Race Information
- Round: NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series race No. 4 of 23
- Track Location: Circuit Of The Americas (COTA) – Austin, Texas
- Race Name: XPEL 225
- Broadcast: Saturday, March 25th at 1:30 PM ET live on FS1 (TV), MRN (Radio), and Sirius XM NASCAR Channel 90
- Team Entrants:
No. 23 | Grant Enfinger & Jeff Hensley – Champion Power Equipment Chevrolet
No. 24 | Rajah Caruth & Chad Walter – Wendell Scott Foundation Chevrolet
No. 43 | Daniel Dye & Travis Sharpe – Dell Children’s Medical Center / Nyle Maxwell Supercenter Chevrolet
Grant Enfinger, No. 23 Champion Power Equipment Chevrolet Silverado RST
Circuit Of The Americas Stats
- NCTS Starts: 2; Best start: 16th; Best finish: 4th (2021); Top 5s: 1; Top 10s: 2
NCTS Road Course Stats (Canada, COTA, Daytona, Mid-Ohio, Sonoma, & Watkins Glen)
- Combined Starts: 8; Best start: 8th; Best finish: 4th (COTA, 2021); Top 5s: 1; Top 10s: 3, Laps led: 1
2023 NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series Season Stats
- Starts: 3; Best start: 7th; Best finish: 5th (Daytona); Top 5s: 1; Top 10s: 2; Laps led: 3; Current points position: 6th
- About Champion Power Equipment: Since 2003, Champion Power Equipment has earned a reputation for designing and producing the market’s finest power equipment. From our original headquarters in Santa Fe Springs, California, Champion has expanded its North American footprint to include facilities in Jackson, Tennessee, Milwaukee, Wisconsin and Toronto Canada. Today, Champion’s product line has expanded to include portable generators, home standby generators, inverter generators, engines, winches and log splitters. With over 2.5 million generators sold in North America, Champion is a market leader in the power equipment field. Visit ChampionPowerEquipment.com for more information.
- Chassis History/Info: Grant Enfinger and the No. 23 team will compete with GMS Racing chassis no. 145 at the Circuit Of The Americas this weekend. This will be a brand new chassis for Enfinger, purpose built specifically for road course racing.
- Consistency on the Road: In 2022, Grant Enfinger’s road course outings could be summed up by one word: consistent. The driver of the Champion Power Equipment Silverado RST had finishes of 10th (COTA), 11th (Sonoma), and 11th again (Mid-Ohio). This weekend will be the third time that Enfinger has competed at COTA, and if his past two races are of any indication, you might see that No. 23 Chevy up near the front on Saturday. In both races, Grant earned top-10 results, with a best showing of fourth in 2021, a race that included racing action in the rain.
- Stage Points: In Atlanta, Enfinger continued his streak of gaining stage points in all six of the stages that have been completed this season. In total, the driver of the No. 23 Chevy has earned 28 stage points this season (four in Daytona, 13 in Las Vegas, and 11 in Atlanta). He looks to continue that streak this weekend on the road course in Austin.
- GE Appearances: Fans attending the XPEL 225 will have an opportunity to meet Grant Enfinger on Saturday, March 25th:
Team Chevy Stage: All three GMS Racing drivers will participate in a Q&A session at the Team Chevy stage located in the Circuit Of The Americas Fan Zone from 9:45 AM to 10:00 AM local time.
- From The Drivers Seat: Though you don’t necessarily consider yourself a road course racer at heart, your COTA track record may say otherwise. How well do you enjoy racing at this facility?
“I would say that I’ve definitely put a lot of effort into my road course racing over the last couple of years, and I think COTA is one of those tracks that has a little bit of everything – there are some technical sections, there are some slow-speed corners and high speed corners. Obviously, that back straightaway is really, really fast, and it forces you to almost have to get the truck completely stopped at the end of it. But yeah, it’s a place I really enjoy; I enjoy the challenge of it and I’ve worked really hard at learning the layout. I know [Jeff] Hensley and the rest of my guys at GMS Racing have put a lot of effort into this Champion Power Equipment Chevrolet, so hopefully we will have something to contend with.”
Rajah Caruth, No. 24 Wendell Scott Foundation Chevrolet Silverado RST
Circuit Of The Americas Stats
- Rajah Caruth will be making his first start in any series at COTA on Saturday.
ARCA Road Course Stats (Mid-Ohio & Watkins Glen)
- Combined Starts: 2; Best start: 5th; Best finish: 9th (Mid-Ohio, 2022); Top 10s: 1
2023 NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series Season Stats
- Starts: 3; Best start: 17th; Best finish: 25th (Atlanta); Current points position: 22nd
- About the Wendell Scott Foundation: Founded in 2011, The Wendell Scott Foundation, Inc. is a 501 (c) (3) nonprofit organization inspired by Wendell Scott, Sr. and provides services such as job-skill training, STEM education opportunities, mentoring, and other supportive services to at-risk, underserved youth between the ages of 8-18 years in Danville, Virginia and surrounding areas.
The Foundation’s mission of using educational attainment to end racial disparities in education and health is vital in addressing economic inequality and improving future success in African-American communities. For more information, please visit www.wendellscott.org.
- Chassis History/Info: Caruth and the No. 24 team will compete with GMS Racing chassis no. 138 in Austin on Saturday. This chassis has been raced in five prior events by Sheldon Creed in 2021 and Grant Enfinger in 2022. Overall, the truck has earned two top-fives and three top-10 finishes, with a best result of third at Watkins Glen, delivered by Creed in 2021. At COTA, the truck has finished in the top-10 on both occasions that it’s been ran, with a best finish of fifth, also earned by Creed in 2021, where it led 14 laps.
- Sunoco Rookie Battle: Though it appeared as if Caruth was on his way to his first top-10 result of the season in Atlanta, a blown right front tire on the white flag dropped him to a disappointing result of 25th place. Heading into COTA, Rajah sits fourth in the Sunoco Rookie of the Year standings, 29 points behind leader Nick Sanchez and eight points behind his teammate, Daniel Dye, who is in third.
- RC Appearances: Fans attending the XPEL 225 will have an opportunity to meet Rajah Caruth on Saturday, March 25th:
Team Chevy Stage: All three GMS Racing drivers will participate in a Q&A session at the Team Chevy stage located in the Circuit Of The Americas Fan Zone from 9:45 AM to 10:00 AM local time.
- From The Driver’s Seat: You’ve never seen the racetrack at COTA before, so how big of a help has iRacing been to you in preparing for this weekend?
“So since I’ve never been to COTA before, iRacing is going to be so pivotal to me this weekend. Albeit, I’m pretty much on the service all the time for any of the tracks that we go to, but for COTA, since I’ve never raced there before, it’s going to be even more useful for me before I hop in my actual Wendell Scott Foundation Silverado RST. I’m excited to give it a whirl, and I think we will have a strong weekend, especially with all of the prep that Josh Wise and Scott Speed have us Chevrolet athletes doing, and I think the GMS Racing trucks should be pretty sporty across the board.”
Daniel Dye, No. 43 Dell Children’s Medical Center / Nyle Maxwell Supercenter Chevrolet Silverado RST
Circuit Of The Americas Stats
- Daniel Dye will be making his first start in any series at COTA on Saturday.
ARCA Road Course Stats (Mid-Ohio & Watkins Glen)
- Combined Starts: 2; Best start: 8th; Best finish: 4th (Watkins Glen, 2022); Top 5s: 1, Top 10s: 2
ARCA West Road Course Stats (Portland)
- Starts: 1; Poles: 1 (Portland, 2022); Best finish: 4th (Portland, 2022); Top 5s: 1; Top 10s: 1
2023 NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series Season Stats
- Starts: 3; Best start: 19th; Best finish: 16th (Atlanta); Laps led: 5; Current points position: 19th
- About Dell Children’s Medical Center: Dell Children’s Medical Center at Ascension Seton is a full-service pediatric medical center dedicated to the needs of children and families. When you choose Dell Children’s, your child’s care is connected across care teams – from 24/7 pediatric emergency care and level I trauma care to primary care, mental health care and specialty care. With the most comprehensive pediatric specialty care in Central Texas, you’ll find all the care your child and family need. Only in Austin. Only at Dell Children’s.
Our doctors are delivering medical breakthroughs every day. Your child’s pediatrician, specialists and care teams are part of an integrated community of experienced doctors who work together as one team. Share your concerns and ask us your questions – big and small. We start by listening to you and your child. Then, we work with you to create a care plan that’s right for your child. For more information, visit here.
- Dell Children’s Medical Center Visit: On Thursday, March 23rd, Daniel Dye will make a visit to Dell Children’s Medical Center to spend time with patients and their families. As a big supporter of The NASCAR Foundation, Dye will deliver the patients with “Speedy Bears” provided by the foundation, as well as tee shirts to commemorate this weekend’s race in Austin. For any media members that would like to attend the event, Daniel will be available for one-on-one interviews during his visit from 2:45 PM to 3:45 PM local time at 4900 Mueller Blvd, Austin, TX.
- Chassis History/Info: Dye and the No. 43 team will compete with GMS Racing chassis no. 140 at COTA. This Silverado RST has been driven in five races over the course of the past two seasons by Zane Smith and Jack Wood. Overall, the chassis has two top-10 finishes, with a best result of sixth at Watkins Glen in 2021 driven by Smith. Specifically in Austin, this truck has been ran twice before, earning a best finish of eighth place earned by Smith in 2021.
- Sunoco Rookie Battle: Dye overcame early mechanical gremlins in Atlanta to earn his best finish of the season with a 16th place run. Entering this weekend’s race in Austin, Dye is third in the Sunoco Rookie of the Year standings, 21 points behind leader Nick Sanchez and one point behind second place’s Jake Garcia.
- DD Appearances: Fans attending the XPEL 225 will have an opportunity to meet Daniel Dye on Saturday, March 25th:
Team Chevy Stage: All three GMS Racing drivers will participate in a Q&A session at the Team Chevy stage located in the Circuit Of The Americas Fan Zone from 9:45 AM to 10:00 AM local time.
- From the Driver’s Seat: COTA will be the first road course that you run with in the CRAFTSMAN Truck Series, can you tell us a little more about your previous road racing experiences?
“Yeah, I’m looking forward to it. I mean, COTA is a whole different beast compared to Mid-Ohio, Watkins Glen, and Portland that I’ve raced at before. I loved road course racing last year in the ARCA Series. It’s going to be fun to try it out in the CRAFTSMAN Truck Series; there’s a lot more trucks and competition out there, but to go to a huge place like COTA with 20 turns is going to be super cool. It’s going to be fun, we’re just going to stay on our toes and learn all day to be the best we can be by the end of it with our No. 43 Chevy.”
ABOUT GMS RACING:
GMS Racing competes full-time in the NASCAR Truck Series operating the No. 23, No. 24, and No. 43 Chevrolet Silverado RSTs for drivers Grant Enfinger, Rajah Caruth, and Daniel Dye. Since the team was formed in 2012, GMS Racing has won five titles across multiple series, including the 2016 and 2020 NASCAR Truck Series championship, the 2015 ARCA Racing Series championship, as well as the 2019 & 2020 ARCA East championships. GMS has grown to occupy several buildings located in Statesville, N.C. including operations for GMS Fabrication. The GMS Racing campus also houses operations for LEGACY MOTOR CLUB, a team that competes full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series.
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