Rule the Day … The second appearance at Circuit of the Americas (COTA) for the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series will be a special one for Tyler Ankrum. Austin, Texas Mayor Steve Adler will proclaim raceday, March 26, 2022, as “Tyler Ankrum Day” in honor of the driver of the No. 16 LiUNA! Toyota Tundra TRD Pro. Ankrum became the first NASCAR pole winner at COTA last season when the San Bernardino, CA wheelman earned his first career pole award en route to a third-place finish in the inaugural event. He’ll look to replicate that performance and rule “Tyler Ankrum Day” in Austin, TX.
Road Warriors … COTA presents a prime opportunity for Ankrum and the No. 16 team to have their first breakout performance this season based on recent history. Ankrum proved his meddle in wet conditions at COTA last season by setting the fastest lap in pole qualifying, while the No. 16 squad won the Camping World Trucks’ most recent road course event at Watkins Glen International (WGI) last August with Austin Hill. Five of Ankrum’s 70 career starts have come on road courses and he has constructed a formidable road racing resume. His podium finish at COTA in 2021 is his career-high, but he’s also displayed remarkable consistency by scoring top-10 finishes in four of his five outings at four different tracks (COTA, Canadian Tire Motorsports Park, Daytona International Speedway, WGI).
Trending Up … Since having a close encounter with victory at Daytona International Speedway resulting in a 28th-place finish, Ankrum has been trending upwards in the championship standings and consistently progressing with the No. 16 team. In the past two races, Ankrum has gained 13 spots in the driver point standings and currently holds the 12th position, a mere 10 markers behind the provisional playoff bubble. A repeat performance of his prior road racing experience at COTA could vault Ankrum into the playoff fray.
Chassis Selection … Crew chief Scott Zipadelli and the No. 16 team have prepared chassis No. 015 for Ankrum’s second start in Austin, TX. This chassis debuted at COTA last season with a ninth-place finish and was most recently victorious at WGI last August with driver Austin Hill. Chassis No. 015 has been outfitted with a new Toyota Tundra TRD Pro body for its first of three scheduled appearances in 2022.
Tune In … FOX Sports 1 has wall-to-wall Camping World Trucks coverage from COTA, beginning on Friday at 3:00 p.m. ET with practice and qualifying. FS1’s raceday coverage on Saturday kicks off with NASCAR Raceday at Noon ET followed by the green flag at 1:00 p.m. ET. Stay connected with the No. 16 LIUNA team by following @Hattori_Racing on Twitter, @hattoriracing on Instagram, and Hattori Racing Enterprises on Facebook.
Tyler Ankrum Quote:
On racing at COTA on “Tyler Ankrum Day”:
“I really enjoy road course racing and had a great run last year at COTA. It’s quite a humbling honor from Mayor Adler to have a day in my name and I’m looking forward to it. It will be great to have Mayor Adler at the track and so many LIUNA members with us on Saturday, so hopefully we can repeat what we did last year and be in contention. COTA will always be a special place for me after winning the pole there last season, and I think we can do it again with our LIUNA Toyota Tundra TRD Pro. Scott (Zipadelli) and all the guys at HRE have developed a great road course program and they showed that last season. Hopefully we can take full advantage of that this weekend to get our first top-five of the season and put ourselves in position for a win too.”
HRE PR
