Tanner Thorson made his ISM Raceway debut behind the wheel of the No. 20 GoShare.co Chevrolet in Avondale, Ariz., Friday night. The Lucas Oil 150 was the tenth NASCAR Camping World Truck Series start for the twenty-two year old, who qualified 21st and made laps inside the top-ten, running as high as seventh place before losing ground on a late race restart to finish in the 18th position.
STAGE 1 RECAP:
· Started Stage 1: P21
· Finished Stage 1: P21
Thorson started the 150 lap race from the 21st position and had advanced one spot to 20th when the caution was displayed for a multi-truck spin on lap 27. Stage one went green again on lap 33 and the No. 20 GoShare.co Silverado restarted from the eighth position though slipped back to 21st on old tires by the caution at the end of the first stage on lap 45.
STAGE 2 RECAP:
· Started Stage 2: P17
· Finished Stage 2: P19
The green flag flew to start the second stage on lap 53 with Thorson riding 17th. Despite running 8th-10th place lap times and receiving words of encouragement from his team, the rookie was unable to make up track position in the caution free stage. When the green and white checkered flag flew at lap 90 to end the stage, the No. 20 was scored in the 19th position.
STAGE 3 RECAP:
· Started Stage 3: P19
· Finished Stage 3: P18
Stage three of the Lucas Oil 150 got underway on lap 99. When the caution was displayed on lap 128, a report of loose conditions came over the No. 20 radio, “I went from pushing to feeling like I’m running a sprint car,” said the dirt track standout. While under caution, crew chief Andrew Abbott called the GoShare.co pilot in for an adjustment, four tires and fuel on lap 130. Shortly after the pit stop, NASCAR officials halted the field for fluid clean up from the caution. Upon returning to the racing surface and trucks began rolling again on lap 136, this time with Thorson in the 14th position. In the closing laps of the race, the twenty-two year old maintained consistent top-15 lap times and brought the No. 20 team back inside the top-20, taking the checkered flag from eighteenth position. “After a couple runs of bad luck, I’m glad to get my guys back up inside the top-20 where we’ve finished in the races we made all the laps at. ISM (Raceway) was fun, not without challenges because I was fighting loose but we made it work. I can’t thank GoShare, Freddie (Kraft, spotter), Tyler (Young, team principal), Andrew (Abbott, crew chief) and all my guys enough for great opportunity in these trucks,” said Thorson.
Austin Hill made his second start at ISM Raceway in Avondale, Ariz., for the Lucas Oil 150 this past Friday. Hill started the race from the twentieth-position after making laps in the first two rounds of pole qualifying Friday and ran as high as eleventh before the engine of the No. 02 RANDCO-Young’s Building Systems Chevrolet cut out on Lap 43. Hill and his team made attempts to repair the issue from pit road but were relegated to a 30th-place finish after pulling off the racing surface on lap 58.
STAGE 1 RECAP:
· Started Stage 1: P20
· Finished Stage 1: P19
The Winston, Ga., native started the Lucas Oil 150 from the twentieth-position. When the first caution flag of the evening was displayed for a multi-truck spin on lap 27, Hill had advanced two positions to eighteenth. The caution was cleared at lap 33 and the No. 02 pilot restarted from the 13th position. He advanced to 11th before reporting an engine issue a short ten laps later. On lap 43, Hill reported to his team that his engine cut out as he entered the “dogleg” portion of the track and was called to pit road, though he was able to cycle the power of his Chevrolet Silverado before reaching his pit stall and immediately returned to the track. Unfortunately, the team was penalized for both speeding on pit road as well as pitting before pit road was open. When the green and white checkered flag flew on lap 45 to indicate the completion of stage one, Hill was scored in the 19th-position. When pit road was open for the stage caution on lap 49, crew chief Chad Kendrick elected for fuel only and Hill restarted stage two from 22nd. A short three laps later, the No. 02 Silverado again lost engine power and was sent to the garage and scored thirtieth overall at the end of the race.
Both drivers will compete in the series season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway in South Florida next Friday, November 16th.
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