Fairhopeâs Grant Enfinger wins on NASCAR truck series
GMS Racing announced on Wednesday that it would cease operations at the end of the 2023 racing season.
Driving a GMS Racing entry in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series event on Sunday, Fairhope’s Grant Enfinger showed his team didn’t take the news lying down by winning the Clean Harbors 175 at the Milwaukee Mile in West Allis, Wisconsin.
“None of these guys, including me, have a job next year,” Enfinger said, “but I feel like today we proved we deserve one.”
On his way to winning the race in the Champion Power Equipment No. 23 Chevrolet, Enfinger won the pole and captured both stages.
Enfinger led 95 of the 175 laps, including the final 17, as he posted a 1.533-second victory over Carson Hocevar.
The victory secured a spot for Enfinger in the truck series playoff’s Round of Eight.
The truck series’ Round of 16 concludes at Kansas on Sept. 8 in the Kansas Lottery 200.
The Round of Eight includes the UNOH 200 on Sept. 14 at Bristol Motor Speedway, Love’s RV Stop 250 on Sept. 30 at Talladega Superspeedway and Baptist Health 200 on Oct. 21 at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
The four qualifiers from those three races will decide the 2023 season champion in the Craftsman 150 on Nov. 3 at Phoenix Raceway.
Sunday’s victory was the third of the season for Enfinger, who has won 10 times on the truck series. His other 2023 victories came in the Heart of America 200 at Kansas Speedway on May 6 in Kansas City, Kansas, and the Toyota 200 at Worldwide Technology Raceway on June 3 at Gateway in Madison, Illinois.
Bret Holmes of Munford, driving the Precision Garage Door No. 32 Chevrolet, finished 19th in Sunday’s race.
Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AMarkG1.