The Playoff Fight Continues on For Ankrum at Loudon
| Race Information Venue: New Hampshire Motor Speedway Event: Team EJP 175 Date: Saturday, August 22nd Location: Loudon, NH Track Description: 1.058 mile flat oval track Distance: 175 laps, 105.8 miles (1:30 p.m. EST, FS1, SiriusXM) |
| Making The Cut … Tyler Ankrum, driver of the No. 18 LIUNA Chevrolet RST heads up to the New England region for the NASCAR CRATFSMAN Truck Series (NCTS) event at New Hampshire Motor Speedway (NHMS) this weekend. This event marks the final race in the NCTS regular season and the last chance for the San Bernardino, Calif. native to lock in to the 2026 truck series playoffs. Last Saturday at Richmond Raceway, Ankrum held out a stout showing as he went into the 250-lap event eight points below the cutline in 11th and finished the race 20 markers above the cutline. As he currently sits in the final spot, Ankrum and the No. 18 group are looking to have a smooth, clean run at the 1.058-mile flat track and officially lock themselves into The Chase Saturday afternoon. Magic Tricks … The young driver is looking to pull out all the tricks to have a perfect day at the “Magic Mile” in Loudon. Since the tack has returned to the NCTS schedule, Ankrum only has one previous start on the intermediate track where he finished 11th in last years run. In that New Hampshire run last season in 2025, the driver of the No. 18 LIUNA Chevrolet spent 135 of the 175 laps running in the top 10. Although Ankrum is on the cutline, crew chief Mark Hillman is very confident in the young driver’s ability to capitalize on the momentum they have going currently and breeze through this final race in the regular season to solidify their spot in the playoffs. Spoiler Highlights … Tyler Ankrum and the No. 18 team are excited to welcome aboard LIUNA local contractor SPS Construction to adorn the left-side spoiler for the 175-lap event at NHMS. In 1984, SPS began with a simple philosophy: be a great company, provide for employee excellence, perform quality workmanship, complete projects safely, efficiently, and cost-effectively, and above all, maintain business integrity. By embracing the SPS philosophies, SPS has built a solid reputation as a successful bridge, highway, transit, and marine contractor. Our dedicated team and results-driven focus have earned the respect of industry peers, as well as frequent contracts with New England transportation agencies and the appreciation of the traveling public. Tune In …Television coverage on the Team EJP 175 will begin Friday afternoon with practice and qualifying starting at 4:00 PM ET on FS2, followed by the wave of the green flagon Saturday at 1:30 PM 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: “Last week let us catch our breath but we need to be perfect this week for sure. I am super proud of our efforts the last few weeks to turn this ship around and get us on the right track to make the playoffs. I don’t like being this low on the board but we have worked through the struggles, corrected our mistakes and I have so much confidence in this group to continue our momentum and have a solid weekend in New Hampshire. Big weekend for the New England Region of LIUNA. Super stoked to have a large group this weekend and I just hope we can give them a good show.” |