2024 CRAFTSMAN Truck Series season kicks off at Daytona

Under the lights at Daytona International Speedway, the 30th NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series season kicks off with the Fresh From Florida 250 (Friday, February 16 at 7:30 p.m. ET on FS1, MRN, and SiriusXM Radio).

Since 2000, the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series has opened its season at Daytona marking this weekend as the 25th running of the event.

Before 2023, the last seven races at the 2.5-mile track had seen seven different winners. Zane Smith broke that streak last year and joined Todd Bodine (2008, 2009) as the second driver to win consecutive races at Daytona in the CRAFTSMAN Truck Series. Notably, there have been 20 different winners.

Here’s a look at who currently holds CRAFTSMAN Truck Series records at the 2.5-mile Daytona track:

Race record: Mark Martin 146.622mph (02/17/2006)

Qualifying record: Ty Dillon – 146.622 mph (02/20/2015)

Most races: Matt Crafton – 22

Most poles: Joe Ruttman – 2

Most wins: Johnny Sauter – 3

Most top fives: Todd Bodine – 6

Most top 10s: Matt Crafton – 8

Laps led: Johnny Sauter – 151

Friday night’s Fresh From Florida 250 will be broken up into three stages, the first two stages will be 20 laps each and the final stage will be 60 laps for a race total of 100 laps (250 miles). Qualifying will begin Friday, February 16 at 3 p.m. ET.

NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series welcomes new Sunoco Rookie of the Year class

This season, three drivers will compete for Sunoco Rookie of the Year honors in the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series; including Layne Riggs, Thad Moffitt and Connor Jones.

Layne Riggs: Twenty-one-year-old Riggs, the 2022 NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series National Champion, will be behind the wheel of the No. 38 Front Row Motorsports Ford with crew chief Dylan Cappello. Riggs has made six career Truck Series starts but will be making his series career track debut at Daytona this weekend.

Thad Moffitt: Twenty-three-year-old Moffitt, the grandson of “The King” Richard Petty, will be behind the wheel of the No. 46 Faction Chevrolet with crew chief Doug George. Moffitt has made four career NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series starts; including one at Daytona in 2022, where managed an 18th-place finish.

Connor Jones: Seventeen-year-old Jones, the 2023 World Series of Asphalt Pro Late Model Champion, will be behind the wheel of the No. 66 ThorSport Racing Ford. Due to NASCAR’s age restriction at track larger than 1.25 miles, Jones will be ineligible to compete at the season opener at Daytona International Speedway.

Fresh From Florida 250 drivers to watch

Several drivers who had strong seasons last year and will make their return in the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series. Let’s take a look at the drivers to watch this weekend.

Ben Rhodes: The reigning 2023 NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series champion will be back behind the wheel of the No. 99 ThorSport Racing Ford. At Daytona, Rhodes has made eight starts and tallied one win (2021), three top fives, and four top 10s. The veteran has also led 61 laps at the 2.5-mile track.

Grant Enfinger: Enfinger will pilot the No. 9 CR7 Motorsports Chevrolet this season. The veteran has made nine starts and tallied one win (2020), one pole, three top fives and four top 10s at Daytona. He has also led 60 laps at the track.

Tanner Gray: Gray is returning back to the No. 15 TRICON Garage Toyota. Although the driver has never tallied at win at the 2.5-mile track, he has been one to watch the last two seasons. Gray has made four starts and has tallied two top fives (runner-up in 2023) and two top 10s.

Ty Dillon: Dillon, the 2012 NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series Rookie of the Year, is returning to the series behind the wheel of the No. 25 Rackley W.A.R. Chevrolet. The veteran driver has made three starts at Daytona in the Truck Series and has tallied one pole and two top 10s. Dillon has also led 93 laps at Daytona.

ThorSport Racing can break three-way tie for most Daytona wins in the Truck Series

Tied sitting atop the wins list at Daytona International Speedway in the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series are three organizations – ThorSport Racing, GMS Racing, and Bobby Hamilton Racing – with three Daytona wins each. This weekend, ThorSport Racing has the opportunity to break the three-way tie and become the sole leader in wins at Daytona in the Truck Series.

Also, Front Row Motorsports will have the chance to win their third consecutive NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series race at Daytona (2022-2023), making it a four-way tie for the most wins with three each.

NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series, Etc.

Triple Truck Challenge returns for 2024 – The Triple Truck Challenge was introduced in 2019 as a three-race program that provides drivers in the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series an opportunity to win up to $500,000 in bonus money.

A $50,000 bonus will be awarded to the race winner of any one of the three events. If a driver wins two of the three races, they pocket an additional $150,000. Win all three races and they collect a cool half a million dollars.

Since its inception in 2019, no driver has been able to win all three Triple Truck Challenge races in one season. Last year’s winners were Ben Rhodes, Grant Enfinger, and Carson Hocevar.

For the 2024 season, the Triple Truck Challenge will be held at the following tracks: