NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Overview
Event: Buckle Up in Your Truck 225, Race 12 of 23, 150 Laps –35/35/80; 225 Miles
Location: Kentucky Speedway in Sparta (1.5-mile oval)
Date/Broadcast: July 12, 2018 at 7:30 p.m. ET on FOX Sports 1, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR 90
What You Need to ‘Noah’bout
- Noah Gragson and crew chief Rudy Fugle, who are in their first year working together, have hit their stride over the last six races. Gragson enters Thursday night’s Buckle Up in Your Truck 225 at Kentucky Speedway having finished inside the top-10 in six straight NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS) events and has also started inside the top three in seven straight races, including three pole awards. After posting an average starting position of 5.0 and average finish over the first five events of the season, the duo has recorded an average starting position of 2.2 and average finish of 5.8 across the last six events.
- Gragson earned his first career top-10 finish in the NCWTS on a mile-and-half track in last July’s event at Kentucky Speedway. After qualifying 11th, the Las Vegas native posted an average running position of 8.8, led 32 laps and ended the day with a fifth-place finish. Fugle was the winning crew chief in last year’s race, guiding Christopher Bell to a race-high 54 laps led en route to the victory. The win made it back-to-back to victory lane trips in the Bluegrass State for Fugle, who also victorious with William Byron in 2016.
- With his fourth-place finish at Chicagoland Speedway, Gragson maintained second place in the NCWTS championship standings. He enters this week’s race 65 tallies behind points leader Johnny Sauter. Gragson has earned 11 playoff points through the first eight races in 2018, including the seven he earned by sweeping all three stages en route to victory from the pole at Kansas Speedway in Kansas City in May. Overall in 11 starts this season, he has posted one win, three poles, four top-five and seven top-10 finishes.
- The 19-year-old driver has led at least one lap in 10 of the 11 races this season and leads the Truck Series with 388 laps led on the year. He also leads the Truck Series with an average starting position of 3.5.
- Safelite AutoGlass, the nation’s largest provider of vehicle glass repair and replacement services, will adorn the hood of Gragson’s No. 18 Tundra for all 23 events on the NCWTS schedule in 2018. Gragson will visit the company’s headquarters, which are located 161 miles from Kentucky Speedway in Columbus, Ohio, Monday and Tuesday, July 16 and 17, before next Wednesday’s event at Eldora Speedway in Rosburg, Ohio.
Noah Gragson, Driver Q&A
Have you set any goals for the last five races of the regular season?
“I hadn’t realized that its only five races left going into Kentucky before the playoffs — it’s gone so quick this year. Just trying to win some more races in my Safelite AutoGlass Toyota Tundra is the most important thing — trying to get some more points. Just trying to do the best job that I can do behind the wheel is the biggest focus for me right now.”
What does it mean to have the support of Safelite AutoGlass at the track each and every race?
“It’s been a lot of fun to carry the Safelite AutoGlass brand with me on and off the race track. To be able to have all of the Safelite AutoGlass guests come out every single week — Safelite brings out so many guests, clients and people who work for Safelite. It’s really cool to see how much they are involved in the sport and involved with our team at Kyle Busch Motorsports and myself. Being able to carry that brand has been really a privilege and a humbling opportunity.”
Noah Gragson Career Highlights
- In 36 career NCWTS starts has collected two wins, six poles, 575 laps led, nine top-five and 21 top-10 finishes.
- Recorded two top-five and three top-10 finishes resulting in average finish of 4.3 across three NASCAR Xfinity Series starts for Joe Gibbs Racing this season
- Finished 10th in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS) championship standings in 2017 after collecting one win, three poles, 187 laps led, four top-five and 13 top-10 finishes in his rookie campaign. He earned his first NCWTS victory last October at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway outdueling series veterans Johnny Sauter and Matt Crafton in the closing laps
- The NASCAR Next alum also competed in three events for KBM’s Super Late Model team in 2017, highlighted by his triumph in the prestigious ARCA/CRA Super Series Winchester 400 at Winchester (Ind.) Speedway in October
- The Las Vegas native has collected four NASCAR K&N Pro Series West victories across 27 career starts and two NASCAR K&N Pro Series East victories across 16 career starts
Noah Gragson’s No. 18 Safelite AutoGlass Tundra:
KBM-044: The Safelite AutoGlass team will unload KBM-44 for Thursday night’s Buckle Up in Your Truck 225 at Kentucky Speedway. The Tundra finished third in its most recent outing with Brandon Jones and the No. 46 team at Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway in May. Owner-driver Kyle Busch piloted the truck to its lone victory at Kansas Speedway in Kansas City last May.
KBM Notes of Interest
- KBM drivers have collected four wins, 672 laps led, 12 top-five and 15 top-10 finishes resulting in an average finish of 9.4 across 22 starts at Kentucky
- Christopher Bell won last year’s event at Kentucky, William Byron was victorious in 2016 and Kyle Busch visited victory lane in 2011 and 2014
- The No. 18 team, which last year was the No. 4 team with Christopher Bell, has won five consecutive NCWTS Owner’s titles for KBM and has produced two championship-winning drivers (Erik Jones, 2015 and Christopher Bell, 2017)
- The No. 18, the number which was on the first Tundra that went to victory lane for KBM in 2010, has 21 career victories
- 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)
