Corey Heim continues to add on to a masterful season with his ninth win in the Team EJP 175 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. After dominating stage one and fighting through the field to win stage two, it was all Heim as he dominated an at times destructive NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series. Heim has tied Greg Biffle’s 1999 mark for the most truck wins in a single season.
“It’s a dream come true to race with these guys [the No. 11 team],” Heim told Fox Sports 1. “ I want to break that record; shoutout Greg Biffle because it’s an honor to compete with that.”
Chandler Smith finished in runner-up and was closing on Heim late, but it wasn’t enough as he was eliminated from the playoffs along with Jake Garcia (16th). Layne Riggs, Gio Ruggiero, and Grant Enfinger rounded out the top five.
Kaden Honeycutt, Ty Majeski, Corey LaJoie, Christian Eckes, and Rajah Caruth earned top-10 finishes after surviving the carnage.
After an almost decade hiatus at the Magic Mile, drivers only made it to turn 1 before calamity ensued as Tanner Gray, Brent Crews and Connor Mosack all got into it. Stage one featured numerous cautions, as a crash featuring the lapped trucks of Jayson Alexander and Caleb Costner involved playoff driver Daniel Hemric, who smacked the wall.
After crashes from Connor Jones and Derek White, Heim scooted away for another stage victory in his historic season. Pit strategy flipped the field to start stage two, bringing Andres Perez De Lara, Gio Ruggiero and Dawson Sutton to the front of the field.
The rookies maintained the track position until the bitter end of the stage, with Heim overcoming Perez and Caruth to sweep the stages.
In the final stage, it was all Heim. Besides a caution for a pileup involving Matt Crafton, Ben Rhodes and Toni Breidinger, the Tricon Garage driver didn’t face an immediate threat as he marched toward the checkered flag.
Heim starts the next round of the playoffs with a 69-point advantage, followed by Layne Riggs with a 22-point lead to the cutline. Everyone else is in a close fight with third through eighth separated by seven total points.
The Truck Series Round of 8 starts in two weeks at the Charlotte Motor Speedway’s ROVAL on Friday, October 3, at 3:30 p.m. ET on FS1.
Thomas is in his first year covering NASCAR at Frontstretch. A Bay Area NASCAR fan for over 15+ years, he found his love for the sport through Jeff Gordon.
Thomas has enjoyed several trips to Sonoma Raceway in his time and currently covers college football in the Bay Area, also writing about the California Golden Bears.