Natalie Decker is the recordholder for the highest finish by a female driver in NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series history, having finished fifth in the 2020 season opener at Daytona International Speedway.
But it took only two starts, her first two starts in the series since the end of the 2020 season, for her to have a total meltdown in her truck this past weekend at Dover Motor Speedway.
It came just one week after she was removed from the race at Watkins Glen International for being too slow.
Natalie Decker black-flagged for not meeting minimum speed. Team gets one chance to make adjustments for her to go back out and meet minimum speed.
— Bob Pockrass (@bobpockrass) May 8, 2026
Decker getting black-flagged for not meeting minimum speed. Team has one chance to make adjustments and next time she gets on track, she must make minimum speed.
— Bob Pockrass (@bobpockrass) May 15, 2026
Decker, who admitted after the race that she let her emotions get the best of her in a rant that has since gone viral, stated on the radio that she was done with the Truck Series, in addition to correctly predicting the slew of online criticism that ensued.
On the flip side, the whole debacle also opened up a separate dialogue on mental health, and whether or not competing in the series is really the best thing for her at the moment.
While it's hard to argue that her evident frustration in the truck wasn't a heat-of-the-moment reaction, it is indeed true that she currently has no additional starts lined up in the No. 22 Team Reaume Ford this season.
Natalie Decker replacement confirmed for Charlotte
Team owner Josh Reaume is set to get back behind the wheel of the No. 22 truck for the fifth time this season. He owns the team's best result of the year, a 20th place effort in the season opener at Daytona.
Aside from Reaume and Decker, the only two other drivers to spent time behind the wheel of the No. 22 Ford this year include Jackson Lee and Clayton Green.
Decker has two more planned NASCAR national series starts this season, but both are set to come in the O'Reilly Auto Parts Series. She is set to compete at Pocono Raceway in June and at EchoPark Speedway (Atlanta Motor Speedway) in July behind the wheel of the No. 35 car (manufacturer TBD) for Joey Gase Motorsports
with Scott Osteen. She drove that car to a 33rd place finish at Talladega Superspeedway in April after a DNF to open the year at Daytona.
During her rant at Dover, she mentioned that she plans to stay in the O'Reilly Series moving forward. Whether or not that holds up and she truly avoids the Truck Series remains to be seen.
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