Track: Texas Motor Speedway 1.5 mile oval
Race: 5 of 23
Event: Vankor 350 (147 laps, 220.5 miles)
Entries: No. 17, Tyler Ankrum
No. 54, Anthony Alfredo
Schedule: Thurday, March 28
4:05 p.m……….Practice
6:05 p.m……….Final Practice
Friday, March 29
5:10 p.m………..Qualifying (FS1)
9:00 p.m………..Race (FS1)
(all times ET)
______________________________________________________________________
MOORESVILLE, N.C. (March 27, 2019) – The fifth race of the 2019 NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series race will take place this weekend on the mile-and-a-half track of Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth, Texas. DGR-Crosley will have two entries in the Vankor 350: the No. 17 May’s Hawaii Toyota Tundra for Tyler Ankrum and the No. 54 Ceco Building Systems Tundra for NASCAR Next alumni Anthony Alfredo.
For newly turned 18-year-old Ankrum, Friday’s 147 lap race will mark his first start at a speedway 1.5-miles in length. His three previous Truck Series starts all occurred at tracks one mile or less, with his best finish of sixth-placing coming last fall at ISM Raceway in Phoenix, Ariz. In preparation for Friday’s race in Texas, Ankrum and his No. 17 May’s Hawaii team recently tested at Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway. Ankrum was able to get comfortable behind the wheel and was laying down impressive lap times by the end of the test session. After missing the first three races of the season due to his age, Ankrum currently sits 36th in driver point standings. He will be paired with Crew Chief Kevin “Bono” Manion and veteran spotter David Keith for the remainder of the 2019 season.
Alfredo will return to the No. 54 Tundra this weekend as he takes on his third Gander Outdoors Truck Series start of the season. Similar to his teammate, Alfredo will also be visiting the 1.5-mile track in Fort Worth, Texas for the first time. His two previous starts with DGR-Crosley this season came at Atlanta and Las Vegas, both 1.5-mile tracks, where he collected 17th and 18th-place finishes respectively. Alfredo also participated in a team test at Charlotte Motor Speedway, where he was able to learn more about the characteristics of 1.5-mile race tracks and get some laps under his belt before heading to The Lone Star State. Alfredo is slated to run 13 races for DGR-Crosley with support from Ceco Building Systems, Friends of Jaclyn Foundation and Oxford Energy Group. Aflredo will work with his regular crew chief Chris Lawson and Cup spotter Kevin Hamlin this weekend in Texas.
The Vankor 350 at Texas Motor Speedway will be broadcast live on FS1 beginning at 9:00 p.m., ET.
______________________________________________________________________
Ankrum on Texas: “”I’m really looking forward to my first speedway race this
weekend. We are moving on from Martinsville and shifting our focus to Texas now. I’m going into the weekend knowing that I have a lot to learn, but DGR-Crosley ran really good there in the past, so I’m looking forward to working with Bono [crew chief] and David[Gilliland]. The guys have good notes from last year to work with. I’ve been spending some time on the sim and watching film with David to help prepare. We tested at Charlotte a couple of weeks ago, and even though the tracks are different, it really helped me get comfortable in my Tundra and understand what to expect at these mile-and-a-half tracks. We were able to post some great speeds by the end of the test, so hopefully, that speed will translate to Texas.”
Alfredo on Texas: “I’m excited to head to Texas Motor Speedway this
weekend, especially because we had a successful test at Charlotte Motor Speedway recently. Even though I haven’t been in the truck in a couple of weeks, I’m confident heading into the event because of how our first two outings at Atlanta and Vegas went. We have a lot of positive momentum going that we will keep building on. The team and I have built a lot of confidence in each other as well as our race Trucks. I’m looking forward to having a successful run at Texas. I’m thankful for my family, marketing partners and supporters who make all this possible for me.”
______________________________________________________________________
ABOUT DGR-Crosley
DGR-Crosley is a race team owned by NASCAR veteran David Gilliland and Crosley Brands CEO, Bo LeMastus. The team specializes in driver development, competing full-time in the NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series, NASCAR K&N Pro Series and CARS Tour, as well running select ARCA Menards Series and late model races with factory support from Toyota. In its first year of operation, DGR-Crosley won 7 of 14 K&N East races, securing a Driver and Owner Championship. The team operates out of two buildings totaling 55,000 square feet in Mooresville, N.C.
