By Mike Haag, Raceday San Antonio
FORT WORTH, Texas — Corey Heim turned what looked like a runaway victory into a nerve-wracking dogfight under the lights at Texas Motor Speedway, ultimately capturing his third NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series win of the season in a dramatic double-overtime finish at the SpeedyCash.com 250.
The 22-year-old TRICON Garage driver led 96 of the 172 laps—most of any driver—but had to battle back against a charging field after a late red flag and a string of cautions reset the race’s tone. Heim held off Daniel Hemric by just 0.279 seconds to notch his 14th career Truck Series win, making him the youngest driver in series history to reach that milestone.
“I wasn’t going to let them take that one away from me,” Heim said. “I’ve given up too many already this year. I just drove until I couldn’t anymore.”
After building a 15-second lead during a lengthy green-flag stretch in the final stage, Heim looked set to coast to the finish. But when Frankie Muniz crashed on Lap 147, it triggered the night’s eighth caution—and the beginning of the endgame chaos.
The red flag came out with 11 laps to go following a multi-truck crash involving Grant Enfinger, Stewart Friesen, and Chandler Smith—three of Heim’s primary challengers.
Two more cautions followed, including one just as Heim was locked in a three-wide battle with Ben Rhodes and Rajah Caruth on the first overtime attempt. A final restart set up the showdown: Heim versus Rhodes on the front row, with Daniel Hemric lurking.
Hemric launched a bold move to the inside on the final lap, but Heim responded with authority—charging between Rhodes and Hemric, reclaiming the lead in Turn 1 and pulling ahead just enough to take the checkered flag.
Caruth finished third to score his first too-10 at Texas. Tyler Ankrum was fourth and Tanner Gray fifth. Rounding out the top 10 were Rhodes, Ty Majeski, Friesen, Dawson Sutton and Matt Crafton.
Rhodes, who faded to sixth after the final restart, expressed frustration over Heim’s aggressive driving in Turn 3.
“Basically, he came off the bottom and forced me to lift,” said Rhodes. “It’s a narrow groove here, and that’s what causes all these wrecks.”
The race saw 11 cautions for 57 laps, with a number of major incidents, including a Lap 31 crash that collected Brandon Jones and Kaden Honeycutt after rookie Giovanni Ruggiero clipped the grass below the apron.
By the checkered flag, only 18 of 32 trucks were still on track.
Heim’s win gives him a 46-point lead over Chandler Smith atop the series standings. It’s his third win and seventh top-10 of the 2025 season and his first win at Texas in four starts, following a runner-up finish last year.
Interview:
NCTS Race Winner Corey Heim (No. 11 TRICON Garage Toyota) –
NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series Race – SpeedyCash.com 250
Texas Motor Speedway
Fort Worth, Texas
Friday, May 2, 2025
1. (4) Corey Heim, Toyota, 174.
2. (2) Daniel Hemric, Chevrolet, 174.
3. (7) Rajah Caruth, Chevrolet, 174.
4. (1) Tyler Ankrum, Chevrolet, 174.
5. (25) Tanner Gray, Toyota, 174.
6. (28) Ben Rhodes, Ford, 174.
7. (22) Matt Crafton, Ford, 174.
8. (17) Bayley Currey, Chevrolet, 174.
9. (20) Dawson Sutton #, Chevrolet, 174.
10. (24) Ty Majeski, Ford, 174.
11. (10) Jack Wood, Chevrolet, 174.
12. (32) Stefan Parsons, Chevrolet, 174.
13. (13) Nick Sanchez(i), Chevrolet, 174.
14. (18) Nathan Byrd, Chevrolet, 174.
15. (16) Spencer Boyd, Chevrolet, 174.
16. (9) Chandler Smith, Ford, 174.
17. (19) Carson Hocevar(i), Chevrolet, 172.
18. (29) Josh Reaume, Ford, 172.
19. (31) Cody Dennison, Ford, 171.
20. (30) Matt Mills, Chevrolet, Accident, 168.
21. (3) Jake Garcia, Ford, Accident, 164.
22. (12) Connor Mosack #, Chevrolet, Accident, 162.
23. (5) Grant Enfinger, Chevrolet, Accident, 156.
24. (23) Stewart Friesen, Toyota, Accident, 155.
25. (26) Frankie Muniz #, Ford, Accident, 145.
26. (21) Toni Breidinger #, Toyota, Electrical, 120.
27. (27) Luke Fenhaus, Ford, DVP, 68.
28. (8) Layne Riggs, Ford, Accident, 64.
29. (14) Andres Perez De Lara #, Chevrolet, Accident, 56.
30. (15) Brandon Jones(i), Toyota, Accident, 31.
31. (11) Giovanni Ruggiero #, Toyota, Accident, 30.
32. (6) Kaden Honeycutt, Chevrolet, Accident, 30.
Average Speed of Race Winner: 102.008 mph.
Time of Race: 2 Hrs, 33 Mins, 31 Secs. Margin of Victory: 0.279 Seconds.
Caution Flags: 11 for 57 laps.
Lead Changes: 15 among 9 drivers.
Lap Leaders: T. Ankrum 1-24;L. Riggs 25-34;M. Crafton 35-37;G. Enfinger 38-51;C. Heim 52-71;G. Enfinger 72-75;C. Heim 76-83;T. Majeski 84-95;C. Heim 96-127;R. Caruth 128-132;J. Garcia 133-135;C. Heim 136-152;G. Enfinger 153;C. Heim 154-171;B. Rhodes 172-173;C. Heim 174.
Leaders Summary (Driver, Times Lead, Laps Led): Corey Heim 6 times for 96 laps; Tyler Ankrum 1 time for 24 laps; Grant Enfinger 3 times for 19 laps; Ty Majeski 1 time for 12 laps; Layne Riggs 1 time for 10 laps; Rajah Caruth 1 time for 5 laps; Matt Crafton 1 time for 3 laps; Jake Garcia 1 time for 3 laps; Ben Rhodes 1 time for 2 laps.
Stage #1 Top Ten: 9,42,88,19,11,98,15,7,38,34
Stage #2 Top Ten: 11,38,9,19,52,99,13,18,98,88
