After a week off, the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series returned today for their march to crown a champion. And what better place to really throw a wrench into things than stepping into the Talladega Superspeedway? Entering today’s race, it was anybody’s game. Only six points separated the second-place points leader Tyler Ankrum and the eighth-place driver, Kaden Honeycutt. Only Corey Heim entered today’s race safe as he won two weeks ago at the Charlotte Roval. With three spots to the Championship 4, who was able to rise to the occasion? Let’s break it down.
Here’s everything that happened in today’s NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race at Talladega.
At the start of the final stage, Playoff driver, Daniel Hemric, retired from the race. This was due to damage he received after having a tire go down and being subsequently rear-ended. He joined the likes of fellow Playoff driver Grant Enfinger in the garage. Heading into Martinsville next week, both drivers are in a must-win situation.
In the closing laps of the race, the heavy hitters out front were Ben Rhodes, Luke Fenhaus, Gio Ruggiero, and Corey Heim. Meanwhile, Layne Riggs finally managed to work his way into the top 10 after a series of setbacks and an ill-handling truck. As the laps wound down and the field took 4 laps to go, the drivers out front started to push more aggressively, taking more risks. The incident that put us into NASCAR Overtime was Fenhaus shoving the back of his teammate Rhodes too hard, turning the No. 99. Fenhaus was also tagged from behind by Tanner Gray, causing him to go around as well. The caution flew, we were going into NASCAR Overtime and darkness started to become a concern.
The race restarted with Gio Ruggiero and his teammate Corey Heim lining up on the inside. On the outside was the spire duo of Corey Lajoie and Rajah Caruth. On the backstretch on the final lap, it looked like the Spire trucks might have had something for the Tricon trucks, but they couldn’t stay together. Coming to the line, Corey Heim tried his best to get around his teammate but Ruggiero threw a masterful block to win his first career race.
It didn’t take long for one of our playoff drivers to get caught up in a mess. The incident in question happened on Lap 4. As the field was coming out of Turn 4, when Tanner Gray in the No. 15 Toyota have a massive shove to the back of Chandler Smith. This caused Smith to get out of shape and he made contact with the defending winner of the race, Grant Enfinger. The No. 9 of Enfinger then spun down the track, collecting another Playoff driver in Ty Majeski in the process. This caused significant damage to the number 9 and 98 trucks. Heading into today’s race, the playoff bubble was really tight, with Enfinger in 8th only 4 points below the cutline. This could have had significant implications to the Playoff hopes of Grant Enfinger and Ty Majeski. Check out the incident below.
Layne Riggs started today’s race behind the eight ball. Due to an unapproved transmission change, the No. 34 team was barred from qualifying. That meant that he had to start today’s race from the rear, making him more susceptible to on-track incidents. When Connor Mosack spun early, Layne Riggs received some damage to the left front, causing a tire rub. He had to pit under caution to repair the damage.
The race went green from there to the end of the stage. The high and low lanes were in a deadlock for the race lead as Rajah Caruth and Corey Heim kept swapping positions. Also in play was Corey Lajoie who was just chasing a trophy today. But, in the end, Caruth was able to hope them off. He went on to win his first stage of the 2025 season.
*Playoff Drivers Depicted in BOLD.
The second stage was a little cleaner than the first. There was one hairy moment when Connor Mosack went around. This was caused by Layne Riggs, who continued to have problems and had a tire go down. The No. 34 checked up, causing a stack-up, which led to the incident. Rajah Caruth was fast throughout the stage, making some great moves to stay in the lead. He was looking to sweep the stages. Unfortunately for him, polesitter Gio Ruggiero had something to say about that. In the tri-oval, coming to the line, Kaden Honeycutt developed a huge run and shoved Ruggiero past Caruth for the stage win.
*Playoff Drivers Depicted in BOLD.
The following are the unofficial results following the conclusion of the 85-lap NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race at the Talladega Superspeedway. This list will be updated once tech inspection is completed and the results become official.
*Playoff Drivers Depicted in BOLD.
Corey Heim secured his spot in the Truck Series Championship 4 at Phoenix by winning the race at the Charlotte Roval in this round. He will be one of the four racing for a championship here in a couple of weeks.
These drivers are currently in contention to make the Championship 4 come Phoenix.
That does it for this NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Playoff race at Talladega. How’s your bracket doing, race fans? Is your driver in a must-win situation heading into Martinsville next week? Let us know what you think! And be sure to tune back in here tomorrow for our coverage of the NASCAR Xfinity Series Playoff race at Talladega!
Magic Johnson, who faced Michael Jordan 18 times on the NBA court, including 13 regular-season games and 5 games in the 1991 NBA Finals, recently offered public praise for 23XI Racing’s rise in the 2026 NASCAR season.
The two former NBA players built their rivalry on NBA courts before competing together on the 1992 U.S. Men’s Olympic Basketball Team, known as the “Dream Team,” where the pair were known as both friends and fierce competitors. In fact, Magic Johnson played a central role in recruiting Michael Jordan and Larry Bird to join the 1992 U.S. Olympic squad.
The defining clash between Johnson and Jordan came in the 1991 NBA Finals, a season that was the shift from the Los Angeles Lakers’ “Showtime” run to the rise of the Chicago Bulls. And now, years later, Johnson turned to social media to compliment MJ’s stock car venture.
The presence of Michael Jordan in the garage has not only drawn fresh eyes to NASCAR, but also widened the sport’s reach beyond its base and placed it on platforms fans haven’t seen in years, like ESPN. The network has not held NASCAR broadcast rights since 2014, and since then, its focus has centered on properties under its umbrella, including the NBA, NFL, and WNBA. But now, even without rights, NASCAR headlines tied to MJ and 23XI Racing’s run have found space throughout their coverage.
MJ’s 23XI Racing team has opened the season with three straight wins with their No. 45 driver, Tyler Reddick. The run began with a win in the Daytona 500, the organization’s first success in that event since its launch in 2021.
Reddick followed with a win at Atlanta and then completed the sweep at the Circuit of the Americas, becoming the first driver in Cup Series history to win the opening three races of a season.
The accomplishment also placed the 23XI Racing team alongside one of the most successful organizations in NASCAR, Petty Enterprises, which last won the first three Cup races of a season in 1963.
When Reddick’s Toyota crossed the start/finish line at COTA, MJ was seen celebrating on pit road with the crew. In post-race remarks, Jordan acknowledged the pressure Reddick carried entering COTA with a chance to sweep the opening stretch. He praised the No. 45 crew and crew chief Billy Scott, and credited co-owner Denny Hamlin as the “mastermind” behind the roster build, citing Hamlin’s role in identifying Reddick’s talent and bringing him into the team.
Lionel Racing finally confirmed the first wave of 2026 NASCAR Authentics 1:64 scale diecast for Monday morning, with the line of retail-exclusive diecast featuring a new look for the new year.
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Chase Pistone, a former competitor on the short track racing circuit in addition to NASCAR’s National Series, has passed away. Pistone, now a successful Legends Car owner, was 42.
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