NORTH WILKESBORO, N.C. — Last year at North Wilkesboro Speedway, Chandler Smith led one lap after winning the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race over Front Row Motorsports teammate Layne Riggs.
In sharp contrast, Smith was the quintessence of dominance on Saturday, leading the final 105 laps to claim victory in the FaithFest 250 presented by Mercer Transportation, again with series leader Riggs securing second place.
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Last year‘s race ended under caution after the trucks of Riggs and Corey Heim collided on the last lap. On Saturday, Smith ran away with the race in the final stage, beating Riggs to the finish line by 8.479 seconds — a record margin of victory on a short track in Truck Series history.
“We‘re ready to rip,” Smith said after a race run in extreme heat on the 0.625-mile asphalt surface. “If the Lord wills it, we don‘t plan on backing down from here going forward. We were just biding our time, keeping the fenders clean and taking what (the No. 38 Ford) would give me.”
Smith took the lead off pit road for a Lap 152 restart to begin the final stage and never looked back. Riggs restarted eighth and worked his way to second on Lap 210 but had nothing for his teammate over the final 40 circuits.
The race ran without a caution for the final 99 laps.
“Part of me wanted to have a restart,” Riggs said. “Part of me knew if that happened there was probably going to be some carnage. So I was very happy just finishing the race there, knowing our teammate got the win. Congratulations to Chandler. He did a great job.”
Riggs, who won the opening stage and led 25 laps, had to overcome the heat to hold second over third-place finisher and Cup Series regular Shane van Gisbergen, who matched his best NASCAR national series finish on an oval track.
“It was hot today,” Riggs acknowledged. “I ice-bagged on every stop. My cool shirt was on—I took it off already. It was probably one of the hottest races I‘ve ever been in. I think we need to add some heat shields to these things…
“But my mind stayed sharp, and I stayed in the game.”
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Riggs extended his series lead to 59 points over 11th-place finisher Kaden Honeycutt.
Christian Eckes finished fourth, followed by Landen Lewis, who scored his second straight top-five finish after a runner-up run last Saturday at Lime Rock Park.
Gio Ruggiero, Chase Elliott, Stewart Friesen, Heim and Stage 2 winner Ty Majeski completed the top 10.
The race for the final spots in the postseason Chase tightened on Saturday. With three races left to set The Chase field, Friesen and 19th-place finisher Tyler Ankrum are tied for the 10th and final postseason berth, with Jake Garcia just 11 points back in 12th place after coming home 13th at North Wilkesboro.
MORE: Eckes holds off the heat, perseveres for North Wilkesboro top five
Cup Series driver Carson Hocevar led 74 laps but couldn’t recover from a cut left-front tire that dropped him two laps down and relegated him to a 27th-place finish.
The Craftsman Truck Series returns to action on Friday for the TSport 200 at Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park (8 p.m. ET, FS1, NASCAR Racing Network Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).
NOTE: Post-race inspection was completed in the Craftsman Truck Series garage, confirming Smith as the winner. The No. 71 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet had one lug nut not safe and secure and will lose pit-stall selection at its next event.