Beyond the Flag
Fansided

NASCAR Truck Series Power Rankings after 2018 JAG Metals 350

By Mark Kristl

FORT WORTH, TX - NOVEMBER 02: Justin Haley, NASCAR Truck Series driver of the #24 Fraternal Order Of Eagles GMS Racing Chevrolet wins the 2018 JAG Metals 350 at Texas Motor Speedway (Photo by Matt Sullivan/Getty Images)
FORT WORTH, TX - NOVEMBER 02: Justin Haley, NASCAR Truck Series driver of the #24 Fraternal Order Of Eagles GMS Racing Chevrolet wins the 2018 JAG Metals 350 at Texas Motor Speedway (Photo by Matt Sullivan/Getty Images) /
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FORT WORTH, TX - NOVEMBER 02: Justin Haley, NASCAR Truck Series driver of the #24 Fraternal Order Of Eagles GMS Racing Chevrolet, affixes the winner's decal to his truck in Victory Lane after winning the 2018 JAG Metals 350 at Texas Motor Speedway (Photo by Josh Hedges/Getty Images)
FORT WORTH, TX – NOVEMBER 02: Justin Haley, NASCAR Truck Series driver of the #24 Fraternal Order Of Eagles GMS Racing Chevrolet (Photo by Josh Hedges/Getty Images) /

Conclusion

At ISM Raceway, four drivers will race for the final two Championship 4 berths. This Beyond the Flag article details more about the current playoff picture. Interestingly, there could be representatives of all three manufacturers in the Championship 4. Johnny Sauter and Justin Haley drive Chevrolets, Brett Moffitt and Noah Gragson drive Toyotas, and Grant Enfinger and Matt Crafton drive Fords.

Additionally, the race at Homestead-Miami Speedway could potentially end up being a battle between two teams. Both Johnny Sauter and Justin Haley drive for GMS Racing, and Matt Crafton and Grant Enfinger drive for ThorSport Racing.

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It is possible that the two remaining Championship 4 berths could be decided via the championship standings. In fact, I predicted that Todd Gilliland will win the race at ISM Raceway, which would cause this to be the case. Gilliland has come so close to winning his first career Truck Series race, and I am confident that he will win this Friday night.

If this happens, both Moffitt and Gragson would be in control of their own destinies to get into the Championship 4 based on their point totals. The big difference for those two is their accrued playoff point totals. Moffitt has 27 playoff points and Gragson has 25 playoff points. Conversely, Enfinger has 18 playoff points while Crafton only has three.

Winning stages and races to score playoff points certainly helps drivers advance through the playoffs. Those points also provide some safeguard in case drivers have bad races in the playoffs. However, as both Justin Allgaier and Christopher Bell have shown in the Xfinity Series playoffs, playoff points do not guarantee that drivers will advance to the Championship 4.

So what will happen in the Truck Series race at ISM Raceway? Will a round of 6 driver win to clinch a Championship 4 berth? Will a driver outside of the playoffs, such as Gilliland, win? What about Sauter and Haley? While they both are locked into the Championship 4, they will certainly still race for the win.

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The aforementioned race at ISM Raceway is scheduled to take place on Friday, November 9. This race, the Lucas Oil 150, is scheduled for 150 laps around the four-turn, 1.022-mile (1.645-kilometer) oval in Avondale, Arizona. Drivers are scheduled to take the green flag at 8:30 p.m. ET, and live coverage of the race is set to be brought to you by Fox Sports 1.

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