Date: May 18, 2018
Event: North Carolina Education Lottery 200 (Race 7 of 23)
Series: NASCAR Camping World Truck Series
Location: Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway (1.5-mile oval)
Format: Three Segments; 30 laps/30 laps/74 laps
Start/Finish: 3rd / 10th (running, completed 134 of 134 laps)
Winner: Johnny Sauter of GMS Racing (Chevrolet)
Todd Gilliland celebrated his 18th birthday on Tuesday, which made him eligible to compete on every track on the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series schedule. He kicked-off his full-time campaign with his first start on a mile-and-a-half track at Charlotte. Gilliland learned with every lap and brought his No. 4 PEDIGREE® Tundra home for a 10th-place finish.
Stage One Recap:
- Gilliland started third based on owner’s points since qualifying was canceled due to rain.
- He pitted under caution just before the first stage ended on lap 23 for four tires and a chassis adjustment to help the handling.
- When the stage ended Gilliland was 14th.
Stage Two Recap:
- Since Gilliland was able to stay out during the stage break, he restarted sixth on lap 39.
- He told the team his PEDIGREE® Tundra turned much better and got freer the longer he ran.
- He was fourth when the stage ended on lap 60. He pitted for four tires and returned to the race in fifth.
Stage Three Recap:
- Gilliland said his truck was “super tight” early in the final stage, but got better as he ran.
- Since teams could not run the 74-lap stage without stopping for fuel, he pitted for the final time under caution on lap 83 and was 10th when the race resumed.
- There was some hard racing in the closing laps, but Gilliland held on to finish 10th. It was his second top-10 finish of the season and he was also the highest finishing rookie.
Todd Gilliland, driver of the No. 4 PEDIGREE® Tundra for Kyle Busch Motorsports:
Todd Gilliland, driver of the No. 4 PEDIGREE® Tundra for Kyle Busch Motorsports:Talk about your race:
“That was a huge learning experience, I mean all around from the very first lap. I think I fell back about 10 spots on the first lap. Just a different kind of racing. There’s really no way to prepare for it except to do it. Hopefully we can get a lot more mile and half experience from here on out. Get some consistency built into our team and hopefully just build on it, get stronger as the year goes on and I think we’ll be in contention at the end.”
North Carolina Education Lottery 200 Recap:
- Johnny Sauter won the race followed by KBM’s Kyle Busch and Brandon Jones, Brett Moffit and Ben Rhodes rounded out the top-five finishers.
- The race featured seven cautions for a total of 36 laps. There were 11 lead changes among five drivers. KBM’s Noah Gragson led 13 laps.
How Gilliland’s KBM Teammates Fared:
- Noah Gragson, driver of the No. 18 Toyota, finished 8th
- Brandon Jones, driver of the No. 46 Toyota, finished 3rd
- Kyle Busch, driver of the No. 51 Toyota, finished 2nd
NCWTS Owner Championship Standings:
The No. 4 team is now fifth in the Truck Series Owner’s Championship Standings, 67 points out of first.
Next Race:
After two weeks off, the Truck Series returns to action Friday, June 8 at Texas Motor Speedway. Live coverage of the race begins at 9 p.m. ET on FS1.
