John Hunter Nemechek earned the Cometic Gasket pole award for the third straight week, laying down a lap time of 29.612 seconds in Friday’s one-lap qualifying session for the SpeedyCash.com 220 at Texas Motor Speedway. Despite earning the pole, the No. 4 team was forced to drop to the rear on the opening pace laps due to unapproved adjustments.
Nemechek drove through the field on two different occasions in Friday’s 149-lap event and earned a sixth-place finish, marking his sixth straight race of a sixth-place finish or better. With the finish and 13 stage points compiled throughout the race, Nemechek has taken over the lead in the Camping World Truck Series regular season point standings and sits four tallies ahead of reigning champion Ben Rhodes.
Stage One Recap
· Nemechek earned the pole for the third straight week with a lap time of 29.612 seconds in Friday’s qualifying session but was forced to drop to the rear prior to the green flag due to unapproved adjustments.
· Just 20 laps into the 149-lap event, the talented wheelman made his way into the top 10 for the first time of the night.
· With under five laps to go in the opening stanza, Nemechek communicated that his Tom Thumb/Albertsons Tundra TRD Pro was “tight off exit of turn 2”.
· Nemechek continued his battle towards the front and took the green-and-white checkered flag in sixth to end Stage One.
Stage Two Recap:
· Nemechek brought his No. 4 Tundra down pit road for four fresh Goodyear tires and a full load of Sunoco fuel at the stage break and would go back out on track lined up in fifth for the Stage Two restart.
· The second-generation driver was able to get a good jump on the restart and made his way up to third early in the middle stanza.
· Nemechek got within a second of race leader Ryan Preece but was unable to chase him down, eventually taking the green-and-white checkered flag in third, earning an additional eight stage points.
· At the stage break, Nemechek communicated that he “needs to finish the corners a little bit better in Turns 1 and 2”.
Final Stage Recap:
· Nemechek brought his Tom Thumb/Albertsons Tundra down pit road under the stage break where the No. 4 team was able to execute a four-tire and fuel stop that sent him back out onto the track in the lead.
· The 24-year-old driver elected the outside lane on the restart and raced side-by-side with the No. 17 of Preece through Turns 1 and 2 and down the backstretch until he was able to clear the No. 17 on entry into Turn 3.
· The fourth caution of the night came out on lap 87 with Nemechek controlling the top position. Under caution, veteran crew chief Eric Phillips called for the No. 4 team to come down pit road for a fuel-only stop while the rest of the field stayed out on differing pit strategies.
· After electing to pit and forfeit the lead, Nemechek would line up for the restart in 27th. The talented wheelman once again drove through the field and found himself in fifth with just five laps to go as the seventh and final caution of the night came out on lap 143, setting up NASCAR Overtime.
· Nemechek lined up for the overtime restart from the third row on the outside lane but was unable to make his way to the front on the restart, taking the checkered flag in sixth.
SpeedyCash.com 220 Recap
Stewart Friesen earned his third career NASCAR Camping World Truck Series win. Christian Eckes, Ryan Preece, Carson Hocevar, and Ty Majeski rounded out the top-five finishers.
There were seven cautions for 36 laps and 17 lead changes among seven drivers, including Nemechek who led once for 14 laps.
How John Hunter Nemechek’s KBM Teammates Fared:
· Corey Heim, driver of the No. 51 Toyota, finished seventh.
· Chandler Smith, driver of the No. 18 Toyota, finish eighth.
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Championship Standings
Nemechek moved into the top spot of the Camping World Truck Series regular season point standings and now holds a four-point lead over reigning series champion Ben Rhodes.
Next Race
Nemechek and the No. 4 team will look to defend their 2021 victory at Charlotte Motor Speedway next week in the North Carolina Education Lottery 200. Live coverage will be on FS1, Motor Racing Network and SiriusXM at 8:30pm ET.
