After a three-year absence from the Playoff picture, Tyler Ankrum returns to the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series’ postseason battle for the championship with a new team and a new confidence level in 2024.
Ankrum, the 2018 ARCA Menards Series East champion and 2019 Truck Rookie of the Year from San Bernardino, California, entered the 2024 season by joining forces with McAnally-Hilgemann Racing following a two-year campaign at Hattori Racing Enterprises.
Driving the No. 18 Chevrolet Silverado RST primarily sponsored by LiUNA!, Ankrum rolled out of the gates by winning the second stage at Daytona International Speedway and rallying from a late multi-truck wreck to finish in 11th place. He would proceed to finish seventh at Atlanta Motor Speedway, second at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and fifth at Bristol Motor Speedway over his next three starts. By then, he was leading in the Truck Series drivers’ standings for the first time in his career.
Despite losing the points lead during the following race weekend at Circuit of the Americas and being mired with five finishes of 20th or worse over his next eight starts, Ankrum managed to record three top-eight results within the stretch. He would then finish no worse than 15th and log in three additional top-six results for the remaining five regular-season events, including a sixth-place run during the regular-season finale at Richmond Raceway, before capping off the stretch in sixth place in points.
Despite recording zero victories thus far, Ankrum’s five top-five results in 2024 are the most he has recorded compared to his last three seasons combined and the 92 laps led are the most he has led in a season thus far. With his average-finishing result also boosted to 13.7, his highest since ending up with 13.4 in 2020, the Californian qualifies for his third career Truck Series Playoffs and his first since the 2020 season.
Ankrum, who also notched two stage victories, is set to commence the 2024 Truck Series Playoffs in seventh place in the Playoff standings and with 2,007 points. With 129 Truck career races under his belt, Ankrum’s first and only series’ victory occurred at Kentucky Speedway in July 2019.
Amid his strong regular-season performance, regained confidence and hungered desire to return to Victory Lane, Ankrum strives to extend both the on-track consistency and momentum towards his pursuit for his first championship across NASCAR’s top three major series.
“I’m just proud of all my guys at [McAnally-Hilgemann Racing] to get us in the Playoffs, their first year with this team,” Ankrum said following the regular-season finale at Richmond on FS1. “All the work that we had to do throughout the summer and all the bad luck that we had, we were able to pull through it. It feels pretty amazing to be back [in the Playoffs], to be honest. I’ve always felt like I was a Playoff driver and so for me to be back in my full strength, I feel like all the confidence in the world. I was just telling [crew chief] Mark [Hillman] we keep on running top five, second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth, we’re gonna get a couple wins here and I feel like we’re going to be there for Phoenix.”
Tyler Ankrum’s pursuit for the 2024 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series championship commences at the Milwaukee Mile for the LiUNA! 175. The event is scheduled to occur this Sunday, August 25, and air at 4 p.m. ET on FS1.
