Starting a Streak … Tyler Ankrum is fresh off a pair of top-10 finishes as the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series returns to race on Bristol Motor Speedway’s (BMS) dirt surface for the second time. The driver of the No. 16 AISIN Toyota Tundra TRD Pro has momentum at his back from scoring back-to-back top-10’s at Circuit of the Americas (COTA) and Martinsville Speedway for the first time since the 2020 season. The San Bernardino, Calif. native has one top-10 finish on BMS’ concrete to his credit and duplicating that result on dirt Saturday night could ignite a streak of top-10’s that would replicate his previous career-long (three races).
Team Toyota Brigade … Through the first five races of 2022, the Toyota Tundra TRD Pro brigade has claimed a stranglehold on the top 10 of the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series point standings. Ankrum is one of eight Toyota drivers that currently occupy positions inside the top-10. Not only does Ankrum currently possess one of the 10 provisional playoff positions, but he is just 21 points shy of eighth place, which would equal his career-high regular season points position.
Dirt History … Since 2019, Ankrum has made three starts on three different dirt tracks in his 72-race Camping World Trucks career. The 21-year-old has made starts on dirt at BMS, Knoxville Raceway, and Eldora Speedway, with his best result of ninth coming at “The Big E” in Rossburg, Ohio in 2019. In total, Ankrum has made four starts combined at BMS between both dirt and concrete surfaces. His best finish came in 2020 when he collected a seventh-place result after leading 53 of the 200 laps.
Chassis Selection … Chassis No. 003 returns to work this weekend at BMS for the first time since gracing Knoxville Raceway’s victory lane last summer. The Toyota has been converted to the No. 16 team’s dirt truck after originally being built as a short track truck. In it’s two starts on dirt in 2021, Austin Hill drove it to a ninth-place finish at BMS last spring and collected HRE’s first victory on dirt at the “Sprint Car Capital of the World” in Knoxville, Iowa.
Tune In … Fox Sports’ networks have the entire Camping World Trucks weekend covered live, beginning with two practice sessions on Friday afternoon at 3:00 p.m. ET and 5:30 p.m. ET on FS1. Coverage on Saturday begins with four heat races at 4:30 p.m. ET on FS2, followed by the green flag of the main event at 8:00 p.m. ET on FS1. Stay connected with the No. 16 AISIN team by following @Hattori_Racing on Twitter, @hattoriracing on Instagram, and Hattori Racing Enterprises on Facebook.
Tyler Ankrum Quote:
On his dirt racing experience:
“I’m still getting used to dirt racing, but it’s a discipline that all of us in the Truck Series have put a lot more emphasis on. Our race ended early last year at Bristol after being caught up in a wreck, but this team had some great runs and a win last year on dirt. Hopefully we can continue that this weekend with our AISIN Toyota Tundra TRD Pro. They’ve been a huge part of HRE’s program for a long time and I’m excited to carry their colors this weekend. Dirt at Bristol is a huge challenge, but I’m really proud of this race team and the finishes we’ve put together the last two weeks at COTA and Martinsville. It’d be great to come out of Bristol with another top-10 and keep banking points towards the playoffs.”
HRE PR
