After a very competitive season-opening race at Daytona, the race saw Parker Kligerman cross the line for the win but was later DQ’d for ride heights. Handing the win to Corey Heim, who could be building up all the momentum to make a run at the Craftsman Truck Series championship this year. Now, with the focus on Atlanta Motor Speedway, the series could get even more exciting.
Like Daytona, Atlanta is a drafting-type track. If you didn’t see enough wrecked vehicles last week, buckle up. Hopefully, it’s a less expensive weekend for the likes of Tricon Garage and ThorSport Racing. Both teams led a lot of laps but ended up with torn-up cars. The defending winner of this race is back for more, and that is Kyle Busch.
NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Fr8 208 at Atlanta Preview
Busch will make the first of his five starts for Spire Motorsports this season. He will once again be behind the wheel of their No. 7 truck. In fact, in 2024, he piloted that truck to win in this event. The series’ all-time wins leader is back to win again. So, who can top the two-time Cup Series champion?
Things are about to get Rowdy.@KyleBusch will participate in five @NASCAR_Trucks races this season beginning this weekend in Atlanta.
📰: https://t.co/GhLcsMjqyj pic.twitter.com/kXdy861zu9
— Spire Motorsports (@SpireMotorsport) February 17, 2025
Drivers’ to Keep an Eye on in Atlanta:
You can have Heim on your mind, as he is good pretty much everywhere the series goes. Defending Truck champion Ty Majeski finished runner-up at Atlanta in 2024; he’ll be looking to finish one spot better. Those drivers represent the top two teams at Toyota and Ford. Since the reconfiguration to drafting at Atlanta Motor Speedway, Chevrolet has been the top team.
Heim did win the first race on this configuration back when he raced for Busch in 2022. This year’s field has plenty of talent looking to break out. Perhaps Frankie Muniz can back up his Top-10 finish from Daytona. Bill McAnally Racing will be looking for a much better weekend, as they had plenty of issues in Daytona. Can Daniel Hemric get the No. 19 truck? Back to the front, like the previous driver, Christian Eckes did.
Michael McDowell is once again in the field, and he’s proven how good he is at this type of track. Heck, he sat on the pole in the Cup Series last year.
Here’s a look at the full entry list for the Truck Series race at Atlanta, according to NASCAR.com
| Entry | Car # | Driver | Organization |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | William Sawalich (i) | Tricon Garage |
| 2 | 02 | Nathan Byrd | Young’s Motorsports |
| 3 | 2 | Keith McGee | Reaume Brothers Racing |
| 4 | 5 | Toni Breidinger | Tricon Garage |
| 5 | 07 | Michael McDowell (i) | Spire Motorsports |
| 6 | 7 | Kyle Busch (i) | Spire Motorsports |
| 7 | 9 | Grant Enfinger | CR7 Motorsports |
| 8 | 11 | Corey Heim | Tricon Garage |
| 9 | 13 | Jake Garcia | ThorSport Racing |
| 10 | 15 | Tanner Gray | Tricon Garage |
| 11 | 17 | Giovanni Ruggiero | Tricon Garage |
| 12 | 18 | Tyler Ankrum | McAnally-Hilgemann Racing |
| 13 | 19 | Daniel Hemric | McAnally-Hilgemann Racing |
| 14 | 22 | Josh Reaume | Reaume Brothers Racing |
| 15 | 26 | Dawson Sutton | Rackley W.A.R |
| 16 | 33 | Frankie Muniz | Reaume Brothers Racing |
| 17 | 34 | Layne Riggs | Front Row Motorsports |
| 18 | 38 | Chandler Smith | Front Row Motorsports |
| 19 | 42 | Matt Mills | Niece Motorsports |
| 20 | 44 | Bayley Currey | Niece Motorsports |
| 21 | 45 | Kaden Honeycutt | Niece Motorsports |
| 22 | 52 | Stewart Friesen | Halmar Friesen Racing |
| 23 | 66 | Luke Fenhaus | ThorSport Racing |
| 24 | 71 | Rajah Caruth | Spire Motorsports |
| 25 | 76 | Spencer Boyd | Freedom Racing Enterprises |
| 26 | 77 | Andrés Pérez de Lara | Spire Motorsports |
| 27 | 81 | Connor Mosack | McAnally-Hilgemann Racing |
| 28 | 88 | Matt Crafton | ThorSport Racing |
| 29 | 90 | Justin Carroll | Terry Carroll Motorsports |
| 30 | 91 | Jack Wood | McAnally-Hilgemann Racing |
| 31 | 98 | Ty Majeski | ThorSport Racing |
| 32 | 99 | Ben Rhodes | ThorSport Racing |
| 33 | 63 | Akinori Ogata | Akinori Performance |
Predictions:
It would be easy to take Kyle Busch; he’s won in the Truck Series seven times in Atlanta, no matter the configuration. He’s going to contend, no doubt, but I’m more on the side of a Truck Series regular getting to the line first. So give me Ty Majeski. He’s always qualified well at the track and has finished in the top three in two of the last three visits. He got beat by Busch in 2024, but not this time.
Where to Watch:
Truck Series qualifying from Atlanta is Friday at 3:00 pm ET on FS1. Then you can catch the racing action as the first of a double-header race day on Saturday at 1:30 pm ET. The action is going to be fast-paced and whoever crosses the line after 130 laps will have earned it.
Stay tuned to Last Word on Motorsports for all updates from the FR8 208
Featured Image Credit: IMAGO/Icon Sportswire, Feb. 23, 2024
