The Craftsman Truck Series returns after a long two-week break for the Rackley Roofing 200 at Nashville Superspeedway. Here is everything you need to know before the green flag drops in Nashville.
The Truck Series last raced at Gateway, on June 3rd, an almost three week break for the Truck Series teams. This race is the 3rd race back at Nashville Superspeedway since it was re-added to the schedule in 2021. The Craftsman Truck series has raced at this facility since 2001, and this Friday’s race will be the sixteenth held at the speedway. Notable winners at the speedway include:
- 2001: Scott Riggs
- 2003: Carl Edwards
- 2007: Travis Kvapil
- 2009: Ron Hornaday Jr
- 2010: Kyle Busch
- 2011: Kyle Busch and Austin Dillon
- 2021 and 2022: Ryan Preece
The previous race, in 2022, was won by Ryan Preece, driving the #17 F-150 for the then-Ford team of David Gilliland Racing. Preece earned the pole for the race and led 74 of the 150 laps. In second place, Zane Smith led 70 laps, while Carson Hocevar finished third.
The Nashville Superspeedway
Opened in 2001, Nashville Superspeedway is located 20 miles southeast of Nashville, Tennessee. The track is a mile and a third in length, with 14 degrees of banking in the corners. The speedway hosted racing for ten years, until its owners, who also owned Dover Speedway, closed the track due to attendance. In 2021, NASCAR announced racing would return to the speedway, with all three touring series racing at the track. Later that year, Speedway Motors purchased Dover Motorsports, giving them control of both Dover and Nashville.
The Truck Series lap record is held by Eric Darnell, with a 29.601-second lap at 162.1 miles per hour.
Entry List
38 teams will be attempting to qualify for the 2023 Rackley 200 at Nashville Superspeedway, with only 36 spots available. Some notable entries are:
- Toni Breidinger, #1 Tundra, TRICON Garage
- Cory Roper, #04 F150, Roper Racing
- Trey Hutchens, #14 Silverado, Hutchens Racing
- Nick Leitz, #20 Silverado, Young’s Motorsport
- Jonathan Shafer, #30 Tundra, On Point Motorsports
- Jake Drew, #66 F150, Thorsport
- Justin Carroll, #90 Tundra, Carroll Motorsports
Predictions
With almost three weeks off, it can be tough to predict who will be fast and who might have enjoyed a little too much off time. We have seen several drivers this season though who are consistently quick and ran well here last year. Zane Smith finished runner-up here last year and was battling for the lead at Gateway when he and Ty Majeski got loose and wrecked. Look for him to finish one spot better than 2022, and turn his mid-season slump around.
Another fast Ford is the #98 of Majeski. He finished fourth at Nashville Superspeedway in 2022 and is second in the points currently. He is winless in 2023, and I think he could get win number one in Music City. Lastly, Carson Hocevar qualified third and finished third here last year. He got his first win at Texas earlier in the year, and if he can qualify well again, I think he has a great shot at winning this race.
This race is also the last race of the Triple Truck Challenge. Ben Rhodes won the first race of the Trip, earning 50,000 dollars. Grant Enfinger earned the second 50K. If Rhodes or Enfinger can win this race, they will earn an additional 200,000 dollars.
