NASCAR Camping World Truck Series – Page 8

Kansas

by jnemechek

No. 4 Mobil 1 Tundra Camping World Trucks Kansas Preview

Neme'chek' The Facts:

After a week off, John Hunter Nemechek and the No. 4 Mobil 1 team roll into Kansas Speedway coming off their second win of the weekend at Richmond Raceway, where Nemechek was able to hold off a late-race charge from Kyle Busch Motorsports (KBM) driver-owner Kyle Busch. After six races, Nemechek continues to sit at the top of the Camping World Trucks championship standings, 20 tallies ahead of Ben Rhodes.
In NCWTS competition, Nemechek has three starts at the 1.5-mile track, where his best finish of third came in 2017. In 2020, Nemechek made two NASCAR Cup Series starts at Kansas with a best finish of 17^th, which came in the October event. In 2018, Nemechek captured his first career win in the NASCAR Xfinity Series at Kansas.
KBM enters Saturday’s event having won the last four Camping World Truck Series races. Nemechek started the streak at Las Vegas (Nev.) Motor Speedway in March and captured KBM’s most recent triumph at Richmond (Va.) Raceway. Busch was victorious at Atlanta and Martin Truex Jr. captured his first Truck Series victory at the Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway Dirt Track. It’s the fifth time in the organization’s history that they’ve collected four straight victories but have yet to make it more than four straight.
Nemechek is an eight-time winner in Camping World Truck Series action, winning at least one race each season from 2015 to 2018 for his family-owned team, NEMCO Motorsports, and returning to victory lane this year with KBM. Across 108 career starts in NASCAR’s third division, the second-generation driver has compiled two poles, 866 laps led, 32 top-five and 55 top-10 finishes resulting in an average finish of 12.9. The North Carolina native qualified for the Camping World Truck Series playoffs in each of his two full-time seasons, finishing eighth in the championship standings in both 2016 and 2017. He was voted the series most popular driver in 2015.
The 23-year-old driver produced three top-10 finishes and an average result of 22.4 while competing for rookie of the year honors in the NASCAR Cup Series in 2020. He recorded a career-best eighth-place finish twice, both coming at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway, earned the Sunoco Rookie of the Race award four times and finished 23rd in the championship standings.
Eric Phillips returns to KBM to lead the No. 4 team this season. Phillips led the No. 18 team at KBM in its debut season in 2010 and helped build the organization into one of the premier teams in all of NASCAR before departing at the end of the 2014 season. Under his guidance, the No. 18 team won eight races in its inaugural campaign and became the first team in Truck Series history to capture an owner’s championship in its first season of competition. In 2014, the Illinois native led the No. 51 team to an owner’s championship and his team’s 10 wins spearheaded KBM to a single-season Truck Series record of 14 wins. His 39 career Truck Series victories make him the winningest crew chief in Truck Series history, with 29 of those coming while at KBM. At Kansas, Phillips has 10 starts with two wins coming with Mike Skinner (2009) and Kyle Busch (2014).

John Hunter Nemechek, Driver Q&A:

Kansas was the site of your first NASCAR Xfinity Series win. Is it a place that’s special to you each time you go back?

“Going back to Kansas this weekend. It’s where I got my first NASCAR Xfinity Series win there in 2018. It’s a very special place for me and our family. My dad (Joe Nemechek) swept the weekend there in 2004, and I was able to be in victory lane as well as getting my first Xfinity win there. It’s a special place. It’s a really unique racetrack. I like going there. It’s one of my favorite racetracks to go to. I’m looking forward to this weekend.”

You haven’t raced a truck at Kansas since 2018, but the truck series had three races there last year. How much will you look at KBM’s notes from those races at Kansas last year?

“The trucks raced at Kansas three times last year. They have a lot of notes compiled from those three races. I haven’t been in a truck at Kansas since 2018. It’s unique circumstances. I don’t think it will slow us down. I am confident in my Mobil 1 team. I look forward to getting on track to see what we have. We just have to be consistent and go out and beat the boss.”

At the beginning of the season, Marcus Lemonis from Camping World announced that the team leading the point standings after Kansas would receive a $50,000 team bonus. You have a 20-point lead heading into this race. Are you looking forward to having that extra incentive on the line for your team Saturday?

“I’m definitely looking forward to having the incentive for the extra bonus for our team this weekend. We have to go and just hold the points lead. I hope that we can do so. We have a really strong team. I’m proud of all my guys. They’ve put in a lot of effort and work alongside everyone at KBM. Hopefully we can go out there and get it done!”

by jnemechek

Richmond

by jnemechek

No. 4 Safeway Tundra Camping World Trucks Richmond Preview

Neme'chek' The Facts:

After a two-week break and a disappointing 39th-place finish on the dirt at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway, John Hunter Nemechek and the No. 4 Safeway team return to action Saturday afternoon in the ToyotaCare 250 at Richmond (Va.) Raceway. After five races, Nemechek sits at the top of the Camping World Trucks championship standings, six tallies ahead of Ben Rhodes.
Since the Camping World Truck Series last raced, Nemechek became a father. He and his wife Taylor celebrated the birth of their first child, a baby girl, Aspen Palmer Nemechek, on March 31.
Saturday will be Nemechek’s first Camping World Truck Series on the 0.75-mile oval. In 2020, Nemechek made his sole NASCAR Cup Series start at Richmond, where he finished in the 30^th position. In NASCAR Xfinity Series competition, Nemechek has three career starts with a best finish of seventh in April 2019.
Nemechek is a seven-time winner in Camping World Truck Series action, winning at least one race each season from 2015 to 2018 for his family-owned team, NEMCO Motorsports, and returning to victory lane this year with KBM. Across 107 career starts in NASCAR’s third division, the second-generation driver has compiled two poles, 752 laps led, 31 top-five and 54 top-10 finishes resulting in an average finish of 13.1. The North Carolina native qualified for the Camping World Truck Series playoffs in each of his two full-time seasons, finishing eighth in the championship standings in both 2016 and 2017. He was voted the series most popular driver in 2015.
The 23-year-old driver produced three top-10 finishes and an average result of 22.4 while competing for rookie of the year honors in the NASCAR Cup Series in 2020. He recorded a career-best eighth-place finish twice, both coming at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway, earned the Sunoco Rookie of the Race award four times and finished 23rd in the championship standings.
Eric Phillips returns to KBM to lead the No. 4 team this season. Phillips led the No. 18 team at KBM in its debut season in 2010 and helped build the organization into one of the premier teams in all of NASCAR before departing at the end of the 2014 season. Under his guidance, the No. 18 team won eight races in its inaugural campaign and became the first team in Truck Series history to capture an owner’s championship in its first season of competition. In 2014, the Illinois native led the No. 51 team to an owner’s championship and his team’s 10 wins spearheaded KBM to a single-season Truck Series record of 14 wins. His 38 career Truck Series victories make him the winningest crew chief in Truck Series history, with 28 of those coming while at KBM. At Richmond, Phillips has two career starts with a best finish of 31st in 2004 with Travis Kvapil.
All three KBM Tundras will carry a special decal on the B post this week promoting Autism Awareness that includes the website address of NASCAR Sammy (NASCARSammy.com), an avid NASCAR fan autism advocate. Fans can visit his site to purchase a decal and help support his mission.

John Hunter Nemechek, Driver Q&A:

You recently became a father. How is that going for you?

“It’s all going good. Being a dad is something that has definitely been very exciting and amusing. It’s something I don’t think anyone can explain until it happens to them. It’s a pretty amazing experience so far. Aspen has been doing good. Taylor is doing very well. Hopefully, we can get her to victory lane soon. I’m excited to get her out to the racetrack.”

What does it take to be successful at Richmond?

“To be successful in a Truck at Richmond, I don’t know. I will let you know come Saturday. For us, it’s going to be pushing the limits of our truck and to not make any mistakes. We start kind of far back from our whole Bristol dirt deal, so we have to drive up through there. We have to maximize stage points and make the right adjustments. It will be the first time I’ve driven a truck at Richmond. It’s the first time I’ve been in any type of vehicle that has downforce at Richmond. Everything that I’ve driven there from the Xfinity and Cup car has always been low downforce. It’s a whole new task for me, but I look forward to learning and being a part of the journey.”

by jnemechek

Bristol Dirt

by jnemechek

Atlanta

by jnemechek

No. 4 Mobil 1 Tundra Camping World Trucks Bristol Post Race Report

John Hunter Nemechek was relegated to a 39th-place finish on the dirt at Bristol Motor Speedway due to another competitor making contact with the nose of the No. 4 Mobil 1 Tundra after he spun at the front of the field on lap 48. Prior to spinning, Nemechek was running in fifth position.

Nemechek’s lead in the point standings shrinks to six tallies over Toyota teammate Ben Rhodes.

Stage One Recap
With the qualifying races rained out on Saturday, Nemechek started from the pole position after a performance matrix based on based off of finishing position from the previous race, ranking in owner points standings and the fastest lap from the previous race at Atlanta (Ga.) Motor Speedway. When the field went green, Nemechek fell back through the field to the ninth position. Nemechek radioed to his Mobil 1 crew that his Tundra was tight. After a slow start, Nemechek was able to recover to finish the opening stanza in the fifth position.

Stage Two Recap
Under the stage caution, Nemechek radioed to his crew that there was enough drive in his Tundra. Crew chief Eric Phillips elected to keep Nemechek out on the racetrack under the controlled caution, due to track position being key. Nemechek restarted in the second position. While Nemechek was running in the fifth position, Matt Crafton tapped the bumper of the Mobil 1 Tundra and sent the No. 4 for a spin. As he waited for traffic to clear, Derek Kraus spun, hitting Nemechek to knock the radiator out. Nemechek was relegated to a 39th-place finish.

What exactly happened there?
“I don’t know. Matt (Crafton) just flat-out ran over me, so that one will be in the memory bank, but we were fine. We didn’t hit anything and then towards the end of that whole deal, the 19 (Derek Kraus) – I guess him and his spotter both need a set of glasses, so I will have those for them at Richmond.”

by jnemechek

No. 4 Mobil 1 Tundra Camping World Trucks Atlanta Post Race Report

John Hunter Nemechek continued his momentum to start the 2021 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series season Saturday at Atlanta Motor Speedway with a third-place finish. Nemechek was able to score two playoff points by winning the opening two stages at Atlanta and extended his lead in the championship standings to 47 over Ben Rhodes.

Stage One Recap

Nemechek started from the pole position after a performance matrix based off of finishing position from the previous race, ranking in owner points standings and the fastest lap from the previous race at Las Vegas (Nev.) Motor Speedway. At the competition caution on Lap 15, Nemechek radioed to his crew that he was taking care of his equipment. Crew chief Eric Phillips elected to keep his driver on the racetrack under the caution. Nemechek was able to capture the stage victory by passing team owner Kyle Busch in the closing laps to score 10 championship points and an additional playoff point.

Stage Two Recap:

Under the stage caution, Nemechek radioed to his crew that he needed help running the bottom of the racetrack. Phillips summoned his driver to pit road for four tires, adjustments and fuel. After a speedy pit stop by the Mobil 1 crew, Nemechek would restart the stage from the race lead. With the second stage going green from start to finish, Nemechek radioed to his Mobil 1 crew in the middle of the run that the nose of his Tundra needed to be more off the racetrack to help with tire conservation. Nemechek would once again pass Busch to add another playoff point to his name.

Final Stage Recap:

Under the break, Nemechek radioed to his crew that his Mobil 1 Tundra lost lateral grip near the end of the run. Phillips brought his driver to pit road for four tires, fuel, and adjustments. Nemechek would restart the final stage from second behind Busch. Prior to coming down pit road for green flag pit stops, Nemechek radioed that his Mobil 1 Tundra was free running the top lane and that his Tundra could be a touch tighter. Phillips summoned his driver to pit road on Lap 100. Nemechek would cycle back to the third position and would finish the race in the same position.

John Hunter Nemechek, driver of the No. 4 Mobil 1 Tundra for KBM:

Couldn’t quite out-do the boss today, but how was your run overall? “I felt like we were strong in stage one and stage two. I felt like we could hang with Kyle (Busch), and then we got around in him in lap traffic at the end of the stages. Solid points day overall for our Mobil 1 Toyota Tundra. I can’t thank everyone at KBM (Kyle Busch Motorsports) enough and all of our partners for supporting this deal. Overall, I’m happy with the day, but I’m disappointed. I was hoping to beat Kyle today, but I didn’t have anything for him there at the end. I’ve got to go study some green-flag pit stop stuff and get better there. It’s always a work in progress. We will be back next week at Bristol dirt and hopefully go get us a win there.”

by Barry Cantrell

Las Vegas

by Barry Cantrell

John Hunter Nemechek Beats the Boss to Win At Las Vegas

John Hunter Nemechek was able to hold off KBM team owner Kyle Busch over the final seven laps of the Bucked Up 200 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway to score his first victory of 2021 and the seventh of his Camping World Truck Series career.

Nemechek led a race-high 94 laps. With his victory at Las Vegas, the 23-year-old driver secured the Camping World Trucks points lead. The talented driver and his father are the first father-son duo to have a NASCAR national series victory at Las Vegas.

Stage One Recap
Nemechek started in the third position after a performance matrix based on based off of finishing position from the previous race, the No. 4 team’s ranking in the 2020 owner points standings and the fastest lap from the previous race on the Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway Road Course. Nemechek was able to capture the race lead on the first restart of the night on Lap 7 and would remain out front for the remainder of the stanza to score the stage victory, his third of the season.

Stage Two Recap:
Under the stage caution, Nemechek radioed to his crew that he was free during the run and needed more lateral grip. Veteran crew chief Eric Phillips summoned his driver to pit road for four tires and fuel. After a speedy pit stop by the Mobil 1 crew, Nemechek would restart the stage from the race lead.
The second-generation driver would hold the lead until Busch maneuvered around him with 12 laps remaining in the stage.
Nemechek would finish the second stage in the second position.

Final Stage Recap:
Under the break, Nemechek radioed to his crew that his Mobil 1 Tundra felt free and that lateral stability was needed. Phillips brought his driver to pit road for four tires, fuel, and adjustments. Nemechek would restart the final stage from second. Nemechek would garner the race lead on Lap 68. At the sixth caution of the evening on Lap 90, Nemechek radioed that his Mobil 1 Tundra needed to be a little bit tighter. Phillips summoned his driver to pit road for four tires, fuel and adjustments. Nemechek would restart in the seventh position. Before the race resumed under green flag conditions, Nemechek was asked to take care of his equipment. After three green flag laps, Nemechek worked his way back up to the second position. After the seventh caution, Nemechek was able to secure the race lead again on the restart on Lap 104.

Over the next two cautions, Nemechek was asked to save fuel and take care of his tires. Nemechek was able to hold off team owner Kyle Busch in the closing seven laps of the race to score his first victory of 2021.

You won the race and beat the boss. How was that finish for you?
“I just can’t thank everyone at Toyota, Jack Irving (TRD), Kyle Busch, Uncle Eric (Phillips, crew chief) for this opportunity. It means a lot to me. Mobil 1 on board, coming back to the Truck Series, that was the plan, that was the goal. We came into this year with the hashtag here for wins and we are here for wins. I definitely think experience paid off tonight. We did an amazing job. I can’t thank Fire Alarm Services, ROMCO, all of our partners for all of their help. Thank you fans for being here. It’s awesome to have you guys back. I can’t wait to go celebrate.”

Once you were clear, what were you thinking?
“He was faster than me in stage two, so I really didn’t know. It was all about using our truck to the best we could possibly do, wrapping the bottom and taking the dirty air away. He had to run up and it created more lap time for him. Overall, it was an awesome victory. I wish my wife Taylor was here. Thank you for all of the support, my family, everyone involved. She had to stay home because we are about to be on baby watch. It’s awesome.”

How crazy were the restarts during the race?
“They definitely were. Overall, it was an amazing day. Our restarts were on point all day. Just a lot of fun and that’s all we can ask for. We’re here to have fun, we’re here for wins and we’re doing it.”

by jnemechek