading on the bottom and it shot up the race track and just couldn’t recover, I was way too tight’’ said Eckes, who paced the field for much of the afternoon and collected a series best ninth stage win.

He now holds a 16-point advantage over Majeski atop the Playoff standings. Heim is third, only 19 points back.

“Proud of everybody but a pretty big missed-opportunity,’’ Eckes said.

The other two Playoff drivers, Grant Enfinger, driver of the No. 9 CR7 Motorsports Chevy, finished 13th and Rajah Caruth, driver of the No. 71 Spire Motorsports Chevy rallied to an 18th place finish after starting from the rear of the grid.

With two more races remaining in this opening round and eight of the 10 drivers advancing, Rhodes is two points behind Enfinger for that all-important eighth Playoff position and Caruth is only four points back.

Round 2 of the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series season championship takes place at Bristol Motor Speedway where Heim is the defending race winner.

• Drivers Entered: 37 (1 drivers will not make the race)
• Laps Scheduled: 175
• Margin of Victory: 01.547 Seconds
• Time of Race: 1 Hours 49 Minutes 16 Seconds
• Average Speed: 97.537
• Cautions: 2 for 22 laps
• Lead Changes: 5
• Green Flag Passes: 635 (4.2 passes per green flag lap)

• LiUNA! 175
• Race Winner: Layne Riggs
• Age: 22
• Team : No 38 - Zorn Compressor & Equipment Ford
• Owner: Bob Jenkins
• Crew Chief: Dylan Cappello
• Layne Riggs won the LiUNA! 175, his first victory in 23 CRAFTSMAN Truck Series races
• This is his first victory and sixth top-10 finish in 2024
• This is his first victory and first top-10 finish in one race at The Milwaukee Mile
• Ty Majeski (second) posted his second top-10 finish in two races at The Milwaukee Mile It is his 11th top-10 finish in 2024
• Christian Eckes (third) posted his second top-10 finish in two races at The Milwaukee Mile
• Layne Riggs (first) was the highest finishing rookie