Ankrum Running It Back For 2025 Opener at Daytona
Venue: Daytona International Speedway
Event: Fresh From Florida 250
Date: Friday, February 14th
Location: Daytona Beach, FL
Track Description: 2.5-mile tri oval
Distance: 100 laps, 250 miles (7:30 p.m. ET, FOX Sports 1, Motor Racing Network)
Run It Back… Tyler Ankrum, driver of the No. 18 LiUNA! Chevrolet Silverado RST, returns for his second full-time season with McAnally-Hilgemann Racing in the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series. The young driver will return with crew chief Mark Hillman, who led the driver of the No. 18 Chevrolet Silverado RST to a stellar playoff run where he came through the ranks eighth to finish off the 2024 season.
2024 Season Stats… In his third career NCTS playoff run, Ankrum gave it his all, earning six top-five and 12 top-ten efforts. He advanced to the Round of 8 with strong performances, including top-10 finishes at The Milwaukee Mile and Bristol Motor Speedway. Despite a 14th-place finish at Talladega Superspeedway, Ankrum rebounded with a top-five at Homestead-Miami Speedway, entering Martinsville Speedway 41 points away from the cutoff. After starting from the rear of the field, the San Bernardino, Calif. native charged through the field, gaining 26 positions to finish in eighth.
Returning Partners… The familiar colors of blue and orange will ride along side the No. 18 Chevrolet Silverado RST as LiUNA!, returns for their sixth full-time NCTS season partnering with the young driver. Starting with Daytona, LiUNA! will serve as primary partner on the No. 18 truck with Ankrum in the driver seat for 23 out of the 25 events. For the remaining two races, Ullico will return and take over as primary sponsor and strive for a trip to Victory Lane.
Tune In … The 2025 season opener for the NCTS will kick off practice on Thursday evening. Television coverage beings Friday afternoon with qualifying at 3:00 p.m. ET on FOX Sports 1. The first green flag of the season will drop at 7:30 p.m. ET on FOX Sports 1. 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:
“I am really looking forward to getting back into routine and starting the 2025 season off at Daytona. Coming off a career best season has really instilled that confidence in myself and trust in this No. 18 team that we can get where we deserve to be. Bringing back the same group of guys we had last year and I am confident that we can capitalize on what we learned in 2024 and solidify some trips to Victory Lane this season with LiUNA! on board.”