NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Overview
Event: UNOH 175 (Round 17 of 23)
Date: Sept. 23, 2017
Location: New Hampshire Motor Speedway in Loudon
Layout: Mile oval
Three Things You Need to Know
● Todd Gilliland, driver of the No. 51 PEDIGREE® Toyota Tundra for Kyle Busch Motorsports (KBM), will make his fourth career start in NASCAR Camping World Truck Series competition Saturday in the UNOH 175 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in Loudon. At 17 years of age, Gilliland is a third-generation driver and is the reigning NASCAR K&N Pro Series West champion. He currently leads the championship standings in both the K&N Pro Series East and West series.
● Driving the No. 51 PEDIGREE® Toyota Tundra for KBM, Gilliland made his Truck Series debut earlier this season at Dover (Del.) International Speedway, where he scored a 20th-place finish after the right-front wheel broke on his Tundra 116 laps into the 200-lap event. Prior to the incident, Gilliland competed among the top-10 and raced as high as second place. A similar situation unfolded for the teen’s second start just weeks later at Gateway Motorsports Park in Madison, Illinois, where he raced in the top-five throughout the event but had his race cut short due to an issue with the transmission. Unable to finish the race, he was scored with a 21st-place result.
● While Gilliland is making just his fourth start in Truck Series competition, he is quite familiar with the “Magic Mile.” Competing in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East, Gilliland scored the win at New Hampshire earlier this year. Gilliland started third and led 63 of the 70 laps run to score the victory. It was his second start in the series at New Hampshire. He scored a runner-up finish during the 2016 edition of the event.
Todd Gilliland, Driver Q&A
This is going to be the first Truck Series race you’ll go into having had previous track experience. How much of a confidence boost does that give you, especially considering you have a win at New Hampshire?
“I think having racing experience at New Hampshire helps a lot with my confidence going in there. It will be good. I think it will help with practice and help with the learning curve a little bit. I’m confident we can go in there and have a good run.”
What have you learned during your races at New Hampshire that may help you this weekend?
“With the VHT and the stuff that they put down on the track at Loudon, I think it will be quite a bit different from the Truck races in the past. That makes running the K&N race that much more valuable with just moving around the groove. It will help a lot when it comes to race time and how to pass people on the track.”
You’ve been busy trying to lock up championships in NASCAR’s K&N East and West Series. You have one more race in the East Series and a few more in the West Series. How has it been running both those series this year, and what are your thoughts on next weekend’s race at Dover?
“It has been a great year for us – we have nine wins overall this season, so far. It has been a dream-come-true season. Whatever happens at Dover – we have worked so hard this season and I can confidently say that – obviously we want to win a championship and we are bringing everything we can to do that. I’m excited to finish the season strong and hopefully with a trophy in my hand.”
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