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NASCAR Truck Series: New Ilmor NT1 engines paying off for small teams

By Darius Goodman

HAMPTON, GA - FEBRUARY 23: Jennifer Jo Cobb, driver of the #10 Think Realty Chevrolet, signs an autograph in the garage area during practice for the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Active Pest Control 200 at Atlanta Motor Speedway on February 23, 2018 in Hampton, Georgia. (Photo by Daniel Shirey/Getty Images)
HAMPTON, GA - FEBRUARY 23: Jennifer Jo Cobb, driver of the #10 Think Realty Chevrolet, signs an autograph in the garage area during practice for the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Active Pest Control 200 at Atlanta Motor Speedway on February 23, 2018 in Hampton, Georgia. (Photo by Daniel Shirey/Getty Images) /
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When NASCAR announced the Ilmor NT1-spec engine for the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, many small teams jumped on the option quickly at Daytona.

When NASCAR announced the Ilmor NT1-spec engine for the Truck Series, many small teams jumped on the option quickly at Daytona. With 27 teams choosing to run the motor, the results of the racing at Daytona pulled up great numbers, especially for small teams like Jennifer Jo Cobb Racing.

Although owner-driver Jennifer Jo Cobb wrecked out in Daytona, heading into Atlanta Motor Speedway brings her some confidence with the Ilmor engine.

“It’s a godsend,” Cobb said of the Ilmor motor. “It is absolutely what we need. It’s not going to put us in the top-10 because it’s more than just engine. It’s newer trucks, having an engineer and a crew chief and a truck chief. Everyone here wears so many different hats. I’m so excited about going faster, that’s what it boils down to. I think our old engines would dyno at 50 or 60 less horsepower than the top teams.

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“They call it the NT1-optional engine but I like to say built by Ilmor because Ilmor has done so much for all the teams,” she continued. “Their engineers treat me as good as they treat the top teams so it’s been really cool to have that support. I like to give Ilmor that credit, but our ThinkRealty Chevy qualified in on time for the first time at Daytona and it’s the first time we’ve been in on time for Daytona or Talladega. So that shows you that it was the link that we were missing.”

The current buzz around the Ilmor motor this season leads to the common thought for the shorter tracks on the schedule in 2018.

“I’m excited for what this is going to mean for the shorter tracks,” Cobb said. “I think these engines have so much more torque and the shorter the track it’s just going to continue to get better.”

The hopes of the Ilmor engine for Cobb could be what the other teams are looking for, as NASCAR has awarded teams in the top 20 in driver and owners points extra money at the end of the season, which is something that Cobb wants in order to continue her team’s growth as a two-car operation.

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As the season progresses, watching teams running the Ilmor option motor should prove fun to watch as more teams jump ship to a cheaper motor option for the Truck Series, especially for teams like NEMCO Motorsports, Hattori Racing Enterprise and more.

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