Parker Kligerman had been planning on making his fifth start of the 2026 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series season and second with Henderson Motorsports in this Thursday evening's playoff opener at Bristol Motor Speedway.
However, he announced that he has stepped aside due to illness, and Nick Sanchez is set to fill in for him behind the wheel of the No. 75 Chevrolet.
Kligerman did note that he feels well enough to be on the O'Reilly Auto Parts Series broadcast from Bristol on Friday evening. He serves as a color commentator for the CW Network.
Sorry if this wasn’t clear but I’ll be on the OReily broadcast tomorrow! Just not racing tonight
— Parker Kligerman (@pkligerman) September 17, 2026
Parker Kligerman out at Bristol due to illness
Kligerman does not currently have any additional starts lined up for the remainder of the 2026 Truck Series season, but with six races remaining on the postseason schedule after this weekend, that is subject to change.
As for Sanchez, he has run just one Truck Series race this year. He finished in fifth place for Spire Motorsports at Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park back in July, marking his first start since his 13th place finish for the team at Texas Motor Speedway more than 14 months prior.
Sanchez, who was initially confirmed to be returning to Big Machine Racing before the team went with Patrick Staropoli instead, started the year as a full-time driver for AM Racing in the O'Reilly Auto Parts Series, making him the only full-time driver for Ford in the series.
But the team shut down after a surprise withdrawal from the season's eighth race at Rockingham Speedway in early April, leaving the 25-year-old native of Miami, Florida without a ride.
Sanchez was able to land a new O'Reilly Series ride with Peterson Racing, and he made his debut with the team in mid-June at Pocono Raceway. He has run seven straight races dating back to the early July race at Chicagoland Speedway. He is set to run Friday night's race at Bristol, although his schedule beyond this weekend remains TBD.
Tune in to Fox Sports 1 at 8:00 p.m. ET on Thursday evening for the live broadcast of the UNOH 250 from Bristol Motor Speedway, and tune in to the CW Network at 7:30 p.m. ET on Friday evening for the live broadcast of the Food City 300. Begin a free trial of FuboTV now and catch all of the action from the "Last Great Colosseum"!
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