Promising Day in San Diego Turns Heartbreak for Ankrum in Coronado

Venue: Naval Base Coronado

FINISH: 31st

Start: 12th

Stage One: 6th

Stage Two: 4th

NCTS Point Standings Position: 9th

Tyler Ankrum, driver of the No. 18 LIUNA Chevrolet, was poised for a solid top-five finish until a hard hit to the inside wall coming out of Turn 16 ended his day before the checkered flag. Ankrum had a stout qualifying run that allowed him to start the 50-lap historic event 12th in line. In the opening laps of the Navy 250, Ankrum started to find his lines and gain where he could. A caution with nine laps to go in Stage One allowed the young driver to report to his team that it was super difficult to pass but he felt confident in the balance that he had. Competitors started the pit cycle early allowing Ankrum to climb into the top 10 with five laps remaining in the stage. A strategic pass in Turn 8 led the driver of the No. 18 to gain multiple spots and cross the line for a sixth-place Stage One finish, gaining five very valuable stage points.

A quick stop by the crew gained the San Bernardino, Calif. native four fresh tires with a slight air pressure adjustment and a top-off of Sunoco race fuel. Restarting 19th, the young driver jumped up to 14th on the opening lap of Stage Two and continued to gain as the laps passed by. With 32 laps to go in the event, Ankrum had broke back into the top 10 and was there to stay. As the pit stop cycle ran through, Ankrum was able to snag seven more stage points as he tallied a top- five Stage Two finish in fourth. The young driver reported to his team that he felt he needed to be tightened up just a little bit as crew chief Mark Hillman brought him down pit road under the stage break for four fresh tires, a trackbar adjustment and fuel.

Restarting the final laps at Naval Base Coronado, Ankrum jumped two spots on the opening lap of the final stage and held the 13th position. The chaos started to arise and yellow flags started to fall. Ankrum went into max-saving mode to save as much fuel as he possibly could under the caution. Hillman (mark, crew chief) made the call to stay out and restart fourth with 15 laps to go in the event. The driver of the No. 18 LIUNA Chevrolet was holding strong in the top five until the unimaginable situation arose. Ankrum was coming to the line out of Turn 16 with just four laps remaining as he slid hard into the inside retaining pit road wall, completely wiping out the right side of the No. 18 race truck. This unfortunate circumstance had ended the young driver’s night just a few laps shy of the checkered flag as he was relegated to a 31st-place finish at San Diego. 

Tyler Ankrum Quote:

“This one really stings. We had a really solid No. 18 LIUNA Chevrolet and man this thing was fast. We really did not need any adjustments all day long and it truly just sucks to go out this way. I was fighting Majeski hard for fourth and Turn 16 just got the best of us and unfortunately a lot of other trucks today as well. Huge thanks to Jon Preciado and everyone from LIUNA that came out to support today. It was great to race at home; just wish I could have gotten everyone a better result.”