Trucks For Pocono Isn’t That Great- The Truck Series continued their annual trip to Pocono dating back to the first race in 2010. With Pocono being a 2.5 mile track, the field gets sprung out after a few laps. When stage 1 ended, Crafton was fifth ten seconds behind the race leader. Track position is important at Pocono for sure, but racing isn’t that great. If it weren’t for the stages being so short, there probably wouldn’t have been much of a battle for the lead.
Christopher Bell continues strong season- Bell claimed victory number four Saturday at Pocono. Prior to Pocono, he finished ninth at Eldora and won at Kentucky. Bell has solidified himself as championship favorite and contender. He now leads former point leader, Johnny Sauter over 18 points. It will not be surprising if Bell grabs a few more wins and possibly the championship at Homestead. It’s Bell’s championship to lose.
Kyle Busch and Noah Gragson wreck- Just when it looked liked it was going to be a strong day for Kyle Busch Motorsports, their day went to sour when stage 3 begun. Busch accidentally got turned by Justin Haley in turn 2 on the restart for stage 3. Then just a few laps later, Gragson got involved in an mishap between Kaz Grala and Chase Briscoe. This ruined Kyle’s shot at career win 48 and Gragson’s strong point day. Gragson now sits ninth in the point standings 183 points behind first. He’ll have to win a few stages and a couple of races, if he wants to be in this years playoffs.
Ben Rhodes Comes Up Short Once Again- Rhodes continues his up and down season with a career best finish since Gateway of 2016. Ever since battling for the win at Kansas and blowing an engine late in that race, Rhodes has two top five and top ten finishes. However, he recently wrecked out at Eldora and Kentucky. He finished a solid second at Pocono, but sits sixth in the point standings, 141 points behind. If Rhodes wants to stay in the playoffs, which he is currently, he’ll have to continue what he did at Pocono for the remaining four races and not afford anymore DNF’s.