Friday Notebook: SpeedyCash.com 250 at Texas Motor Speedway
Kyle Busch, driver of the #7 Realtree Chevrolet, and Taylor Gray, driver of the #17 JBL Toyota, race during the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series SpeedyCash.com 250 at Texas Motor Speedway on April 12, 2024 in Fort Worth, Texas. (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images)
By Mike Haag, Raceday San Antonio
FORT WORTH – News and notes from Friday’s NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series SpeedyCash.com 250 race at Texas Motor Speedway.
Kyle Busch, driver of the #7 Realtree Chevrolet, celebrates after winning the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series SpeedyCash.com 250 at Texas Motor Speedway on April 12, 2024 in Fort Worth, Texas. Photo by Michael C. Johnson
Big numbers: Kyle Busch notched his 66th victory in 174 NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series races (37.9% winning percentage) when he took the checkered flag in the No. 7 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet during the SpeedyCash.com 250.
The victory was his second and third top-10 finish in 2024. It was also his sixth victory and 11th top-10 finish in 15 races at TMS. Busch ties Todd Bodine for the Truck Series most wins at Texas with six each. The last time the 38-year old won a NCTS race at Texas was in 2020.
Golden jubilee: Friday’s NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series race was the 50th at Texas. There have been 27 different winners and 31 different pole winners. Seven races have been won from the pole or first starting position, most recently by John Hunter Nemechek in 2021.
Matt Crafton competed in his 44th NCTS race at Texas on Friday night. He won here in 2014 and 2015 and leads the categories for most top fives (17), most top 10s (30), lead lap finishes (34) and laps completed (6,792). The driver of the No. 88 ThorSport Ford finished among the top-10 consecutively from 2011-2018. Last season, he finished 13th. Tonight he started 22nd and finished15th.
Gray matter: Brothers Taylor and Tanner Gray both scored a top-10 finish Friday by finishing seventh and eighth respectively. Taylor started on the grid 17th and Tanner 15th in their Toyota race trucks.
After seven NCTS races, Taylor is currently fifth in the championship point standings and is 38 points behind leader Christian Eckes. Meanwhile, Tanner is ranked ninth and is 116 points behind Eckes.
Fast start: The first seven races of the 2024 NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series season has been action-packed.
Christian Eckes, driver of the No. 19 McAnally-Hilgemann Racing Chevrolet, is off to a fast start. He has two wins under his belt at Bristol and Martinsville and has run in the top 10 each week with the only exception being at Atlanta where he finished 32nd due to brake failure. The 23-year old has also led the most laps this season with 337. In five starts at Texas Motor Speedway, Eckes has posted three top fives, three top 10s, and 121 laps led. He leaves Texas with a two-point lead over Corey Heim in the point standings.
