Date: Aug. 15, 2019
Event: UNOH 200 (Race 17 of 23)
Series: NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series
Location: Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway (.533-mile oval)
Format: Three Segments; 55 laps/55 laps/90 laps
Start/Finish: 17th/9th (Running, completed 200 of 200 laps)
Winner: Brett Moffitt of GMS Racing (Chevrolet)
Todd Gilliland and the No. 4 Mobil 1 team survived a caution-filled UNOH 200 at Bristol Motor Speedway relatively unscathed to earn his 10th top-10 finish of the season. In two NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series practice sessions on Thursday morning, Gilliland posted the 13th-fastest lap in the first practice and was 18th-fastest in final practice. In one round of single-truck qualifying on Thursday afternoon, Gilliland earned the 17th starting spot on a slick track under sunny skies.
Under the lights at Thunder Valley, Gilliland struggled throughout the first stage, but crew chief Wes Ward and the No. 4 team made significant adjustments to work on the handling of the Mobil 1 Tundra and he was able to take advantage of the high rate of attrition and gain positions to finish in the top 10.
Stage One Recap:
- On Thursday afternoon, Gilliland earned the 17th starting spot at the World’s Fastest Half-Mile.
- Under the lights on Thursday night, Gilliland struggled with the handling of his Mobil 1 Tundra, reporting that it was free on entry and exit of the corner but tight in the middle.
- Gilliland finished the first stage in 18th and Ward brought him to pit road for four Goodyear tires, Sunoco fuel and a multitude of adjustments.
Stage Two Recap:
- The No. 4 began the second stage in 18th, after a pit stop for adjustments and this time began to work toward the front of the field in the second 55-lap segment, finishing in 12th.
- He reported to Ward that the handling of the Mobil 1 Tundra had improved, but still needed work.
- Following the second stage, Ward again brought Gilliland to pit road for four fresh tires, fuel and more significant adjustments.
Stage Three Recap
- Gilliland started the chaotic final stage in 11th and navigated his way through seven caution flags without major incident, remaining on the lead lap.
- Ward opted to bring Gilliland to pit road under caution on lap 154 for four tires, fuel and additional adjustments.
- Gilliland survived several late-race cautions and ultimately finished ninth, earning his 10th top-10 finish of the season.
Todd Gilliland, driver of the No. 4 Mobil 1 Tundra for Kyle Busch Motorsports:
That looked eventful out there.
“Yeah. There’s nothing you could really do. I mean restarts were crazy. Everyone was just running into each other on the restarts. It worked out for me because I was like the last car on the lead lap a lot of the time. Whenever someone else would make a mistake, we could just kind of jump on them. Somehow ended up ninth. Not our best truck, not our best weekend by far. Still just – I guess being able to salvage something, but it still sucks to see these guys competing for wins week in and week out. We just aren’t there. I don’t know what it’s going to take, but we’ll just keep working. I definitely want to be up on top of that building. It is what it is. Ninth place and we’ll move on.”
UNOH 200 Recap:
- Brett Moffitt won the race with Chandler Smith, Ross Chastain, Stewart Friesen and Grant Enfinger rounding out the top-five finishers.
- The race featured 12 cautions for 73 laps and nine lead changes among three drivers.
How Gilliland’s KBM Teammates Fared:
Harrison Burton, driver of the No. 18 Toyota Tundra, finished 23rd
Chandler Smith, driver of the No. 51 Toyota Tundra, finished second
Raphael Lessard, driver of the No. 46 Toyota Tundra, finished 12th
NGOTS Championship Standings:
Gilliland continues to hold the 11th spot in the NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series driver points standings after 17 races in the 2019 season.
Next Race:
Todd Gilliland and the No. 4 Mobil 1 team will return on Sunday, Aug. 25 at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park. Live coverage of the event begins at 2:30 p.m. EST on FS1.
