TC Daily Pit Stop: Ty Gibbs Pit Crew Wins $100K Pit Crew Challenge; Ogata and Benning Crash in Truck Practice; Larson and Hocevar Fastest in Wilkesboro Practices

TC Daily Pit Stop: Saturday, May 20th, 2023

May 20, 2023

Photo Credit: Jonathan McCoy, TobyChristie.com

The No. 54 Joe Gibbs Racing pit crew clicked off a perfect pit stop at the most opportune moment Friday at North Wilkesboro Speedway. The team clocked in at 13.012 seconds, which topped the field in the NASCAR Pit Crew Challenge. As a result, the team was awarded $100,000.

BUT THAT’S NOT ALL! Ty Gibbs will start from the pole in the NASCAR All-Star Open, as the rookie attempts to work his way into Sunday’s Main Event.

The No. 99 Trackhouse Racing team had the second-fastest performance in the competition, which netted Daniel Suarez the pole for the first NASCAR All-Star Heat Race and Chris Buescher will start from the pole in the second Heat Race. Those two heat races will determine the starting lineup for the NASCAR All-Star Race.

PIT CREW CHALLENGE RESULTS/STARTING LINEUPS

Kyle Larson Fastest in NASCAR All-Star Practice at North Wilkesboro, Chandler Smith Fastest Open Driver

Photo Credit: Jonathan McCoy, TobyChristie.com

Kyle Larson paced NASCAR Cup Series practice for the NASCAR All-Star Race at North Wilkesboro Speedway with a fast lap of 20.615 sec. (109.144 mph).

While Larson was fastest in single-lap speed, William Byron led the way in average speed over a 10-lap run. Tyler Reddick had the best 15-lap average and Ryan Blaney was the top driver that made a 20-lap run.

Chandler Smith was the fastest of 16 drivers that will participate in the NASCAR All-Star Open Race, as he was ninth in the session.

Carson Hocevar Paces NASCAR Truck Series Practice at North Wilkesboro

Photo Credit: Jonathan McCoy, TobyChristie.com

Carson Hocevar was born SEVEN years after the last NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race was run (1996), but that didn’t stop the young racer from topping Friday’s practice session in the No. 42 Niece Motorsports Chevrolet.

Hocevar turned a lap of 20.589 seconds, which equated to 109.282 mph.

The Truck Series practice session was marred by a couple of crashes, one by Norm Benning and another by Akinori Ogata. Benning is attempting to repair his truck for qualifying, while Ogata and G2G Racing have withdrawn.

Video: Norm Benning Crashes Early in Truck Practice at North Wilkesboro

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Video: Akinori Ogata Bursts Into Flames in Truck Practice at North Wilkesboro

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NASCAR TV Schedule: Saturday, May 20, 2023

It’s Saturday, which means it’s NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race day and NASCAR All-Star Heat Race Day at North Wilkesboro Speedway! Here’s the full TV Schedule for May 20th:

10:30 AM ET - NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Tyson 250 qualifying (FS1 / FOX Sports App)
1:00 PM ET - NASCAR RaceDay pre-race show NASCAR Truck Series (FOX / FOX Sports App)
1:30 PM ET - NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race (FOX / FOX Sports App)
7:00 PM ET - NASCAR All-Star Heat Races (FS1 / FOX Sports App)
9:00 PM ET - NASCAR RaceHub: Best of Radioactive All-Star (FS1 / FOX Sports App)