Hemric Finishes Fourth at Bristol, Cracks Top Five in NCWTS Standings

Daniel Hemric had speed when it counted at the World’s Fastest Half Mile, fighting back from a 17th-place starting spot to finish fourth in NTS Motorsports’ 125th NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS) start. Hemric charged through the field in his NCWTS debut at Bristol Motor Speedway, earning his third top-five finish of 2015 and his eighth top 10 in the last nine races. 

Qualifying his No. 14 California Clean Power Chevrolet in the 17th spot, Hemric had advanced to the 12th position by the time he had his first opportunity to visit pit road on lap 81. Reporting to crew chief Ryan McKinney that he was slightly free from entry to landing, the NTS Motorsports crew quickly serviced Hemric with four tires, fuel and both wedge and air-pressure adjustments. Hemric’s truck came to life when green-flag racing resumed on lap 90, allowing the 24-year-old to attack the corners more aggressively and advance from 12th to eighth in just four laps. A two-truck accident directly in front of the No. 14 slowed the field on lap 113, and spotter Rick Carelli skillfully directed his driver around the wreck, putting him in the sixth spot. Hemric used the lap-120 restart to jump to the fourth position immediately after the green flag, advancing to the third spot just before weather brought out the red flag on lap 166. After a 45-minute rain delay, Hemric restarted third when the field went green on lap 176. He was scored in the fifth position when a crash on lap 197 set the field up for a green/white/checkered finish, and was able to earn one more spot in the closing two laps to cross the finish line in the fourth position.

Daniel Hemric on Bristol Motor Speedway
“This was a really great finish for our California Clean Power Chevy, and proof of what a team can accomplish when they never give up. We weren’t as fast as we wanted to be in practice and qualifying, but once the green flag waved and we had long runs in traffic, we weren’t that far off. We ultimately only wound up making one pit stop, and [crew chief] Ryan McKinney made all the right adjustments to get me where we needed to be. It was extra special to get a top-five finish at a track like Bristol that you dream about racing at your entire life, and to have [team owner] Bob Newberry and the entire Newberry family there for the team’s 125th Truck Series start. I can’t thank NTS Motorsports and California Clean Power enough for giving me this opportunity; I’m just a kid from Kannapolis, and you all made this dream come true.”

The top-five finish moves Hemric up to fifth in the NCWTS Driver Point Standings. The Truck Series goes international next week as it heads to Canadian Tire Motorsport Park in Ontario, Canada for the only road course race on the schedule. The Chevrolet Silverado 250 airs live on FOX Sports 1 on Sunday, August 30 at 1:30 p.m. EDT.

NTS Motorsports PR