Bring it Down … Tyler Ankrum will finish his first season at HRE on Friday evening at Phoenix Raceway. The driver of the No. 16 LiUNA! Toyota Tundra TRD Pro aims to finish as high as 11th in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series point standings with a solid outing to bookend the 2022 campaign. Ankrum currently sits 12th in the drivers’ championship standings, 19 markers out of 11th position. He has posted three consecutive finishes of 11th or better entering Phoenix and is focused on closing the campaign with a season-best result.
Phoenix History … Phoenix’s flat one-mile tri oval is a significant venue for HRE since 2018 when crew chief Scott Zipadelli and the No. 16 went to victory lane with driver Brett Moffitt. That victory solidified their place in the Championship 4 and the chance to earn the organization’s first championship a week later. Ankrum hopes to duplicate that performance from four years ago and upset the this year’s championship battle. The San Bernardino, Calif. driver took a quick liking to Phoenix by posting a sixth-place finish in his debut at the desert mile in 2018. He added an eighth-place result in 2020 and has three finishes of 14th or better in four starts.
Season to Date … Heading into the season finale, Ankrum sits 12th in the championship standings and has collected eight top-10 finishes. He has equaled his second-highest career total of top-10 finishes and his average finish of 14.6 is the second best of his 89-race Camping World Trucks career.
Chassis Selection … Chassis No. 009 will finish the season at Phoenix for Ankrum and the No. 16 team. The Toyota Tundra TRD Pro most recently competed at Richmond Raceway in August where Ankrum drove to a 13th-place finish. Chassis No. 009 was also the winning vehicle in Phoenix with Moffitt at the controls in 2018.
Tune In … FOX Sports 1’s coverage from Phoenix begins on Friday at 6:00 p.m. ET with pole qualifying followed by NASCAR Raceday at 9:00 p.m. ET and the green flag at 10:00 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 returning to Phoenix for the season finale:
“I’ve enjoyed racing at Phoenix since day one in the Truck Series and have had some good runs there. Our flat track performances have been pretty solid this season with our LIUNA Toyota Tundra TRD Pro. We had our best finish of the season at IRP back in August and we showed a lot of speed at Richmond too. It’s going to help having a longer traditional practice this week, and then being able to think about what we need in our Toyota Tundra TRD Pro overnight. I’d love to get up there and spoil the championship race, but hopefully we can put a solid night together and finish the season out on a positive note.”
HRE PR
