The Craftsman Truck Series returned for the Round of 8 playoff race at Talladega Superspeedway. Some playoff driver positions took a sharp fall ahead of the round's final race next week. However, Rajah Caruth moved to second in the playoff standings after Friday's race.
Caruth got the first stage win of his season and put himself in strong contention. In the final laps, he pushed his Spire Motorsports teammate Corey LaJoie on the overtime restart and slipped to ninth at the finish. The result placed him 14 points above the cut-line heading into the final Round of 8 race at Martinsville Speedway.
Layne Riggs, who started from the back of the field, also fought through chaos and finished in fifth place.
The Front Row Motorsports driver was not allowed to post a qualifying lap after officials found the No. 34 truck with an unapproved change after it had initially passed inspection. During the race, he was involved in an incident where his teammate Chandler Smith's bad push turned him into the pack, but Riggs managed to recover from the damage and keep his playoff hopes alive.
Riggs is now ranked sixth in the playoff standings and is six points below the cutoff line, ahead of the upcoming Martinsville race on October 24.
Two NASCAR Truck Playoff drivers in worse spot after Talladega playoff race
The Love's RV Stop 225 at the 2.66-mile track saw rookie Gio Ruggiero of Tricon Garage take his first win and shake up the playoff field. He earned pole, led 37 laps, and with a push from his teammate Corey Heim, held on in overtime to win by just 0.059 seconds. But the race also left two playoff drivers scrambling for position ahead of the final Round of 8 race at Martinsville.
Grant Enfinger entered Talladega sitting four points below the cutline for the Championship 4. On Lap 4, he led the outside lane when Chandler Smith's push sent Enfinger spinning directly in front of the pack.
The wreck destroyed the two-time Talladega winner's championship hopes. His No. 9 Chevrolet sustained heavy damage, and he was forced to retire. Enfinger finished last and is now ranked 8th with 40 points short of the last Championship spot.
Daniel Hemric also entered the Round of 8 two points above the elimination cutline and suffered the worst setback of all NASCAR Truck playoff drivers. He blew a tire on Lap 52 after contact from Toni Breidinger, which forced him to retire from the event in 34th place.
That DNF left him 32 points below the cutline with only one race remaining to reach the Championship 4. The Talladega race put his title hopes in "must-win" territory.
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Edited by Hitesh Nigam