This week on Bringing the Heat With Trey Lyle, Jake Finch gives Mark Kristl the details on his experience driving with JR Motorsports in 2026. He describes the experience as drinking through a fire hydrant. Finch is relying on his experience as an ARCA driver, and confidence in his own abilities as he works through his limited starts with JRM to show just what he can do.
Talladega later this fall is a track Finch has circled on his calendar, given the track’s importance to the Finch family. Finch also shares why Chase Elliott was his favorite driver growing up.
After the interview, Caleb Barnes (filling in for Lyle) and Chris Graham look at this week’s hottest topics. On Wednesday, Spire Motorsports confirmed Kasey Kahne will drive a truck full time in 2027. After earning a big dirt win earlier this year, Graham hopes Kahne can string together a solid year or two.
This weekend at Charlotte, drivers will race on the oval for the second time this year. It’s the first time since 2017 that the field will race on the oval in the fall. While Graham is glad to see the oval again, he’s worried rain will ruin the return.
Following Friday’s Truck Series race, a celebration of life to honor Kyle Busch will take place at the racetrack and on FS1. Graham says this is an opportunity for fans and the garage to take time to properly remember Busch before the intensity ramps up for the final five races of the season.
This week’s soundbite of the week comes from Chris Gayle, who evaluates his day and takes blame for pitting Denny Hamlin and allowing Kyle Larson back on the lead lap in the first stage. Graham thought Gayle looked defeated in the interview, but he believes Hamlin can still compete if the No. 11 team can win two of the next four races.
Watch Bringing the Heat With Trey Lyle here or listen wherever you get your podcasts.
Caleb began sports writing in 2023 with The Liberty Champion, where he officially covered his first NASCAR race at Richmond in the spring. While there, Caleb met some of the guys from Frontstretch, and he joined the video editing team after graduating from Liberty University with degrees in Strategic Communications and Sports Journalism. Caleb currently work full-time as a Multi-Media Journalist with LEX 18 News in Lexington, Kentucky and contributes to Frontstretch with writing and video editing. He's also behind-the-scenes or on camera for the Happy Hour Podcast, live every Tuesday night at 7:30!
Mark Kristl joined Frontstretch at the beginning of the 2019 NASCAR season. He is the site's ARCA Menards Series editor. Kristl is also an Eagle Scout and a proud University of Dayton alum.
Chris Graham is a motorsports producer, director, and broadcast engineer based in the Philadelphia-area. Through his work with NRN Productions, he’s helped build and execute live race coverage and sports streaming workflows ranging from lean, two-to-three person crews to full broadcast-style productions. Chris has worked across nearly every position in the truck—producing, directing, technical directing, replay, graphics, camera operation, and engineering—and has supported events and partners including FloSports, the ASA STARS National Tour, and Diamond State Digital. He’s also involved in developing live show formats and digital coverage that bring fans closer to the stories behind the racing. He is currently also the producer for the Frontstretch podcast Happy Hour.
A name and email address are required to post a comment. The email address is not publicly visible or shared. Please keep in mind that comments are moderated according to our comment policy.
Comments are listed in order from oldest to newest. Leave a comment