Last Turn Incident Relegates Skeen to 13th-place Finish in NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Debut

Road-course veteran Mike Skeen made his NASCAR Camping World Truck Series debut in the No. 6 Hawk Performance Chevrolet at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park as the series returned to road-course racing for the first time 13 years. Skeen is no stranger to success at the 10-turn race track, having claimed the pole position and won the last four consecutive events there in the Pirelli World Challenge GT Series. He paced the field in both practices on Friday and turned the third-fastest lap during Saturday’s qualifying session. Shortly following the start of the inaugural Camping World Truck Series event at the Bowmanville, Ontario facility, the yellow flag was displayed for an accident occurring on lap eight. Sacrificing the second position, Skeen brought the Hawk Performance machine to pit road for four tires and fuel. He restarted 10th and quickly advanced through the field, remaining in the top 10 for the duration of the 64-lap affair. After one last pit stop on lap 34, Skeen battled a loose-handling truck during the final stages of the Chevrolet Silverado 250. While running in the third position on the final lap, Skeen worked to hold off the challenger behind him. As he entered the final turn, hard contact from behind sent the Portsmouth, Va., native hard into the tire barrier, relegating the No. 6 Sharp-Gallaher Racing team to a 13th-place result. Justin Lofton will return to pilot the No. 6 Silverado at Iowa Speedway.

 

Mike Skeen Quote:

“I am very proud of this team and our performance this weekend. I had a great time driving the No. 6 Hawk Performance Chevrolet here at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park. NASCAR did a great job getting the Camping World Truck Series up here and the fans were just amazing. We were racing hard on that last lap to maintain our position and unfortunately got hit from behind and ended up in the tires. The truck was really fast all weekend. I wish we could have gotten a better result. I want to thank everyone at Sharp-Gallaher Racing for the opportunity.”

SGR PR