Ankrum Looks to Continue Momentum at the "Lady in Black"
Momentum Building … Tyler Ankrum enters the busiest stretch of the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series season looking to keep the momentum going after a solid top-10 performance at Kansas Speedway. The driver of the No. 16 LiUNA! Toyota Tundra TRD Pro sits 14th in the Craftsman Truck Series standings, and hopeful to regain ground on the provisional playoff grid. The Californian embarks on a stretch of four consecutive races as he heads to Darlington Raceway hungry to return to top-10 form after posting season-best results at Circuit of the Americas (4th) and Daytona International Speedway (7th) this year.
Consistency is Key … Darlington is a track that has coined the phrase "Too Tough to Tame" throughout the years. Ankrum has been to the track four separate times, and has come away relatively unscathed. With his four previous starts, Ankrum has never finished outside of the top 20 when the checkered flag flew. Ankrum has also completed every lap of every race so far at the rough and tumble speedway.
Season to Date … Through eight of 16 regular season events, Ankrum and the No. 16 team occupy the 14th position in the championship standings, 31 markers behind the cut line. Ankrum’s season-best result came five races ago at Circuit of the Americas and has posted three finishes of tenth or better in the 2023 season. He has four previous starts under his belt at the track “Too Tough to Tame” and is focused on tallying his second top-five of the season on Friday night.
Chassis Selection … Chassis No. 008 will make it’s first start of the season at Darlington Raceway. This Toyota Tundra TRD Pro most recently finished seventh at Nashville Superspeedway, while also racing at Darlington Raceway and Texas Motor Speedway in 2022.
Tune In … Fox Sports 1 has complete coverage of the Buckle Up South Carolina 200, beginning with practice and qualifying at 3:00 pm ET, followed by the green flag at 7:30 pm 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 Darlington Raceway:
“Darlington is a really tough place. It’s a track where you really have to conserve your equipment, tires, and just run your own race. This place has always been a drivers track, and you really have to focus because the preferred line is razor thin. I hope to minimize the famous Darlington stripe and keep the fenders on the truck all night. If we can race smart on Friday, I think we’ll be in line for a good finish and get ourselves back towards the top-10 in points.”