GMS Racing NCTS Race Preview: North Wilkesboro Speedway

Last Updated 5/17/2023In We Are Statesville

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Race Information

Round: NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series race No. 10 of 23

Track Location: North Wilkesboro Speedway - North Wilkesboro, North Carolina

Race Name: Tyson 250

Broadcast: Saturday, May 20th at 1:30 PM ET live on FOX (TV), MRN (Radio), and Sirius XM NASCAR Channel 90

Team Entrants:

Grant Enfinger, No. 23 Champion Power Equipment Chevrolet Silverado RST

North Wilkesboro Speedway Stats

- Grant Enfinger will make his first NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series start at North Wilkesboro on Saturday

- ASA STARS National Tour Starts: 1; Best start: TBD; Best finish: TBD (ASA race to be ran tonight at 9:45 PM ET on FloRacing)

2023 NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series Season Stats

- Starts: 9; Wins: 1 (Kansas I); Best start: 2nd; Top 5s: 3; Top 10s: 4; Laps led: 68; Current points position: 6th

 

About Champion Power Equipment: Since 2003, Champion Power Equipment has earned a reputation for designing and producing the market’s finest power equipment. From our original headquarters in Santa Fe Springs, California, Champion has expanded its North American footprint to include facilities in Jackson, Tennessee, Milwaukee, Wisconsin and Toronto Canada. Today, Champion’s product line has expanded to include portable generators, home standby generators, inverter generators, engines, winches and log splitters. With over 2.5 million generators sold in North America, Champion is a market leader in the power equipment field. Visit ChampionPowerEquipment.com for more information.

Chassis History/Info: Enfinger and the No. 23 team will compete with GMS Racing chassis no. 329 at North Wilkesboro. This chassis carried Grant to victory lane at Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park last year in thrilling fashion, where he led 13 laps and made a late pass for the win in the first race of the playoffs. Grant most recently drove this Chevrolet at Bristol Motor Speedway in 2022, where he started and finished in the fourth position.

Jeff Hensley's Milestone Start: Veteran Crew Chief, Jeff Hensley, will make his 450th-career start on top of the box in the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series this weekend in North Wilkesboro. The 1990 NASCAR Xfinity Series championship-winning Crew Chief transitioned over to the Truck Series at the start of 2004, and has since won 20 races in his NCTS career with drivers Mike Skinner, Brian Scott, Timothy Peters, Ron Hornaday, Johnny Sauter, and Grant Enfinger.

Seat Time: This week, Grant Enfinger entered the ASA STARS National Tour race at North Wilkesboro Speedway to make his laps around the historic venue ahead of the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series race. The race was supposed to be ran last night, but due to rain showers, Enfinger will drive the No. 32 Chevrolet Super Late Model for GoFAS Racing tonight at 9:45 PM ET on FloRacing.

NASCAR Day Giveathon: Fans will have a unique opportunity to have their names placed on the bed top of Grant Enfinger's No. 23 Chevrolet this weekend as part of The NASCAR Foundation's 75-hour Giveathon. Donations of $25 or more made within the first 24 hour period starting Tuesday, May 16th at 5:00 PM ET through Wednesday, May 17th at 5:00 PM ET will be tallied up and represented on all GMS Racing entries at North Wilkesboro. Donations can be made here.

From The Drivers Seat: How cool is it that we get to return to North Wilkesboro Speedway with all its history this weekend?

"I am really excited for this weekend at North Wilkesboro. I never thought they would open it back up, but it is going to be really special to be the first NASCAR race back since it closed. They didn’t repave the track surface so it’s going to be the most tire wear and falloff that we’ve ever experienced. I was able to run a super late model there earlier in the week and learn a few things. We want to keep the momentum rolling in these next few races. My team has been working really hard and we are ready for another win."

Rajah Caruth, No. 24 Wendell Scott Foundation Chevrolet Silverado RST

North Wilkesboro Speedway Stats

- Rajah Caruth will make his first start of any kind at North Wilkesboro Speedway on Saturday.

2023 NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series Season Stats

- Starts: 9; Best start: 13th; Best finish: 6th (Darlington); Top 10s: 1; Current points position: 17th

 

- About the Wendell Scott Foundation: Founded in 2011, The Wendell Scott Foundation, Inc. is a 501 (c) (3) nonprofit organization inspired by Wendell Scott, Sr. and provides services such as job-skill training, STEM education opportunities, mentoring, and other supportive services to at-risk, underserved youth between the ages of 8-18 years in Danville, Virginia and surrounding areas.

The Foundation's mission of using educational attainment to end racial disparities in education and health is vital in addressing economic inequality and improving future success in African-American communities. For more information, please visit www.wendellscott.org.

- Chassis History/Info: Rajah Caruth and the No. 24 team will compete with GMS Racing chassis no. 337 at North Wilkesboro. This chassis won on its debut at World Wide Technology Raceway in 2021 driven by Sheldon Creed, and was most recently raced at Martinsville Speedway earlier this year where Rajah finished in 25th place.

NASCAR Day Giveathon: Fans will have a unique opportunity to have their names placed on the bed top of Rajah Caruth's No. 24 Chevrolet this weekend as part of The NASCAR Foundation's 75-hour Giveathon. The Wendell Scott Foundation is one of the charities that have been selected as one of the beneficiaries for the campaign, and the team encourages its fans to join the cause. Donations of $25 or more made within the first 24 hour period starting Tuesday, May 16th at 5:00 PM ET through Wednesday, May 17th at 5:00 PM ET will be tallied up and represented on all GMS Racing entries at North Wilkesboro. Donations specifically benefitting the Wendell Scott Foundation can be made here.

Best-Career Finish: Caruth drove a fantastic race last time out at Darlington Raceway, where he positioned himself fighting for the win with just a handful of laps to go. Despite getting shuffled back on the penultimate restart, the driver of the No. 24 Wendell Scott Foundation Chevy climbed back to cross the finish line with a sixth place effort, posting his best-career finish in his 13th NCTS start.

Sunoco Rookie Battle: Rajah was the highest finishing rookie at Darlington with his sixth place finish in the Buckle Up South Carolina 200. Taking a look at the Sunoco Rookie of the Year points standings, Caruth holds down the third position, 69 points behind leading candidate Nick Sanchez and 33 points behind Jake Garcia in second.

From The Driver's Seat: As a driver who started your career on iRacing, how awesome is it that this track was basically reborn because of the sim?

"It's pretty cool to head to a racetrack that became revitalized from the resurgence of sim racing. To see all of the hard work from everybody at iRacing, Dale Jr. and his team, and the Smith family has put in has been pretty awesome to see a racetrack that hasn't been raced on since before I was born come back to life. I can't wait to get to compete on it, and I feel confident that we should be able to have ourselves a good run. We've had some very strong trucks over the past couple of weeks and are starting to turn the page and have the tide turned in our favor. Hopefully we will have another good finish for the Wendell Scott Foundation, the men and woman on my No. 24 team, along with everyone at GMS Racing, GMS Fabrication, our body hangers, Chevrolet, Maury Gallagher, Mike Beam, and Ron Booth."

Daniel Dye, No. 43 Champion Container Corporation Chevrolet Silverado RST

North Wilkesboro Speedway Stats

- Daniel Dye will make his first NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series start at North Wilkesboro on Saturday.

- Southern Super Series Starts: 1; Best start: 13th; Best finish: 17th (2022)

2023 NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series Season Stats

- Starts: 9; Best start: 10th; Best finish: 13th (Kansas I); Laps led: 5; Current points position: 19th

 

- About Champion Container Corporation: Founded in 1968, Champion Container has evolved into the premier general line packaging container distributor in the Northeast. From our seven strategically based locations we provide packaging container solutions to our valued domestic and international customers.

We serve a diverse customer base in the chemical, flavors and fragrances, paint, cosmetic, food, agricultural, and pharmaceutical industries. Small, medium, and Fortune 500 companies rely on Champion to deliver quality and service at a competitive price. Our strength, "just in time” shipments, is the value added provided through our own fleet of trucks and significant investment in inventory.

Our knowledgeable sales representatives and customer service associates have the expertise required to provide packaging guidance and solutions for the most unique and demanding projects. Companies rely on us to be their technical source in the ever-changing packaging container landscape. For more information, please visit www.championcontainer.com.

- Chassis History/Info: Dye and the No. 43 team will compete with GMS Racing chassis no. 335 at North Wilkesboro. The chassis has a best finish of third place which was posted by Sheldon Creed in 2021, and last competed at Martinsville Speedway in April, where Daniel finished 31st after a late-race spin.

NASCAR Day Giveathon: Fans will have a unique opportunity to have their names placed on the bed top of Daniel Dye's No. 43 Chevrolet this weekend as part of The NASCAR Foundation's 75-hour Giveathon. Donations of $25 or more made within the first 24 hour period starting Tuesday, May 16th at 5:00 PM ET through Wednesday, May 17th at 5:00 PM ET will be tallied up and represented on all GMS Racing entries at North Wilkesboro. Donations can be made here.

Racetrack Revival: In August of 2022, Dye raced a Super Late Model in the Southern Super Series as part of North Wilkesboro's "Racetrack Revival" that saw the track rise from the ashes in preparation for this historic weekend. Daniel would start from the 13th position and finish in 17th in his first start at the 0.625-mile short track.

- Mental Health Awareness Month: Daniel Dye has partnered with NASCAR to promote Mental Health Awareness Month throughout the month of May. The Race To Stop Suicide will play a key role in these initiatives, and several pieces of content around the topic will be posted via Daniel's social media handles.

Sunoco Rookie Battle: Dye's 19th place finish at Darlington Raceway was the third best result of the contenders vying for Sunoco Rookie of the Year honors. The driver of the No. 43 Chevrolet remains fourth in rookie standings, 93 points behind leader Nick Sanchez and 24 points behind teammate Rajah Caruth in third.

From the Driver's Seat: Last year, you were able to race a Super Late Model around North Wilkesboro when the track was revived. How can you take that experience and translate it to the CRAFTSMAN Truck Series this weekend?

“It definitely doesn't hurt that we ran a Super Late Model there last year! I wasn't able to get the finish that we were hoping for, but to be able to feel the surface and get a general sense on the grip that this track has was a good thing. I'm looking forward to our first primary race with Champion Container on our No. 43 GMS Racing Chevrolet this weekend; the truck looks great and I'm thankful to have their support in front of a large viewing audience in person and on FOX.”

ABOUT GMS RACING:

GMS Racing competes full-time in the NASCAR Truck Series operating the No. 23, No. 24, and No. 43 Chevrolet Silverado RSTs for drivers Grant Enfinger, Rajah Caruth, and Daniel Dye. Since the team was formed in 2012, GMS Racing has won five titles across multiple series, including the 2016 and 2020 NASCAR Truck Series championship, the 2015 ARCA Racing Series championship, as well as the 2019 & 2020 ARCA East championships. GMS has grown to occupy several buildings located in Statesville, N.C. including operations for GMS Fabrication. The GMS Racing campus also houses operations for LEGACY MOTOR CLUB, a team that competes full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series.

SOCIAL MEDIA:

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