Saturday, June 18
Track: Knoxville Raceway, .5-mile dirt oval
Race: 13 of 23
Event: Clean Harbors 150 (150 laps, 75 miles)

Schedule
Friday, June 17
First Practice: 7:05 p.m. ET
Final Practice: 9:00 p.m. ET
Saturday, June 18
Qualifying Races: 7:00 p.m. ET
Race: 9:00 p.m. ET (FOX Sports 1)

Hailie Deegan, No. 1 Monster Energy Ford F-150 

• The Clean Harbors 150 marks Hailie Deegan’s second appearance at Knoxville (Iowa) Raceway — her 36th career start in the NCWTS.
• Deegan scored her second-best qualifying result of the season last Saturday, lining up in ninth place at Sonoma (Calif.) Raceway.
• Deegan is known for her dirt prowess, climbing the ranks of off-road competition before transitioning to stock car racing. In addition, she regularly makes appearances at Millbridge Speedway, competing in her dirt micro sprint car.
• In her previous NCWTS outing at Knoxville Raceway, Deegan qualified in fourth position en route to a 21st place finish. She also had a runner-up performance behind Tony Stewart when the Superstar Racing Experience (SRX) series ran at the historic venue in 2021.

Tanner Gray, No. 15 Ford Performance F-150

• Tanner Gray will make his 13th NCWTS start of the 2022 season in his second career appearance at Knoxville Raceway.
• Last time out at Sonoma Raceway, the Ford driver marched from a 27th place qualifying effort to record a 13th place finish.
• In three Truck Series starts on dirt, Gray has an average finish of 19.6, with a best result of 13th coming at the 2021 Pinty’s Truck Race on Dirt at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway.
• Veteran Crew Chief Jerry Baxter will be making his 10th career dirt appearance in the NASCAR ranks, having scored a 2014 NCWTS win at Eldora Speedway with Bubba Wallace.

Todd Gilliland, No. 17 Frontline Enterprises Ford F-150

• Todd Gilliland is set to make his first career appearance for David Gilliland Racing in the NCWTS this Saturday at Knoxville Raceway.
• The 22-year-old has recorded victories with the organization in both K&N and ARCA competition, securing wins at Bristol Motor Speedway, New Smyrna Speedway and Talladega Superspeedway.
• The Cup Series Rookie of the Year candidate has four career NCWTS starts on dirt, recording a best finish of fourth at both Bristol Motor Speedway and Knoxville Raceway last season.
• Crew Chief Seth Smith will be making his first start atop the box at Knoxville Raceway. Smith has guided an array of DGR drivers to an average finish of 10.3 in his three crew chief appearances this season.

John Hunter Nemechek: Driver, No. 4 Mobil 1 Toyota

NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Overview:
Event: Clean Harbors 150, Race 13 of 23, 150 Laps – 40/50/60; 75 Miles
Location: Knoxville (Iowa) Raceway (Half-mile dirt-oval)
Date/Broadcast: June 18, 2022, at 9 p.m. ET on FS1, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR 90

Neme’chek’ the Facts:

After an eighth-place finish at Sonoma (Calif.) Raceway last Saturday, John Hunter Nemechek and the No. 4 Mobil 1 team return to action Saturday night for the second running of the Clean Harbors 150 at Knoxville (Iowa) Raceway. In last year’s inaugural event, Nemechek was forced to start at the rear of the field and drove to an 11th-place finish.

With four races remaining in the regular season, Nemechek currently sits fourth in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series standings, just 14 points back of ThorSport Racing driver Ben Rhodes in first. Nemechek leads the NASCAR Truck Series regulars in poles (four), average starting position (6.7), and average running position (8.431). He is also second in driver rating (102.7) and third in laps led (171) and fastest laps run (81).

The 25-year-old driver will be making his ninth career start on a dirt track in Camping World Truck Series action. Nemechek has previously made five starts at Eldora (Ohio) Speedway, two at Bristol Dirt, and one at Knoxville. In his first eight starts, he has tallied 12 laps led, two top-five and five top-10 finishes resulting in an average finish of 12.8. His best result on dirt recently came in the Pinty’s Truck Race on Dirt at Bristol where he secured a third-place finish.

Nemechek is a 12-time winner in Camping World Truck Series action, winning at least one race each season from 2015 to 2018 for his family-owned team, NEMCO Motorsports, and returning to victory lane in 2021 and 2022 with KBM. Across 136 career starts in NASCAR’s third division, he has compiled six poles, 1,352 laps led, 45 top-five and 74 top-10 finishes resulting in an average finish of 12.5.

Eric Phillips returned to lead the No. 4 team in 2022. His 42 career Truck Series victories make him the winningest crew chief in Truck Series history, with 33 of those coming while at KBM including five last year. Phillips led the No. 18 team at KBM in its debut season in 2010 and helped build the organization into one of the premier teams in all of NASCAR before departing at the end of the 2014 season. Under his guidance, the No. 18 team won eight races in its inaugural campaign and became the first team in Truck Series history to capture an owner’s championship in its first season of competition. In 2014, the Illinois native led the No. 51 team to an owner’s championship and his team’s 10 wins spearheaded KBM to a single-season Truck Series record of 14 wins. Phillips has been atop the box for just four starts at dirt tracks in Camping World Truck Series action. In those four starts, his drivers have tallied one pole, 24 laps led, one top-five and one top-10 finish resulting in an average finish of 20.5. His best result was Nemechek’s third-place finish earlier this year on the dirt at Bristol.

The world’s leading synthetic motor oil, Mobil 1, will adorn the hood of the No. 4 Tundra TRD Pro this Saturday at Knoxville Raceway. Mobil 1 returns as the primary sponsor of Nemechek’s Toyota for three more races in 2022; June 24 at Nashville (Tenn.) Superspeedway, July 9 at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, and Oct. 1 at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway.

John Hunter Nemechek, Driver Q&A:
John Hunter Nemechek | Knoxville Raceway Preview
How different is it racing at Knoxville compared to Bristol Dirt?
“It is, Knoxville being flat and not having a lot of banking. Bristol, they did a very good job with the track prep. You were able to run the bottom, the middle, all the way up to the fence. I’m not sure how Knoxville will play out, last year it was one lane right around the bottom and if you were on the outside, it wasn’t good. Hopefully we do a little bit better with the track prep this year and can run multiple lanes, I know the World of Outlaws ran there this past weekend and they put on a good show being able to run the bottom all the way up to the fence. So, we’ll see what happens, looking forward to getting back dirt racing and chasing another victory.”

Do you feel with how the track races that it will be another super aggressive race this weekend?
“Yeah, I feel like Knoxville is definitely going to be a super aggressive race. I feel like the biggest thing for us is just trying to stay in the right mindset and not get flustered. It’s not if you’re going to get run into, it’s when, so just trying to keep that mindset, not get flustered in the moment and take yourself out of contention by trying to make a move too early or whatever it may be. So, just have to be smart, race our race and salvage the best finish that we can.”

Does having Buddy Kofoid as a teammate this weekend help at all with going to race a dirt track?
“I think having Buddy the Dirt Driver with us this weekend is definitely going to be good to just have a different perspective. Having Brian Brown there last year, he doesn’t have a lot of stock car experience, kind of like Buddy, but you can pick their brain about the dirt, how the track is going to change, and what the track is going to do in terms of rubbering up or staying wet and tacky. We have two practice sessions on Friday so definitely going to be interested to see how the track changes. It changed a lot last year in those two practices and was completely different when we went back on Saturday for the race, so just have to stay on top of it and know what to do and how to make adjustments inside the race car with my hands and feet and pedals and everything else to try and get the truck to turn or not break rear traction depending on the conditions of the racetrack. Being able to lean a lot on those guys for that information is very important.”

John Hunter Nemechek Career Highlights:

• Twelve-time winner in Camping World Truck Series action, winning at least one race each season from 2015 to 2018 for his family-owned team, NEMCO Motorsports. Across 136 career starts in NASCAR’s third division, has compiled six poles, 1,352 laps led, 45 top-five and 74 top-10 finishes resulting in an average finish of 12.5. Registered a career-high and series-leading five victories in 2021, earned the NCWTS Regular Season championship and finished third in the final standings after qualifying for the Championship Four for the first time in his career.
• Produced three top-10 finishes and an average result of 22.4 while competing for rookie of the year honors in the NASCAR Cup Series in 2020. He recorded a career-best eighth-place finish twice, both coming at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway.
• Across 61 career XFINITY Series starts, has totaled two wins, one pole, 510 laps led, 17 top-five and 36 top-10 finishes resulting in an average finish of 11.8.

John Hunter Nemechek’s No. 4 Mobil 1 Tundra TRD Pro:

KBM-35: The No. 4 Mobil 1 team will unload KBM-35 for the Saturday night race at Knoxville. Nemechek raced this Tundra once earlier this season at the Bristol Dirt race where he finished third. Prior to that, KBM-35 had not raced since October of 2020 and has one career win in 18 starts, coming with Daniel Suarez at Phoenix (Ariz.) Raceway in 2016.
KBM-35 Performance Profile

KBM Notes of Interest:

• KBM drivers have recorded three wins, one pole, 478 laps led, nine top-five and 16 top-10 finishes resulting in an average finish of 13.1 across 29 starts on dirt tracks.
• Martin Truex Jr. picked up the organization’s most recent victory on a dirt track in the inaugural Pinty’s Truck Race on Dirt at Bristol Motor Speedway (2021). Bubba Wallace (2014) and Christopher Bell (2015) each picked up a win at Eldora Speedway.
• KBM holds the Camping World Truck Series records for most career wins (95) and most wins in a single season (14 in 2014). With his victory at Atlanta Motor Speedway on March 19, Corey Heim became the 18th different driver to win a Truck Series event for KBM. In addition to collecting a series-record seven Owner’s Championships, the organization has produced two championship-winning drivers: Erik Jones (2015) and Christopher Bell (2017).
• The No. 4 has 17 career victories at KBM and was the number for both of the organization’s driver championships.

Chandler Smith: Driver, No. 18 Charge Me Toyota

NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Overview:
Event: Clean Harbors 150, Race 13 of 23, 75 Laps – 40/50/60; 75 Miles
Location: Knoxville (Iowa) Raceway (half-mile dirt oval)
Date/Broadcast: June 18, 2022, at 9 p.m. ET on FS1, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR 90

Chandler Chatter:

Chandler Smith and the No. 18 Charge Me team head to Knoxville Raceway for Saturday’s Clean Harbors 150 looking to continue their charge to the top of the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series regular season point standings. With his fifth-place finish at Sonoma Raceway, the talented teenager closed the gap on reigning Truck Series champion Ben Rhodes to just five points with four races remaining before the regular season champion is crowned. After a 21st-place finish at Darlington, Smith was 32 points behind Rhodes, but over the last five races Smith has narrowed the margin by posting an average finish of 5.6 compared to Rhodes average finish of 14.6 during that span.

Through the first 12 events of the season Smith ranks first among Truck Series regulars in average finish (8.8) and quality passes (509), third in driver rating (101.0), average starting position (7.8) and average running position (9.007) and fourth in fastest laps run (70). He has produced one win, 96 laps led, six top-five and nine top-10 finishes in his sophomore campaign. With 11 races remaining this season, Smith has already matched the number of top-five and top-10 finishes he had in 2021.

In last year’s inaugural race at Knoxville, Smith was out front for 71 laps and managed to hold off the ultra-aggressive field for the first two NASCAR overtime periods, but when a quick caution slowed the field during the third overtime period, NASCAR ruled that Austin Hill had narrowly edged past Smith giving Hill the preferred lane choice for the fourth and final overtime. Smith got knocked back two spots on the ensuing restart but made a three-wide pass coming the white flag to get back into the runner up spot, where he would end the event.

Last week’s race at Sonoma was the 19-year-old drivers 50th career NASCAR Camping World Truck Series start. Across his first 25 starts he posted and average finish of 15.24 with no wins, nine top-five and 11 top-10 finishes. Across his last 25 starts the talented wheelman has posted an average finish of 11.6 with three wins, 11 top-five and 16 top-10 finishes.

The Georgia driver earned NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Rookie of the Year honors in 2021 and finished eighth in the championship standings after producing two victories, one pole, 213 laps led, six top-five and nine top-10 finishes in his first full-time season. He earned his first career Truck Series victory at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway in September and in the series finale at Phoenix (Ariz.) Raceway earned his first career pole and swept all three stages en route to his second victory.

In addition to his Truck Series schedule in 2022, Smith is competing in a three-race schedule with Sam Hunt Racing (SHR). Smith finished 38th in his series debut at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway after a mid-race wreck and finished 21st at Dover (Del.) Motor Speedway. His final race with SHR will come Oct. 22 at Homestead-Miami (Fla.) Speedway.

Veteran crew chief Danny Stockman will once again call the shots for Smith and the No. 18 team in 2022. Stockman’s drivers have produced six victories at KBM across his first two seasons, including two with Smith behind the wheel in 2021. The veteran crew chief captured a Truck Series championship with Austin Dillon in 2011 and also won an Xfinity Series championship with Dillon in 2013. Stockman’s drivers have an average finish of 15.0 across four starts on dirt tracks with Smith’s runner-up finish at Knoxville last year being the best result.

Charge Me will serve as the primary sponsor on the No. 18 Tundra TRD Pro Saturday. Charge Me was founded on the principle that the electric vehicle (EV) revolution will require robust infrastructure support at all levels. Charge Me will return as the primary sponsor for two more races this season: (June 18), Pocono (Pa.) Raceway (July 23) and Richmond (Va.) Raceway (Aug. 13). Safelite, the nation’s largest provider of vehicle glass repair, replacement and recalibration services will serve as an associate sponsor on the bedtop of Smith’s Toyota Saturday and for 16 races as a primary sponsor in 2022.

Chandler Smith, Driver Q&A:
After being so close to winning at Knoxville last year is this one you’ve had circled on your calendar this year?
“For sure, I was really emotional after that race and felt like I got that one stolen from me, so that’s one that has been circled on my list to go back there and get some redemption. They had a really cool trophy last year and I wanted it pretty bad, so hopefully they have the same trophy this year. Really looking forward to slinging some mud this weekend in my Charge Me Tundra TRD Pro.”

Do you feel like the race will be as aggressive as it was last year?
“Unfortunately, I’m thinking it’s going to be a lot worse than last year and last year was really bad. We’re bigger picture racing this year, the regular season championship is our main priority right now. We don’t want to put ourselves in any bad situations where we end up losing a bunch of points.”

You had a really strong race at Knoxville last year, how were you able to have such a fast Tundra?
“I think it was a combination of Danny (Stockman, crew chief) and the guys on the No. 18 team preparing a really fast truck and that it seemed to really fit my driving style. Especially, after it slicked off, it drove a lot like a Friday night Super Late Model race on a short track somewhere in America. That’s kind of my background and that’s where I’m from, so it definitely swung my way a little bit. Also, the tire strategy we did at the very end where after the track rubbered up, we stayed out and our tires started slicking off and helped our speed. On the short run and especially on restarts it was really hard to take off because we didn’t have any traction on the dirt. If I could get clear from everybody, I was able to take off, so that’s something that me and my crew chief Danny Stockman has talked about already heading into this year’s race.”
Chandler Smith Career Highlights:

• Across 50 career NASCAR Camping World Truck Series starts has recorded three wins, 402 laps led, 20 top-five and 27 top-10 finishes resulting in an average finish of 13.4.
• Earned NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Rookie of the Year honors in 2021 and finished eighth in the championship standings after producing two victories, one pole, 213 laps led, six top-five and nine top-10 finishes in his first full-time season. He earned his first career Truck Series victory at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway in September and in the series finale at Phoenix (Ariz.) Raceway earned his first career pole and swept all three stages en route to his second victory.
• Has posted an average finish of 29.5 across two NASCAR Xfinity Series starts in 2022, with a best result of 22nd coming at Dover (Del.) Motor Speedway.
• Has collected nine wins, 10 poles, 1783 laps led, 22 top-five and 29 top-10 finishes en route to an average finish of 5.4 across 34 career ARCA Menards Series starts.

Chandler Smith’s No. 18 Charge Me Tundra:

KBM-52: The No. 18 Charge Me team will unload KBM-52 for Saturday’s race at the Knoxville. It is the same Toyota that Smith picked up his first career Truck Series victory with last September on the concrete track at Bristol. In its most recent outing, Smith finished 19th with KBM-52 in the Bristol Dirt Race in April.

KBM-52 Performance Profile
KBM Notes of Interest:

• In last year’s inaugural race at Knoxville, KBM’s three trucks combined for an average finish of 7.0 with Smith producing a team-best runner-up finish. Brian Brown finished eighth in his Truck Series debut.
• KBM drivers have won three times on dirt tracks. Martin Truex Jr. won the inaugural race on the dirt at Bristol Motor Speedway in 2021, while Bubba Wallace (2014) and Christopher Bell (2015) each scored victories at Eldora Speedway.
• KBM holds the Camping World Truck Series records for most career wins (95) and most wins in a single season (14 in 2014). With his victory at Atlanta (Ga.) Motor Speedway, Corey Heim became the 18th different driver to win a Truck Series event for KBM. In addition to collecting a series-record seven Owner’s Championships, the organization has produced two championship-winning drivers: Erik Jones (2015) and Christopher Bell (2017).
• The No. 18, the number which was on the first Tundra that went to victory lane for KBM in 2010, has 24 career victories.

Looking to Add Fourth Win in 2022

MOORESVILLE, N.C. (June 14, 2022) – Zane Smith heads into the Knoxville (Iowa) Raceway leading the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series playoff standings with only four races left in the 2022 regular season.

This weekend Smith will welcome partner, Boot Barn, for their first of three primary races with Smith and the Front Row Motorsports (FRM) truck program. Boot Barn will also adorn the truck on the road course at Mid-Ohio and the famed Indianapolis Raceway Park in July.

As the largest western and work wear retailer in the nation, Boot Barn offers the largest assortment of cowboy boots, work boots, western wear, work wear, western-inspired fashion, and outdoor gear in the nation. Smith has already been active with Boot Barn, displaying the western and work wear lifestyle on social media.

“It’s been fun working with Boot Barn,” said Smith. “We are seeing fans at store events, and it is cool to have that interaction with the fans. Winning for Boot Barn is what I want to do. That will be cool to do with them and all their customers.”

This weekend at Knoxville will be Smith’s second time racing at the dirt track facility. With a 14th-place finish in last year’s event and two top-10 finishes on the dirt at Bristol, Smith feels confident the No. 38 team is prepared for the challenge.

“Last year at Knoxville was a steep learning curve for every team,” Smith stated. “This No. 38 team has always been strong on the dirt and came away with a top-five finish last year. I feel confident that my guys are prepared for whatever comes our way this weekend and hopefully we can park it in Victory Lane for our first dirt win.”

The Boot Barn team hits the dirt at Knoxville Raceway on Saturday at 9:00 PM. ET on FS1

ABOUT FRONT ROW MOTORSPORTS

Front Row Motorsports (FRM) is a winning organization in the NASCAR Cup and Camping World Truck Series and the 2021 Daytona 500 champions. The team was founded in 2004 and is owned by successful entrepreneur, Bob Jenkins. FRM fields the No. 34 and the No. 38 NASCAR Cup Series teams along with the No. 38 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series team– from its Mooresville, N.C. headquarters. Visit teamfrm.com and follow FRM on social media: Twitter at @Team_FRM, Instagram at @team_frm and Facebook at facebook.com/FrontRowMotorsports.