Kyle Busch Motorsports has been unstoppable in the last two NASCAR Camping World Truck Series races.
After Chandler Smith dominated at Richmond Raceway en route to the win, his teammate John Hunter Nemechek won the pole and swept all three stages in a dominating win at Kansas Speedway on Friday (Sept. 9). Nemechek made a last-lap pass on Carson Hocevar, who made a gutsy pit call and ran out of gas a half a lap from the finish.
Nemechek’s 13th career Truck Series victory also featured a statistical anomaly, as Frontstretch junior editor Stephen Stumpf noted. Nemechek has 13 wins at 13 different tracks. He has the most wins of any driver in Truck Series history without a repeat victory at a racetrack.
Hocevar coasted around to still finish second. Ryan Preece finished third, while Zane Smih and Grant Enfinger rounded out the top five in fourth and fifth place, respectively.
The Kansas Lottery 200 was the final race of the Round of 10. Hocevar’s gamble came up three points shy of advancing, so his second straight playoff run ended with heartbreak. Meanwhile, after starting seventh, three-time Truck Series champion Matt Crafton finished 15th and his quest for another title ended as well.
Hocevar Heartbroken Again on a Bigger Scale
A gutsy call from crew chief Phil Gould on a pit stop under caution with 56 laps to go put Hocevar in a prime position to win, provided a self-described miracle happened. The miracle? Hoping the race would stay green to the end.
Miraculously, the No. 42 teams’ prayers for a caution-free end happened. Unfortunately, the fuel ran dry with about half a lap to go, costing Hocevar, once again, his first career victory.
Even worse, despite the great finish, Hocevar was eliminated from the playoffs as his main competitor, Christian Eckes, gained a ton of stage points and made up a handful of positions in the closing laps, bumping Hocevar from the Round of 8 by just three points.
Despite his disappointment in his post-race interview, Hocevar should be proud of his great season thus far and should now focus on both scoring his first career victory and making his Niece Motorsports team better in 2023. His first Truck win is coming. It’s only a matter of time.
Nemechek and Majeski Trade Lead Early
In a caution-free stage one, polesitter Nemechek and fellow playoff driver Ty Majeski combined to lead all 30 laps, with Nemechek as the driver to come out on top and win stage one.
After the green flag waved, Nemechek rocketed out…
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