The 2023 UNOH 200 presented by Ohio Logistics was the 20th stock car race of the 2023 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, the first race of the Round of 8, and the 26th iteration of the event. The race was held on Thursday, September 14, 2023, in Bristol, Tennessee at Bristol Motor Speedway, a 0.533 miles (0.858 km) permanent oval shaped racetrack. The race took the scheduled 200 laps to complete. Corey Heim, driving for Tricon Garage, would make a late-race pass on Christian Eckes for lead with five laps to go, and held him off to earn his fifth career NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series win, and his third of the season. He would also earn a spot in the Championship 4.[1] Eckes had dominated the entire race, winning both stages and leading a race-high 150 laps.[2] To fill out the podium, Eckes, driving for McAnally-Hilgemann Racing, and Grant Enfinger, driving for GMS Racing, would finish 2nd and 3rd, respectively.
Background
The Bristol Motor Speedway, formerly known as Bristol International Raceway and Bristol Raceway, is a NASCAR short track venue located in Bristol, Tennessee. Constructed in 1960, it held its first NASCAR race on July 30, 1961. Despite its short length, Bristol is among the most popular tracks on the NASCAR schedule because of its distinct features, which include extraordinarily steep banking, an all concrete surface, two pit roads, and stadium-like seating. It has also been named one of the loudest NASCAR tracks.
Entry list
- (R) denotes rookie driver.
- (i) denotes driver who is ineligible for series driver points.
- (P) denotes playoff driver.
Practice
For practice, drivers will be separated into two groups, Group A and B. Both sessions will be 15 minutes long, and was held on Thursday, September 14, at 4:00 PM EST.[3] Christian Eckes, driving for McAnally-Hilgemann Racing, would set the fastest time between both sessions, with a lap of 15.424, and an average speed of 124.404 mph (200.209 km/h).[4]
| Pos. | # | Driver | Team | Make | Time | Speed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 19 | Christian Eckes (P) | McAnally-Hilgemann Racing | Chevrolet | 15.424 | 124.404 |
| 2 | 35 | Jake Garcia (R) | McAnally-Hilgemann Racing | Chevrolet | 15.466 | 124.066 |
| 3 | 99 | Ben Rhodes (P) | ThorSport Racing | Ford | 15.487 | 123.897 |
| Full practice results | ||||||
Qualifying
Qualifying was held on Thursday, September 14, at 4:35 PM EST.[3] Since Bristol Motor Speedway is a short track, the qualifying system used is a single-car, two-lap system with only one round. In that round, whoever sets the fastest time will win the pole.[5] Christian Eckes, driving for McAnally-Hilgemann Racing, would score the pole for the race, with a lap of 15.101, and an average speed of 127.064 mph (204.490 km/h).[6]
Race results
Stage 1 Laps: 55
| Pos. | # | Driver | Team | Make | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 19 | Christian Eckes (P) | McAnally-Hilgemann Racing | Chevrolet | 10 |
| 2 | 42 | Carson Hocevar (P) | Niece Motorsports | Chevrolet | 9 |
| 3 | 98 | Ty Majeski (P) | ThorSport Racing | Ford | 8 |
| 4 | 4 | Chase Purdy | Kyle Busch Motorsports | Chevrolet | 7 |
| 5 | 38 | Zane Smith (P) | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 6 |
| 6 | 24 | Rajah Caruth (R) | GMS Racing | Chevrolet | 5 |
| 7 | 17 | Taylor Gray (R) | Tricon Garage | Toyota | 4 |
| 8 | 11 | Corey Heim (P) | Tricon Garage | Toyota | 3 |
| 9 | 15 | Tanner Gray | Tricon Garage | Toyota | 2 |
| 10 | 99 | Ben Rhodes (P) | ThorSport Racing | Ford | 1 |
Stage 2 Laps: 55
| Pos. | # | Driver | Team | Make | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 19 | Christian Eckes (P) | McAnally-Hilgemann Racing | Chevrolet | 10 |
| 2 | 38 | Zane Smith (P) | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 9 |
| 3 | 2 | Nick Sanchez (R) (P) | Rev Racing | Chevrolet | 8 |
| 4 | 11 | Corey Heim (P) | Tricon Garage | Toyota | 7 |
| 5 | 23 | Grant Enfinger (P) | GMS Racing | Chevrolet | 6 |
| 6 | 17 | Taylor Gray (R) | Tricon Garage | Toyota | 5 |
| 7 | 42 | Carson Hocevar (P) | Niece Motorsports | Chevrolet | 4 |
| 8 | 7 | Carson Kvapil (i) | Spire Motorsports | Chevrolet | 0 |
| 9 | 24 | Rajah Caruth (R) | GMS Racing | Chevrolet | 2 |
| 10 | 99 | Ben Rhodes (P) | ThorSport Racing | Ford | 1 |
Stage 3 Laps: 90
| Fin[7] | St | # | Driver | Team | Make | Laps | Led | Status | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 11 | 11 | Corey Heim (P) | Tricon Garage | Toyota | 200 | 6 | Running | 50 |
| 2 | 1 | 19 | Christian Eckes (P) | McAnally-Hilgemann Racing | Chevrolet | 200 | 150 | Running | 55 |
| 3 | 13 | 23 | Grant Enfinger (P) | GMS Racing | Chevrolet | 200 | 0 | Running | 40 |
| 4 | 2 | 42 | Carson Hocevar (P) | Niece Motorsports | Chevrolet | 200 | 0 | Running | 46 |
| 5 | 8 | 17 | Taylor Gray (R) | Tricon Garage | Toyota | 200 | 0 | Running | 41 |
| 6 | 5 | 24 | Rajah Caruth (R) | GMS Racing | Chevrolet | 200 | 0 | Running | 38 |
| 7 | 18 | 99 | Ben Rhodes (P) | ThorSport Racing | Ford | 200 | 0 | Running | 32 |
| 8 | 3 | 4 | Chase Purdy | Kyle Busch Motorsports | Chevrolet | 200 | 1 | Running | 36 |
| 9 | 35 | 2 | Nick Sanchez (R) (P) | Rev Racing | Chevrolet | 200 | 0 | Running | 36 |
| 10 | 12 | 25 | Matt DiBenedetto | Rackley WAR | Chevrolet | 200 | 0 | Running | 27 |
| 11 | 30 | 35 | Jake Garcia (R) | McAnally-Hilgemann Racing | Chevrolet | 200 | 0 | Running | 26 |
| 12 | 27 | 7 | Carson Kvapil (i) | Spire Motorsports | Chevrolet | 200 | 0 | Running | 0 |
| 13 | 36 | 41 | Bayley Currey | Niece Motorsports | Chevrolet | 200 | 0 | Running | 24 |
| 14 | 24 | 52 | Stewart Friesen | Halmar Friesen Racing | Toyota | 200 | 0 | Running | 23 |
| 15 | 20 | 66 | Conner Jones | ThorSport Racing | Ford | 200 | 0 | Running | 22 |
| 16 | 21 | 88 | Matt Crafton | ThorSport Racing | Ford | 200 | 0 | Running | 21 |
| 17 | 19 | 13 | Hailie Deegan | ThorSport Racing | Ford | 200 | 0 | Running | 20 |
| 18 | 28 | 75 | Parker Kligerman (i) | Henderson Motorsports | Chevrolet | 200 | 0 | Running | 0 |
| 19 | 4 | 98 | Ty Majeski (P) | ThorSport Racing | Ford | 200 | 0 | Running | 26 |
| 20 | 15 | 61 | Jake Drew | Hattori Racing Enterprises | Toyota | 200 | 0 | Running | 17 |
| 21 | 16 | 43 | Daniel Dye (R) | GMS Racing | Chevrolet | 199 | 0 | Running | 16 |
| 22 | 23 | 9 | Colby Howard | CR7 Motorsports | Chevrolet | 199 | 0 | Running | 15 |
| 23 | 25 | 16 | Tyler Ankrum | Hattori Racing Enterprises | Toyota | 199 | 0 | Running | 14 |
| 24 | 10 | 38 | Zane Smith (P) | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 199 | 43 | Running | 28 |
| 25 | 17 | 02 | Kaden Honeycutt | Young's Motorsports | Chevrolet | 199 | 0 | Running | 12 |
| 26 | 26 | 56 | Timmy Hill | Hill Motorsports | Toyota | 199 | 0 | Running | 11 |
| 27 | 29 | 32 | Bret Holmes (R) | Bret Holmes Racing | Chevrolet | 199 | 0 | Running | 10 |
| 28 | 22 | 45 | Lawless Alan | Niece Motorsports | Chevrolet | 199 | 0 | Running | 9 |
| 29 | 6 | 15 | Tanner Gray | Tricon Garage | Toyota | 198 | 0 | Running | 10 |
| 30 | 9 | 1 | William Sawalich | Tricon Garage | Toyota | 197 | 0 | Running | 7 |
| 31 | 31 | 12 | Spencer Boyd | Young's Motorsports | Chevrolet | 196 | 0 | Running | 6 |
| 32 | 34 | 22 | Stephen Mallozzi | AM Racing | Ford | 192 | 0 | Running | 5 |
| 33 | 33 | 33 | Memphis Villarreal | Reaume Brothers Racing | Ford | 191 | 0 | Running | 4 |
| 34 | 32 | 20 | Greg Van Alst | Young's Motorsports | Chevrolet | 140 | 0 | Brakes | 3 |
| 35 | 14 | 5 | Dean Thompson | Tricon Garage | Toyota | 14 | 0 | Accident | 2 |
| 36 | 7 | 51 | Jack Wood | Kyle Busch Motorsports | Chevrolet | 13 | 0 | Accident | 1 |
| Official race results | |||||||||
Standings after the race
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References
- ^ Watson, Wyatt (September 14, 2023). "Corey Heim Navigates Lapped Traffic, Wins at Bristol". Frontstretch. Retrieved September 15, 2023.
- ^ Cheek, Adam (September 15, 2023). "Christian Eckes Dominates Bristol, Loses Win Late". Frontstretch. Retrieved September 15, 2023.
- ^ a b "2023 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Bristol Fall Race Page". Jayski's NASCAR Silly Season Site. Retrieved September 11, 2023.
- ^ "Practice Results: NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series UNOH 200 at Bristol". TobyChristie.com. September 14, 2023. Retrieved September 14, 2023.
- ^ "2023 NASCAR Qualifying Procedures". Jayski's NASCAR Silly Season Site. Retrieved September 11, 2023.
- ^ Watson, Wyatt (September 14, 2023). "Christian Eckes on Pole for Bristol Truck Race". Frontstretch. Retrieved September 14, 2023.
- ^ "2023 UNOH 200 Presented by Ohio Logistics - Racing Reference". Racing-Reference.info. Retrieved September 15, 2023.