If you ask sports fans about NASCAR, they recite names of iconic NASCAR drivers like Richard Petty, Dale Earnhardt, Darrell Waltrip, Jeff Gordon, etc. These drivers are some of NASCAR’s greatest drivers. Now, the best drivers are the Busch brothers, Kevin Harvick, & Jimmie Johnson, among others. Those drivers all race in the top NASCAR series, the Cup Series. With famous races such as the Daytona 500, the July 4 race at Daytona, & the Labor Day weekend race at Darlington Raceway, NASCAR is equipped with a loyal & strong fan base, including me. While I enjoy watching the Cup Series races, I also relish watching the Truck Series races. In this entry, I will provide you a preview of the upcoming NASCAR Truck Series season's fulltime teams & drivers.
To begin with, I start with Chevrolet teams because there are more of them than any other manufacturer. These first three drivers all race for their family owned teams. John Wes Townley won his first race last year at Las Vegas Motor Speedway & he finished eighth in points, & he returns chasing more trophies this year. In #02 truck is Tyler Young, who with 56 Truck Series starts, desires more Top 10 finishes. Having purchased the equipment & owners’ points from Billy Boat Motorsports, each race for rookie Tommy Joe Martins will provide experience & hopefully he garners the respect of the other drivers. Returning to the driver’s seat for her own team is Jennifer Jo Cobb, & while statistics lack in terms of great races, her persistence is admirable as she races while I watch the races on my TV.
A feel-good story is Jordan Anderson & new #66 Bolen Motorsports Chevrolet. Last year, racing for an underfunded team & missing six races, he finished 19th in points. This year, he has sponsorship, will race fulltime, & with his determination, an improvement upon last season is achievable. His team last year, Mike Harmon Racing, fields a truck for owner Mike Harmon & other drivers, & while the team lacks top equipment, perhaps Anderson’s success last year attracts drivers & sponsors this year. New to the Truck Series this year is Contreras Motorsports, & owner Carlos Contreras will pilot #71 Chevrolet at Daytona International Speedway, with other drivers filling in the remainder of the schedule. While neither Norm Benning in his #6 Chevrolet nor Timmy Hill in Premium Motorsports #49 truck have a victory on their resumes, both add to the competitiveness of the Truck Series as both drivers work hard competing fulltime.
Quite possibly the most improved team in the Truck Series is GMS Racing. Last year, the team fielded trucks for rookie Spencer Gallagher & the duo of Austin Dillon & Brandon Jones. This year Gallagher wants to be more up front at the finish as he had only one Top 5 last season. New to GMS Racing this year is veteran Johnny Sauter, who finished in fourth place last year despite never reaching victory lane. Sauter seeks a return visit, & he will be the team mentor to Gallagher & rookie Grant Enfinger, who takes over the truck driven by Dillon & Jones. While Enfinger is only a rookie, he raced fulltime in ARCA Racing Series the past two years & is the reigning ARCA champion, so he certainly has the qualifications to move up into the Truck Series.
Last year, Erik Jones won the championship in the first season he competed fulltime due to age restrictions. Like Jones, these next two drivers will race fulltime this year as they are no longer restricted due to their age. Cole Custer is a young driver with tremendous talent, & in his part-time schedule last season, he won a race & accumulated four Top 10’s. This year, he competes for the championship in #00 JR Motorsports Chevrolet. While I believe Custer’s lack of experience will hinder his championship hopes, he will be a weekly frontrunner. John Hunter Nemechek raced part-time two years ago, & despite missing five races last year, he finished 12th in points. If you add his father Joe Nemecheks’ points to his, then John would have finished in seventh. Not only did he debut in spectacular fashion with a win at Chicagoland Speedway & 10 Top 10’s, he also won the Most Popular Driver Award. Nemechek showed ample skill behind the wheel of #8 NEMCO Motorsports Chevrolet, & I cheer for him this year. His added experience will benefit him more so than Custer, & thus he is my pick to win the championship.
MAKE Motorsports is an underfunded newer team whom I follow on social media & I root for their success. Travis Kvapil, 2003 Truck Series champion & whose autograph I have, will drive #50 Chevrolet fulltime. To the best of my knowledge, various drivers will fill the other truck. MB Motorsports has fielded trucks since the inception of the Truck Series, & while they field numerous drivers, I hope they field a truck for Bobby Pierce at Eldora Speedway so he can duplicate the same excitement as he battled with Christopher Bell for the victory last year.
I promise less Ford teams. Brad Keselowski Racing, whose two drivers could easily win the championship, unquestionably leads Ford. Tyler Reddick won two races, finished second in his rookie season, & now has a steady teammate in Daniel Hemric. All of this should only improve Reddick’s consistency as he chases the championship. Hemric wins a race this year, write it down, you heard it here first. With Cup Series champion Brad Keselowski as his owner, Penske power, & a terrific teammate in Reddick, Hemric will win at least one race. Both drivers are strong candidates to be in the Truck Series inaugural Chase. This week Richard Petty Motorsports announced a driver development program with Empire Racing, so maybe Richard Petty Motorsports drivers Aric Almirola, Brian Scott, & Jeb Burton drive the Empire Racing #43 Ford. All three drivers have a Truck Series win, so if they compete in the Truck Series, they are contenders. Lastly, new team Lira Motorsports is fielding two trucks this year, & they are a driver developmental team for Roush Fenway Racing, so perhaps Darrell Wallace Jr. will return at a track like Eldora Speedway in hopes of another victory.
Kyle Busch Motorsports is the defending championship winning team & is arguably the top Toyota team. Busch, himself the defending Cup Series champion, has two rookies racing fulltime this season. While Christopher Bell is a rookie, he captured people’s attention last season with an exciting victory at Eldora Speedway. Additionally, he ran four more races last season, so he has limited experience. Liberty University will sponsor young William Byron's #9 Toyota. While his lone Truck Series race last season ended prematurely in a crash, Byron won the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East championship last season. Kyle Busch Motorsports also will field a third truck for several drivers, including Daniel Suarez, who nearly won at least one race last year driving part-time duty, & Cody Coughlin, who brings family sponsor & owner of cool paint schemes Jegs.
Not to be overlooked out of Sandusky, OH is ThorSport Racing Toyotas led by two-time champion Matt Crafton. Crafton, always a frontrunner, is the mentor to a sophomore & two rookies. Cameron Hayley returns after a sixth-place finish last season & wants to gain at least five more spots because although he finished with 13 Top 10’s, only four of them were Top 5’s. Dirt track master Rico Abreu steps into #98 Toyota, & what he lacks in height he makes up for with talent as he has advanced to the Truck Series at age 24. From watching Truck Series practice at Daytona, Abreu sought advice from Crafton, & learning from the two-time champion can only benefit Abreu. Lastly, ThorSport is fielding a fourth team this year for Ben Rhodes, who has family sponsor Alpha Energy Solutions onboard his #41 Toyota. While Rhodes only has four Truck Series starts, three of them were Top 10’s, so he certainly wants to continue to race upfront. While Abreu & Rhodes are rookies, they race in great equipment & will go fast.
Veteran Timothy Peters returns to Red Horse Racing, & while he boasts 10 career Truck Series wins, he wishes to finish higher in the standings than fifth, where he finished the past two seasons. Last season, Ben Kennedy rode the SAFER Barrier at Kentucky Speedway during a crash, & for Kennedy to improve, he must cut down on DNF’s as he had the most out of any Top 10 driver last season. Hattori Racing hopes to race fulltime this season after attempting only three races a year ago, but Ryan Truex has amassed 67 starts in NASCAR’s top three series at only age 23, so he will not be afraid to challenge drivers for positions. Finally, new team AM Racing with Austin Wayne Self drives from two straight second place finishes the past two years in ARCA into the Truck Series. While his opening ARCA race this season ended with a damaged car, he hopes to replicate his success in the Trucks.
In NASCAR, there are constantly new teams & faces in the garage. There are many part time teams, some who will race multiple times, others who are struggling to find funding to race once, & others who hope success in one race gain them attention from another owner. All they ask for is an opportunity & they all dream of becoming the next household name after Jimmie Johnson & Tony Stewart. If they fail, persistence is necessary, though sponsorship is essential. NASCAR is expensive; thus, why drivers such as John Wes Townley & Ben Rhodes enjoy the benefits of family sponsorship. This season the Truck Series will be a blend of veterans such as Matt Crafton racing with youngsters such as Cole Custer. With all these teams, I promise it will be an exciting season.
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