Hemric Gains Buffer on Cut Line with Top-10 at Lime Rock

Daniel Hemric continued his consistent road course handiwork with a sixth-place finish on Saturday afternoon at Lime Rock Park and substantially increased his cushion on the provisional Chase cutline. The driver of the No. 19 CRC Brakleen Chevrolet Silverado RST banked his fourth top-10 finish in as many road course events this season, for an average finish of 5.0, and sits eighth in the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Trucks Series (NCTS) standings, 53 points above the cut line.

Hemric began the NCTS’ second visit to the 1.47-mile road course eighth on the grid in the 100-lap event. While the opening 30-lap segment ran under green flag conditions without incident, Hemric managed a loose condition under braking. He maintained his position in the top-10 to record three points on lap 30 in eighth position.

Crew chief Kevin Bellicourt and the CRC Brakleen team gave Hemric four tires, fuel and adjustments to improve the balance during the first round of controlled pit stops during the stage caution. After two natural cautions on lap 45 and 51, Hemric found himself in fourth position for a lap 58 restart after multiple trucks elected to pit. As the physicality began to amplify, Hemric executed a clean restart to close out Stage 2 in fourth position on lap 60 and earned five additional points.

The No. 19 team serviced Hemric’s Chevrolet with a second batch of fresh tires under the stage caution, resulting in him being positioned 11th for the restart after nine trucks stayed out. With new contenders up front, the desperation amplified on a lap 75 restart as multiple trucks spun and went off course in Turn 1. Hemric kept his nose clean in 10th position until a caution on lap 91 set up a three-lap slugfest to the finish. He lined up 11th and escaped multiple incidents in the final laps to take the checkered flag in sixth position, earning 41 points; fourth-most of all drivers.

“After all the chaos and physicality towards the end, it’s great to finish sixth and bank some points,” Hemric said following the top-10 finish. “We didn’t have winning speed but were able to manage our CRC Brakleen Chevrolet today for a good finish. That’s what we needed to build some more cushion on the cut line. The restarts kept getting more and more intense, lots of desperation out there. Just glad we got back to the flag with a strong day. This No. 19 CRC, NAPA Auto Care, Gates Hydraulics team did a great job this year on the road courses. Proud of that effort and the improvements we made from last year.”

Start / Finish: 8 / 6
Points Standing / Total: 8th / 354 pts. (-241)

Next Race: Saturday, July 18, North Wilkesboro Speedway
How to Watch or Listen: 12:30 p.m. ET on FS1 or SiriusXM

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