Gilliland Wins First NCWTS Pole at Martinsville, Finishes 12th

Date:         October 27, 2018
Event:         Texas Roadhouse 200 (Race 20 of 23)
Series:        NASCAR Camping World Truck Series
Location:   Martinsville (Va.) Speedway (0.526-mile oval)
Format: Three Segments; 50 laps/50 laps/100 laps
Start/Finish: 1^st / 12^th (running, completed 200 of 200 laps)
Winner:      Johnny Sauter of GMS Racing (Chevrolet)

Todd Gilliland won his first career NCWTS pole Saturday at Martinsville Speedway, despite not having any practice due to rain all day on Friday. Gilliland led the first 39 laps of the race, but his JBL/SiriusXM Tundra tightened up as the race progressed. At the end of the 200-lap event he was 12^th.

Stage One Recap:

• Gilliland started from the pole, followed by his KBM teammates Harrison Burton and Noah Gragson.
• Gilliland paced the first 39 laps of the race until he pitted under caution so he could stay out when the stage ended on lap 50 and regain his track position.
• He was 12^th when Stage One ended on lap 50.

Stage Two Recap:

• The pit strategy did not work out quite as planned since some trucks did not pit at all. Gilliland was seventh for the restart.
• With 10 laps to go in the stage, he was blocked in behind a few trucks and split the middle between them to move up to third.
• Gilliland was fourth when Stage Two ended and pitted for four tires and fuel.

Stage Three Recap:

• Gilliland restarted the final stage in fifth.
• His JBL/SiriusXM Tundra was very tight and not as good as it was at the start of the race.
• When a caution came on lap 154, crew chief Marcus Richmond called Gilliland to pit road for four tires since he seemed to have a tire rub. They also made adjustments to try to free up the Tundra.
• Gilliland was back in 15^th when the race resumed and he spent the remainder of the race fighting to get his track position back.
• He finished the race in 12^th place.

Todd Gilliland, driver of the No. 4 JBL/SiriusXM Tundra for Kyle Busch Motorsports:

How was your truck in the race?

“We had a good start to the day with the morning and getting the pole. Forty laps in the race we were super tight and just really couldn’t do anything all day. That’s kind of where we fell, or we lost spots. Not where we wanted to be obviously, but still some positives to take away. Just kind of frustrating to know how fast our truck was by itself in qualifying and we’ll just have to work on it for next time.”

Texas Roadhouse 200 Recap:

• Johnny Sauter won the race followed by Brett Moffitt, Myatt Snider, Ben Rhodes and Kyle Benjamin rounded out the top-five finishers.
• The race featured six cautions for a total of 43 laps. There were five lead changes among four drivers. Gilliland led once for 39 laps.

How Gilliland’s KBM Teammates Fared:

• Noah Gragson, driver of the No. 18 Toyota, finished 7^th
• Christian Eckes, driver of the No. 46 Toyota, finished 9^th
• Harrison Burton, driver of the No. 51 Toyota, finished 8^th

NCWTS Championship Standings:

The No. 4 team remains 11^th in the Truck Series Owner’s Championship Standings, while Gilliland remains 10^th in the Driver Championship Standings.

Next Race:

The Truck Series returns to action on Friday, Nov. 2 at Texas Motor Speedway. Live coverage of the race begins at 8:30 p.m. ET on FS1.