As the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race on dirt at Bristol Motor Speedway for the first time, Chandler Smith was involved in multiple accidents and ended the day with a 34th-place finish.
Stage One Recap
·Smith started from the 21st position based on NASCAR’s performance-matrix formula after Saturday’s heat races and feature race were washed out.
When the green flag dropped Sunday, the JBL Tundra began to maneuver its way to the front of the field. By the time the second caution of the day slowed the field on Lap 27, Smith was scored in the 11th position.
Shortly after the ensuing restart contact from another truck sent Smith spinning and then another truck made heavy contact with the front end of his Toyota causing significant damage.
After Smith got his Tundra going in the right direction, he had lost a lap and was scored 38th.
He would limp the No. 18 JBL machine to the end of Stage one in the same position.
Stage Two Recap:
Between stages the crew went to work on cosmetic repairs on the JBL Tundra as well as trying to get Smith’s steering to be correct.
During Stage Two Smith would get the Lucky Dog and return to the lead lap. He made his way back up to the 23rd position when Stage Two ended on Lap 90.
Final Stage Recap:
The JBL crew went to work again trying to make more repairs to improve the handling for Smith.
The Georgia native restarted from the 32nd position on Lap 92. He had improved to 21st when the next caution occurred on Lap 107.
The rookie driver’s day would come to a permanent end when his truck broke loose with 30 laps to go and another truck slammed into the front end of the JBL Tundra.
Smith would end the day with a disappointing 34th-place finish.
Pinty’s Truck Race on Dirt Recap
Smith’s teammate, Martin Truex Jr., dominated the race, leading a race-high 105 laps en route to his first career Camping World Trucks victory. It was KBM’s third consecutive victory and the No. 51 team’s second in a row. Ben Rhodes finished 1.149 seconds behind Truex Jr. in the runner-up position. Raphael Lessard, Todd Gilliland and Chase Brisoce rounded out the top-five finishers.
There were 11 lead changes among six different drivers. There were 12 cautions for 54 laps.
How Chandler Smith’s KBM Teammates Fared:
· Martin Truex, driver of the No. 51 Toyota, finished first.
· John Hunter Nemechek, driver of the No. 4 Toyota, finished 39th.
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Championship Standings
Smith and the No. 18 team fell four spots in the Camping World Truck Series championship standings. They leave the fifth race on the Camping World Truck Series schedule in the 15th position, 116 tallies behind his KBM teammate Nemecheck.
