The NASCAR Gander Outdoor Truck Series visited Sin City this past Friday night for the third race of the 2019 season at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
While a familiar foe ended up in victory lane once again for the second week in a row, a few drivers rebounded for a top five finish, while other’s were disappointed with their finishing results following the Strat 200.
Here’s a look at who topped this weeks power rankings.
- Brett Moffitt – Moffitt followed up from last weeks top five finish with another one this past weekend by finishing second, one spot short of victory. He had a great start to his Friday afternoon, as Moffitt started outside pole. Moffitt finished second in Stage 1, but problems arose early as a air hose got stuck underneath his truck and cost him a lot of positions. He had to work his way up after losing so many positions. Moffitt for to Kyle Busch’s back bumper, but Busch threw a block and made Moffitt check up. Moffitt could never rebound and challenge for the win, but it was a hard fought second for the No. 24 GMS Racing team.
Previous Week Ranking – 3rd
2. Stewart Friesen – After troubles last week in Atlanta and a crash at Daytona, it has been a rough start to the season for the Ontario, Canada native. Friesen came to Vegas hoping to have a great run and he did just that by finishing fourth, his first top five of the season. He led twice for 19 laps and finished seventh in Stage 1, while he finished second in Stage 2. The No. 52 Halmar Racing team salvaged a top five finish.
Previous Week Ranking – Not Ranked
3. Harrison Burton – Burton had a quiet, but strong night at Las Vegas where he finished fifth. For his first outing, that’s not bad for the 18-year old. It was Burton’s fifth top five of the his career young career. He finished fourth and sixth in both stages. Burton will now focus for Martinsville in two weeks, where he made his first career start in 2016, finishing 22nd.
Previous Week Ranking – Not Ranked
4. Grant Enfinger – While it was a finish outside the top-10, Enfinger has to earn it and saved himself from a disastrous finish, as the engine had issues midway through the race. It all began late in Stage 2, where Enfinger almost lost it off of Turn 2 but saved it from spinning. Enfinger then started to report some more problems to his truck, as he reported the engine was “sounded flat and getting progressively worse.” This saw him make a pit stop to check on it. The report was a “plug wire” issue to the No. 98 truck. All was fixed and Enfinger got back going to the race until more issues came about, where he reported a “right-rear tire going soft going soft.” Fortunately, Enfinger made it to the checkers P11.
Previous Week Ranking – 1st
5. Sheldon Creed – Speaking of rebounds, a tip of the cap to Sheldon Creed who rebounded to sixth after spinning early and bringing out the first caution. After the spin, Creed finished 18th in Stage 1. He had a great Stage 2, where Creed finished seventh earning some playoff points. At the end of the night, the No. 2 GMS Racing team wound up sixth. A great rebound for Creed.
Previous Week Ranking – Not Ranked
Fell Out
- Johnny Sauter -Sauter struggled throughout the night and didn’t even finish in the top-10 in either stage. He did eventually came back to finish eighth, but Sauter was not pleased with the result and is already looking forward to Martinsville.
Previous Week Ranking – 2nd
2. Austin Hill – The Daytona winner has overheating problems and was out of the race on lap 82. Not all was lost, however, as he finished third and eighth in both stages.
Previous Week Ranking – 5th
3. Ross Chastain – After having a couple of strong weeks in the No. 45 team, there were high expectations for Chastain to do well. He managed a tenth place finish, but his truck stalled when he made his final pit stop and finished one lap down. Chastain had great runs in both stages finishing fifth and third.
Previous Week Ranking – 4th
