Ankrum Seeks Redemption at “The Lady in Black”
Venue: Darlington Raceway
Event: Buckle Up South Carolina 200
Date: Friday, March 20th
Location: Darlington, SC
Track Description: 1.366-mile oval
Distance: 147 laps, 200 miles (7:30 p.m. EST, FS1, SiriusXM)
Turn Around Time … Tyler Ankrum, driver of the No. 18 LIUNA Chevrolet Silverado RST is coming off the two-week break looking to turn his luck around at Darlington Raceway this Friday for the Buckle Up South Carolina 200. Ankrum is coming off the heels of heart break at St. Pete after a late-race incident set him back and forced him to a back of the pack finish. The young driver is seeking redemption at Darlington to get him back on the map with a solid top-five finish.
The Lady In Black … The San Bernardino, Calif. native is no stranger to the 1.366-mile egg-shaped oval as he has tallied seven NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series (NCTS) career starts there. With that being said, Ankrum and “The Lady In Black” have not always got along in the way the young driver has hoped until last season in 2025 where Ankrum scored his best track finish of seventh at Darlington. Crew chief Mark Hillman and the No. 18 crew have dialed in these past two weeks and are ready to switch gears from street courses back to ovals and hope to put the 25-year-old driver in contention to bring home a victory Friday night, under the lights, in Darlington.
Spoiler Highlights … Tyler Ankrum and the No. 18 NCTS team are excited to welcome aboard LIUNA local contractor Ames Construction to adorn the left-side spoiler for the 147-lap event at the infamous “Lady In Black”. Headquartered up in Burnsville, Minn., Ames Construction has delivered quality construction services for more than 60 years. They were founded as a small, family-run earthwork contractor that served a single community. Today, They are an employee-owned full-service, heavy civil and industrial general contractor operating throughout the United States.
Tune In …Television coverage on the Buckle Up South Carolina 200 at Darlington Raceway will begin Friday afternoon with practice at 3:30 p.m. ET on FS1 and will resume with the wave of the green flag at 7:30 p.m. ET on FS1. Stay connected with the No. 18 LIUNA team by following @BMR_NASCAR on Twitter, @bmrnascar on Instagram, and Bill McAnally Racing on Facebook.
Tyler Ankrum Quote:
“Darlington and I have not always mended our ways but last year we had a really decent run and I am hoping to excel on that this weekend down there. St. Pete was a tough run for our No. 18 LIUNA Chevrolet but we are ready to switch gears back to the oval and get back to work. The break was good, the guys put in a lot of work to get us ready for “The Lady in Black” so I know I have a solid piece to contend with for a solid top five and hopefully a trip to Victory Lane.”