Todd Gilliland and the No. 4 Mobil 1 Team Have Strong Run Soured at Canada

Date:         Aug. 25, 2019

Event:         Gander Trucks 250 (Race 18 of 23)

Series:        NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series

Location:   Canadian Tire Motorsport Park in Bowmanville, Ont. (2.459-mile road course)

Format: Three Segments; 20 laps/20 laps/24 laps

Start/Finish: 2^nd/18^th (Running, completed 64 of 64 laps)

Winner:      Brett Moffitt of GMS Racing (Chevrolet)

Todd Gilliland and the No. 4 Mobil 1 team had a disappointing end to a strong run at Canadian Tire Motorsports Park with a 18^th-place finish. In two NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series practice sessions on Saturday morning, Gilliland posted the fastest lap in the first practice and was fifth-fastest in final practice. In two rounds of group qualifying on Sunday afternoon, Gilliland earned the second starting spot for the 64-lap race.

Early in the first stage, Gilliland pressured Brett Moffitt for the lead, but a lack of rear grip and a spin on lap 13 sent him back in field. Crew chief Wes Ward and the No. 4 team were able to make repairs and the young driver rose through the field into the top 10 in the final stage before a problem with the motor resulted in a late race pit stop and an 18^th-place finish.

Stage One Recap:

• On Sunday morning, Gilliland advanced to the second round of two rounds of group qualifying and earned the second starting spot for the 64-lap event.
• Early in the first stage, the teenage driver challenged the leader, but reported that he needed more rear grip.
• With seven laps to go in the first stage, Gilliland lost control and spun and hit a tire barrier, then an uncontrolled tire on the subsequent pit stop earned him a pass-through penalty.
• Gilliland finished the first stage in 18^th but remained on the lead lap. Ward opted to keep the No. 4 on track between stages to make up some track position.

Stage Two Recap:

• Gilliland began the second stage in sixth, earning positions as other vehicles made pit stops during the stage break.
• He reported to Ward that the handling of the Mobil 1 Tundra was a little bit worse, but he was still running times comparable with the leader.
• Gilliland continued to climb into the top five, as high as fourth, before Ward called him to pit road for a four-tire stop under green flag conditions with two laps to go in the stage.
• The young driver finished 20^th in the second stage after pitting, but was then able to stay out during the stage caution and regain track position.

Stage Three Recap

• At the start of the final stage, Gilliland was once again in the top 10, restarting ninth and beginning to march back toward the front of the field.
• Unfortunately, he soon reported that the motor of the No. 4 Tundra was not healthy, and he needed to come to pit road.
• Gilliland was able to limp the ailing machine to the finish, ultimately crossing the line in 18^th.

Todd Gilliland, driver of the No. 4 Mobil 1 Tundra for Kyle Busch Motorsports:

What happened?

“We had a smooth weekend going. We qualified second and thought we had really good speed in the first run. Just our long run speed wasn’t there all weekend. In practice we kind of saw it and then in the race I just got really loose as we went and was not really able to keep up with Brett Moffitt there on the long run. I still thought we had good speed, and then I got in the corner a little too hard and locked up the rear tires and got in the wall and got some damage. That didn’t help us. Then about halfway through the race we had some more problems with fuel pressure and basically the motor just not running right when I’d get on the gas. That killed our speed too. We had to pit under green on the last run and just were never in contention after that.”

Gander Trucks 250 Recap:

• Brett Moffitt won the race with Alex Tagliani, Ben Rhodes, Sheldon Creed and Austin Hill rounding out the top-five finishers.
• The race featured 3 cautions for nine laps and six lead changes among five drivers.

How Gilliland’s KBM Teammates Fared:

Harrison Burton, driver of the No. 18 Toyota Tundra, finished 21^st

Alex Tagliani, driver of the No. 51 Toyota Tundra, finished second

NGOTS Championship Standings:

Gilliland fell to the 12^th spot in the NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series driver points standings after 18 races in the 2019 season.

Next Race:

Todd Gilliland and the No. 4 JBL team will return on Friday, Sept. 18 at Las Vegas (Nev.) Motor Speedway. Live coverage of the event begins at 9 p.m. EST on FS1.