Matt Crafton, driver of the No. 88 Ford for ThorSport Racing, won the NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series (NGOTS) championship on Friday night at Homestead-Miami Speedway. It was the third title of Crafton’s career, tying Jack Sprague for the second-most championships in series history.
Crafton became the first driver under the current playoff format to win a championship without winning a race during the season. He finished second in the Ford EcoBoost 200, beating out Championship 4 contenders Ross Chastain, Stewart Friesen and Brett Moffitt. Austin Hill won the Ford EcoBoost 200, his fourth victory in the NGOTS and his first at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
“It feels amazing,” said Crafton. “It’s one step closer to what (Ron) Hornaday Jr. has done and they called us the underdog. I heard (Todd) Bodine and everybody say that I was the underdog and I didn’t have it, and we fought harder I guarantee it. Every one of these guys worked hard. This Menard’s F-150 was fast tonight.”
Kyle Busch captured the owner’s championship with the No. 51 truck. It was Kyle Busch Motorsports’ record-setting seventh NGOTS owner championship. Kyle Busch Motorsports made its series debut back in 2010 with driver Johnny Benson Jr. Since then, the organization hasput 15 different drivers to Victory Lane for a total of 75 series wins.
Tyler Ankrum, driver of the No. 17 for DGR-Crosley, won the 2019 NGOTS Sunoco Rookie of the Year.
Ford Championship Weekend continues Saturday as the NASCAR Xfinity Series Ford EcoBoost 300 begins at 3:30 p.m. On Sunday, the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series will cap its 2019 season at Homestead-Miami Speedway with the Ford EcoBoost 400 championship race, which will be broadcast on NBC at 3:00 p.m.
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