Wright Opens First Full-Time NCTS Season at Daytona
Venue: Daytona International Speedway
Event: Fresh From Florida 250
Date: Friday, February 13th
Location: Daytona Beach, FL
Track Description: 2.5 mile tri-oval
Distance: 100 laps, 250 miles (7:30 p.m. EST, FS1, SiriusXM)
New Beginnings … Kris Wright seeks to open up his first full-time NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Trucks Series (NCTS) campaign with a clean and uneventful night at Daytona International Speedway (DIS). The driver of the No. 81 F.N.B. Corporation Chevrolet Silverado RST ran two races (Charlotte Motor Speedway ROVAL & Talladega Superspeedway) with McAnally-Hilgemann Racing (MHR) at the end of the 2025 season where he worked with crew chief Darren Fraley. The pair will team up again for their first full-time season together in 2026. Kris is looking to build on his run at Talladega Superspeedway last season where he finished 11th. The No. 81 F.N.B. Corporation team is fired up and ready to hit the high banks of the “World Center of Racing” on Thursday.
Cross the Finish Line … Friday’s Fresh From Florida 250 at DIS is going to be chaos across the board. DIS is the first of two consecutive drafting tracks to open up the season. These teams are going to be eager to get ahead early and maximize their points payouts at tracks where anything can happen. The addition of seven past or present NASCAR Cup Series drivers, who collectively own three Cup Series championships and 56 victories, makes this one of the most competitive NCTS fields in history.
Setting the Tone … Wright enters his first full-time season competing in one of NASCAR’s top three national series. Wright brings prior full-time experience from the ARCA Menards Series in 2024, where he finished third in the championship standings and recorded eight top-five finishes. Now returning to a full-time role in the NCTS with MHR, the Pennsylvania native looks to create consistency starting the 2026 season. If the No. 81 F.N.B. Corporation team can capitalize on the opening superspeedway events, it could provide early momentum and set the tone for the remainder of the campaign.
Tune In … Coverage from Daytona Beach begins on Thursday afternoon with practice on FOX Sports 1 at 5:00 p.m. ET. FOX Sports 1 also has live coverage of qualifying on Friday at 3:00 p.m. ET followed by the season opener beginning at 7:30 p.m. ET. Stay connected with the No. 81 F.N.B. Corporation team by following @BMR_NASCAR on Twitter, @bmr_nascar on Instagram, and Bill McAnally Racing on Facebook.
Kris Wright Quote:
On opening up the season at Daytona:
“I’m excited to be back with McAnally-Hilgemann Racing to open the season at Daytona. We built a solid baseline with the two races I ran with the team last year at the ROVAL and Talladega, and we learned a lot during the test at Rockingham last week. I feel like we’re ready to hit the ground running. I’m really thankful to MHR and everyone at F.N.B. Corporation for the opportunity to race full-time this season, and I’m excited to see what we can do together this year.”