NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Overview
Event: Eaton 200, Race 10 of 23, 160 Laps – 35/35/90; 200 Miles
Location: Gateway Motorsports Park (GMP) in Madison, Ill. (1.25-mile oval)
Date/Broadcast: June 23, 2018 at 8:30 p.m. ET on FOX Sports 1, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR 90
What You Need to Know
- Gilliland has one previous start in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS) at Gateway. Last year he started fourth and finished the opening two stages inside the top 10 before experiencing terminal transmission issues with 48 laps remaining and finishing 21st.
- In five NCWTS starts this season, Gilliland has three top-10 finishes and has led 63 laps. He led a race-high 62 laps at Texas Motor Speedway. Despite only competing in five of the nine races due to age restrictions, he currently ranks 17h in the Truck Series championship standings and is 123 points out of the eighth and final playoff spot.
- Gilliand will have Royal Canin as his primary sponsor at Gateway. Royal Canin USA is a leader in science-based cat and dog health nutrition. Founded by a veterinarian in 1968, Royal Canin has 50 years of experience in delivering individualized nutritional solutions. In collaboration with an expert team of nutritionists, breeders and veterinarians from around the world, Royal Canin places cats and dogs at the central point of the innovation process. The Royal Canin product line offers a range of diets based on size, age, breed, lifestyle and therapeutic requirements. Royal Canin diets are available at veterinary hospitals and pet specialty stores nationwide. Royal Canin is a subsidiary of Mars, Incorporated. To learn more about Royal Canin, visit www.royalcanin.com and visit the company on Facebook at www.facebook.com/royalcanin.us
- The 18-year-old rookie and his No. 4 Royal Canin Tundra will be visiting the company’s headquarters, located 30 miles from Gateway in St. Charles, Mo., Thursday and several employees will be in the stands cheering him on Saturday night.
Todd Gilliland, Driver Q&A
Talk about racing at Gateway since you ran the truck race there last year:
“I’m really excited to go back to Gateway, a place I have a little bit of racing experience. It’s going to be a little bit different with the repave this year, but luckily our teammate Noah Gragson was able to do a tire test there. I think we’re still going to have a really fast Toyota Tundra to start out with.”
You had a tough night at Iowa last week. How do you put that behind you and focus on Gateway?
“I think it’s just about surrounding yourself with a team that believes in you and doesn’t let themselves get caught up in stuff like that. That stuff happens – it was a mistake on my part, but we’re all in this together. We’ve got a lot more races coming up that are really important, so we just need to put it behind us.”
Your Tundra has a different look this week. Talk about Royal Canin being on the truck:
“I’m really excited to have a new partner on board that is in the Pedigree family. I’m visiting their headquarters in St. Louis which will be a lot of fun and a lot of their guests are coming to the race, so hopefully we can get a strong run for them.”
Todd Gilliland Career Highlights
- Won this year’s season-opening NASCAR K&N Pro Series East race in January at New Smyrna (Fla.) Speedway and won again at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway in April
- Won a second consecutive NASCAR K&N Pro Series West championship in 2017 after recording six wins, seven poles, 937 laps le, 11 top-five and 13 top-10 finishes across 14 starts
- Ran six NASCAR Camping World Truck Series races for KBM in 2017, scoring a career-best third-place finish at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in Loudon
- Crowned the 2016 NASCAR K&N Pro Series West champion after collecting six wins, six poles, 11 top-five and 13 top-10 finishes, making him the youngest champion in the history of any NASCAR national or touring series
Todd Gilliland’s No. 4 Royal Canin Tundra:
KBM-025: The No. 4 Royal Canin team will race KBM-025, for Saturday’s Eaton 200 at GMP. Gilliland raced this Tundra at Martinsville in March and finished 14th. Noah Gragson won with this truck at Martinsville in October 2017 and Christopher Bell won at Gateway with it in 2016.
KBM Notes of Interest
- KBM drivers have collected two wins, 265 laps led, three top-five and six top-10 finishes resulting in an average finish of 13.9 across 12 starts at Gateway
- KBM’s Christopher Bell was victorious in 2016 and Darrell Wallace Jr., won in 2014
- After Iowa, the No. 4 team has two poles with David Gilliland (Daytona) and Kyle Busch (Atlanta), one top-five and four top-10 finishes and is ranked fifth in the owner’s championship standings
- KBM holds the NCWTS records for most career wins (67) and most wins in a single season (14 in 2014). In addition to collecting a series-record six Owner’s Championships, the organization has produced two championship-winning drivers; Erik Jones (2015) and Christopher Bell (2017).