NASCAR: Christopher Bell waxes the field in Trucks playoff opener
By Alex Herbst
In the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series playoff opener at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, Christopher Bell cleaned house and won convincingly.
The NASCAR playoffs are now officially in full swing, with the Camping World Truck Series getting in on the elimination action at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. Christopher Bell entered the UNOH 175 on Saturday afternoon as the #1 seed and the championship favorite, and did nothing to dispute those claims. He won handily over the field in the 175-lap race around the magic mile.
Christopher Bell, driving the same truck for Kyle Busch Motorsports that William Byron took to victory lane at NHMS last year, was the dominant driver all day. He is just one of two drivers in the stage racing era to win all three stages of a Truck Series race, including Saturday’s race. The only other driver to do so? His team owner Kyle Busch.
It was not all smooth sailing for Bell and the #4 team, however. They had to fight off a strong defensive effort from Ryan Truex, who inherited the lead on the race’s final restart. The driver of the #16 Toyota just barely missed out on the playoffs, and was looking for his first win of his career in the Truck Series. Unfortunately, he had to settle for second on the day in the Granite State.
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A number of drivers who finished inside the top ten turned in surprising banner performances on Saturday afternoon in New Hampshire. Rookie Todd Gilliland earned his best finish for Kyle Busch Motorsports in the series, finishing third in the #51 Toyota. Grant Enfinger and Stewart Friesen, fresh off his new partnership with GMS Racing, rounded out the top five. Playoff drivers then rounded out the top ten.
Not every playoff contender was leaving the magic mile with a smile at the end of the day. John Hunter Nemechek struggled with a vibration throughout the race, turning out to be a gear issue that would send him to the garage. He would return to the track, though multiple laps down. Elsewhere on track, Johnny Sauter got some significant damage from an incident with Noah Gragson that slowed him down. The Brad Keselowski Racing teammates of Austin Cindric and Chase Briscoe also struggled to find the handling in their trucks throughout the weekend.
Here are the full race results from the UNOH 175 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway:
- Christopher Bell, Toyota, Kyle Busch Motorsports
- Ryan Truex, Toyota, Hattori Racing Enterprises
- Todd Gilliland, Toyota, Kyle Busch Motorsports
- Grant Enfinger, Toyota, ThorSport Racing
- Stewart Friesen, Chevrolet, Halmar Racing
- Matt Crafton, Toyota, ThorSport Racing
- Ben Rhodes, Toyota, ThorSport Racing
- Austin Cindric, Ford, Brad Keselowski Racing
- Johnny Sauter, Chevrolet, GMS Racing
- Kaz Grala, Chevrolet, GMS Racing
- Chase Briscoe, Ford, Brad Keselowski Racing
- Cody Coughlin, Toyota, ThorSport Racing
- Justin Haley, Chevrolet, GMS Racing
- Austin Wayne Self, Chevrolet, Martins Motorsports
- Noah Gragson, Toyota, Kyle Busch Motorsports
- T.J. Bell, Chevrolet, Niece Motorsports
- Josh Reaume, Chevrolet, Beaver Motorsports
- Wendell Chavous, Chevrolet, Premium Motorsports
- Norm Benning, Chevrolet, Norm Benning Racing
- John Hunter Nemechek, Chevrolet, NEMCO Motorsports
- Jordan Anderson, Chevrolet, Beaver Motorsports
- Austin Hill, Ford, Austin Hill Racing
- Patrick Emerling, Chevrolet, Copp Motorsports
- Jennifer Jo Cobb, Chevrolet, JJC Racing
- Gray Gaulding, Chevrolet, Premium Motorsports
- Joe Nemechek, Chevrolet, NEMCO Motorsports
- Camden Murphy, Chevrolet, MB Motorsports
- Mike Senica, Chevrolet, Norm Benning Racing
- Ray Ciccarelli, Chevrolet, JJC Racing
Next: Kyle Busch on Pole for Sunday's Playoff Race at NHMS
The next race for the Camping World Truck Series comes from the track that will replace New Hampshire Motor Speedway on the series schedule in 2018. The trucks enter playoff race #2 in Sin City, with the DC Solar 250 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Coverage can be seen on Saturday night, September 30, live on FS1.