Corey Heim came into Richmond (Va.) Raceway on the heels of back-to-back top-five finishes at Pocono Raceway and Lucas Oil Raceway. The 20-year-old driver extended his streak to a career-best three straight top-five finishes, wheeling his JBL Tundra to a fifth-place finish Saturday night at Richmond.
Heim started Saturday’s 250-lap event in 16th and chipped away at the field throughout the night. The JBL driver earned an additional six stage points for the No. 51 as they now sit 31 points above the cutoff line for advancing to the Round of 8 in the owner’s portion of the Truck Series playoffs.
Stage One Recap
· Heim lined up for Saturday’s Worldwide Express 250 at Richmond Raceway in 16th after putting down a lap time of 22.925 seconds at 117.775 mph in the qualifying session on Saturday afternoon.
· On the initial start of the race, Heim fell back to 17th before getting into a groove as he started to chip away at the field.
· With just under 10 laps to go in the opening stage, Heim worked his way into the top-10 for the first time of the night and took the green-and-white checkered flag in 10th to end Stage One.
· At the stage break, Heim communicated that his No. 51 Tundra TRD Pro was “just aero tight. Wouldn’t over adjust too much”.
Stage Two Recap:
· The 20-year-old driver brought his JBL Tundra down pit road at the break where the No. 51 team executed a lightning fast four-tire and fuel stop, earning three spots on pit road, sending Heim back out on track to restart in seventh.
· Heim continued to run in the top-10 throughout the middle stanza before passing the No. 52 of Stewart Friesen for fifth with 15 to go in the stage.
· As the field came back to the green-and-white checkered flag to end Stage Two, Heim was scored in sixth, earning an additional five stage points for the No. 51 team.
· Heim radioed that his JBL Tundra was “a little tight in the center of the turn but free on entry”.
· The battle cost Heim two spots as he settled into eighth with 90 laps to go in the race.
· Heim worked his way back up to sixth before the third and final caution of the night came out with 34 laps to go.
· The JBL driver was able to gain one spot on the ensuing restart into the top-five where he would take the checkered flag, earning his career best third straight top-five finish.
Corey Heim, driver of the No. 51 JBL Tundra TRD PRo
How did your race go?
“Top-five tonight at Richmond. Didn’t have much for the leaders but we fought all night and brought home a decent finish with my JBL Tundra TRD Pro. Onto one of my favorites next at Kansas Speedway.”
Worldwide Express 250 Recap
Chandler Smith earned his fifth career NASCAR Camping World Truck Series win and will advance to the Round of 8. John Hunter Nemechek, Ty Majeski, Grant Enfinger, and Heim rounded out the top-five finishers.
There were three cautions for 25 laps and three leads changes among three drivers.
How Corey Heim’s KBM Teammates Fared:
· Chandler Smith, driver of the No. 18 Toyota, finished first.
· John Hunter Nemechek, driver of the No. 4 Toyota, finished second.
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Championship Standings
With one race remaining in the Round of 10, the No. 51 team finds themselves sixth on the grid, 31 points above the cutoff line for advancing to the Round of 8 in the Camping World Truck Series owner’s playoffs.
Next Race
Corey Heim and the No. 51 JBL team will return to action on Sept. 9 when the Camping World Truck Series heads to Kansas Speedway for the final race of the Round of 10. Live coverage of the Kansas Lottery 200 will be on FS1, Motor Racing Network, and SiriusXM at 7:30 p.m. ET.
