Chandler Smith and the No. 18 JBL team look to change a recent fun of bad luck as the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series heads to Richmond Raceway for Saturday’s ToyotaCare 250. The team has experienced disappointing results the last two races, finishing 34th at the Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway Dirt Track and 35th at Atlanta (Ga.) Motor Speedway.
When the Camping World Trucks returned to Richmond for the first time since 2005 last year, Smith recorded a 12th-place finish. The result was part of a strong finish to the season for the Georgia native, recording an average finish of 7.7 across his final seven starts compared to an average finish of 25.2 across his first five starts last year.
Smith comes into Saturday’s race 15th in the Camping World Truck Series championship standings. He currently sits 16 points behind Austin Wayne Self for the 10th and final spot in the playoffs. In the Rookie of the Year standings, Smith sits second, 14 points behind Carson Hocevar. Both drivers have captured the Rookie of the Race Award twice.
The Toyota Development Driver spent his off weekend competing in the CARS Tour/Southern Super Series event April 11 at Greenville-Pickens (S.C.) Speedway for Wilson Motorsports. Smith qualified fifth, started sixth after the invert and finished fifth in the 150-lap event.
The talented teenager has finished inside the top five in eight of his 21 career Camping World Truck Series starts, including a career-best runner-up finish at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway in 2019.
Veteran crew chief Danny Stockman will call the shots for Smith and the No. 18 team this season. Stockman led the No. 51 team to four wins in his first season atop the pit box at KBM in 2020. He came to the organization with experience as a crew chief in all three national series, including a Truck Series championship with Austin Dillon in 2011 and an Xfinity Series championship with Dillon in 2013. Stockman has crew chiefed one Truck Series race at Richmond, a 12th-place result with Smith last season. In Xfinity Series action, his drivers recorded four top-five and nine top-10 finishes, including two third-place finishes with Daniel Hemric.
JBL, the authority in engineering superior sound, will be the primary sponsor for the No. 18 team this week. Safelite AutoGlass – the nation’s largest provider of vehicle glass repair, replacement, and recalibration services – returns to Smith’s Tundra May 1 at Kansas Speedway in Kansas City.
All three KBM Tundras will carry a special decal on the B post this week promoting Autism Awareness that includes the website address of NASCAR Sammy (NASCARSammy.com), an avid NASCAR fan and autism advocate. Fans can visit his site to purchase a decal and help support his mission.
Chandler Smith, Driver Q&A:
What is your outlook going into this weekend at Richmond?
“I’m really excited to get to Richmond. The trucks hadn’t been there for a few years, so when the trucks went back last year, it was a pretty big deal to be part of it all. As an organization, KBM is really strong with short tracks so to help build the short track program with going back to Richmond. Going back this year, I think we are going to better in our JBL Toyota Tundra.”
Does Richmond remind you of any short tracks that you grew up on in late models?
“Richmond kind of reminds of Five Flags Speedway in Pensacola, Florida. Other than that, it is a really unique track. It tears up the tires as a run goes on. You have to really be messing with the throttle all the time and racing the track. The characteristics are honestly like Pensacola.”
Have you discussed with your crew chief about the differences between a day and night race?
“I don’t think there is going to be much of a difference due to the cloud cover. If the sun is out, the track is going to be completely different. It’s going to be really greasy and slick. It’s going to be all about tire management. If the clouds stay around, it’s probably going to be similar to how the night race was.”
Chandler Smith Career Highlights:
Across 21 career NASCAR Camping World Truck Series starts has recorded 115 laps led, eight top-five and 10 top-10 finishes resulting in an average finish of 14.6.
Posted an average finish of 7.7 across his final seven of 12 total Truck Series starts in 2020, including third-place finishes in the series finale at Phoenix (Ariz.) Raceway and his first career superspeedway start at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway in October.
Produced three top-five and four top-10 finishes resulting in an average finish of 4.2 across his first four career NASCAR Camping World Truck Series starts in 2019. He led 55 laps and finished eighth in his Gander Trucks debut at Iowa Speedway last July and then posted top-five finishes in his final three starts, including a runner-up finish at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway.
Has collected nine wins, 10 poles, 1761 laps led, 22 top-five and 29 top-10 finishes en route to an average finish of 5.2 across 33 career ARCA Menards Series starts. Set an ARCA Racing Series record by winning four consecutive poles to start his career and earned his first victory after leading a race-high 102 laps at Madison (Wis.) International Speedway in his fourth series start.
Chandler Smith’s No. 18 JBL Tundra:
KBM-60: The No. 18 JBL team will unload chassis number KBM-60 for Saturday’s ToyotaCare 250 at Richmond. The Tundra recorded two wins in three starts in 2020: Kyle Busch at Las Vegas (Nev.) Motor Speedway in February and Brandon Jones at Pocono Raceway in Long Pond, Pa. in June. Saturday’s race will be the first start for KBM-60 this season.
KBM holds the Camping World Truck Series records for most career wins (83) and most wins in a single season (14 in 2014). With his victory at the Bristol Motor Speedway Dirt Track, Martin Truex Jr. became the 16th different driver to win a Truck Series event for KBM. In addition to collecting a series-record seven Owner’s Championships, the organization has produced two championship-winning drivers: Erik Jones (2015) and Christopher Bell (2017).
The No. 18, the number which was on the first Tundra that went to victory lane for KBM in 2010, has 21 career victories.
