Hemric Preserves Points Position at North Wilkesboro

Daniel Hemric maintained his position in the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Trucks Series standings on Saturday afternoon at North Wilkesboro Speedway (NWS) despite a 20th-place finish. The driver of the No. 19 Arnott Suspension Products Chevrolet Silverado RST earned five stage points which helped him preserve a 40-point cushion on the provisional “Chase” cut line with three races remaining in the regular season.

Hemric took the green flag from 21st position on the tight 0.625-mile confines of NWS on Saturday afternoon. At the race’s first caution on lap 14, Hemric reported his Arnott Suspension Products Chevy was too tight in the center of the corners and free under braking on corner entry. When the Stage 1 checkers flew on lap 70, Hemric was scored in 23rd and pitted for adjustments under the caution.

After four tires, fuel, and a pair of adjustments, Hemric restarted 20th on lap 81. The slight improvements helped Hemric move to 19th by lap 90 until a caution on lap 119 offered crew chief Kevin Bellicourt an opportunity to alter their pit strategy. While many leaders elected to pit, Hemric and company stayed on track and restarted sixth in the closing laps of the stage. He briefly advanced to fifth and collected five points on lap 140 at the end of the segment in sixth position.

Bellicourt brought Hemric to pit road for the second and final time during the stage caution for four tires, fuel, and adjustments to improve his center turn and rear grip. He restarted 21st on lap 152 as the majority of the competitors stayed out. The final 99 circuits ran under green flag conditions, the longest run of the day. Dense traffic and slick track conditions hampered Hemric’s progressed as he took the checkered flag in 20th position.

“The result certainly wasn’t from a lack of effort” Hemric remarked. “These guys put it a lot of time overnight to try to find some improvements to our Arnott Chevrolet. Appreciate everyone’s commitment and work to find some speed. We had a path to the front on strategy around halfway, but weren’t able to make any progress on that last run.”

Start / Finish: 21 / 20
Points Standing / Total: 8th / 376 pts. (-264)

Next Race: Friday, July 24, Indianapolis Raceway Park
How to Watch or Listen: 8:00 p.m. ET on FS1 or SiriusXM

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