The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series heads just outside of St. Louis to World Wide Technologies Raceway for the running of the Toyota 200. Here is everything you need to know before the green flag on Saturday.
This weekend will be the second running of the doubleheader weekend at World Wide Technology Raceway, with the Truck Series on Saturday, and the Cup Series on Sunday. The Craftsman Truck Series has been running at the track since 1998, with this weekend’s race being the 23rd race at the speedway. Drivers who have won at this track include…
- 1999: Greg Biffle
- 2008: Ron Hornaday
- 2010: Kevin Harvick
- 2014: Bubba Wallace
- 2015: Cole Custer
- 2016: Christopher Bell
- 2018: Justin Haley
- 2019: Ross Chastain
In 2022, The Toyota 200 was won by Corey Heim driving for Kyle Busch Motorsports. KBM was the best team on the track, with Chandler Smith winning Stage 1, with Heim and John Hunter Nemechek second and third. Stage 2 saw Thorsport on top, with Ben Rhodes and Matt Crafton taking first and second. These two teams would battle for the race win, with Heim holding off Christian Eckes for the race win.
The Track
World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway is located in Madison, Illinois, just across the Mississippi River from St. Louis, Missouri. Built in 1967 as St. Louis International Raceway and originally a drag strip, a road course was built in 1985. In 1994, the raceway was completely revamped, and a new 1.25-mile speedway and drag strip was built.
The speedway, 1.25 miles in length, is similarly shaped to Darlington Raceway. Turns 1 and 2 have a tighter radius than 3 and 4, with 11 degrees of banking. 3 and 4, with a large radius than the first two, have nine degrees of banking.
The first race in 1998 saw Rick Carelli, who currently spots for Erik Jones in the Cup Series, win the race. He started fourth, and led 72 laps on his way to victory, beating Ron Hornaday, capturing his second victory in the Truck Series. Currently, the track record is held by Noah Gragson, with a 32.815 second lap set in 2018.
Notable Entries:
This weekend will see some part-time drivers and some making their first starts in the Truck Series. Jesse Love, who currently leads the ARCA series points, will make his first start with TRICON in the No. 1 Tundra. The No. 02 for Young’s Motorsport currently does not have a driver, as Kris Wright and the team have parted ways. Chris Hacker will drive the No. 30 Tundra for On Point Motorsports. The No. 34 will be driven by Stephen Mallozzi, who has gained Twitter popularity as he sold his car to fund racing this weekend. Conner Jones joins the Thorsport fleet, driving the No. 66 F150. Clay Greenfield will race the No. 95 Chevrolet for GK Racing.
Predictions:
When Kyle Busch Motorsports switched to Chevrolet, the honors of being the flagship Toyota moved to TRICON Garage. Coming off of a dominating weekend at Charlotte, TRICON has a ton of momentum going into this race. Corey Heim won this race last year and finished second last Friday. Heim already has a win at Martinsville, and four top fives already this season. I think he will be the truck to beat this race.
Christian Eckes has been fast in the #19 Chevrolet for MHR this season. He got the win at Atlanta and Darlington, so he has the race-winning speed. He finished runner-up to Heim last year, so if he can get around the #11 Tundra, it could be a done deal.
How to Watch:
- Friday, June 2nd:
- Practice and Qualifying: 6:00 PM ET, FS1
- Saturday, June 3rd:
- Toyota 200: 1:30 PM ET, FS1
