NASCAR
Todd Gilliland Gives David Gilliland The Best Father’s Day Present, a Knoxville Victory
KNOXVILLE, Iowa – Making his first Truck Series start of the year, Todd Gilliland gave his team owner a great Father’s Day gift. The David Gilliland Racing No. 17 went to victory lane at Knoxville Raceway after a dominant second half. While this is Todd’s third career Truck Series win, it is the first coming in a DGR entry. Making all of his previous starts with other teams, Todd is now 1-1 in a Truck fielded by his father. Father’s Day is sure to be a blast in the Gilliland household, as they took the second ever Truck win from Knoxville.
While much cleaner than last year’s Knoxville race, this year’s event can still be broken into two distinct halves. The opening 65 laps were paced by Carson Hocevar. The 42 started second and was uncontested out front. The driver still searching for his maiden win and also nursing a broken tibia only gave up the lead when his engine expired. Knoxville was yet another instance of heartbreak for the 19-year-old, as he finished 35th.
… and just like that, the night is over for @CarsonHocevar. pic.twitter.com/Zw2rXCbosR
— NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Trucks (@NASCAR_Trucks) June 19, 2022
With Hocevar out of the race, the lead went to Todd Gilliland. The No. 17 Ford would lead all but 27 of the remaining laps, having to hold off a late charge by John Hunter Nemechek.
2022 has been a trying year for the young Gilliland in the Cup Series, marking his rookie campaign. On this night though, Todd came back to familiar ground and performed at his highest potential, scoring a win for his dad’s team just hours before Father’s Day.
“We were talking about that before the race,” Todd Gilliland said on winning the race with his dad for Father’s Day. “I got us some Father’s Day brunch and golf tomorrow. My mom, fiancé, everyone’s out of town, so just me and him. This will make tomorrow a lot more fun. Just so amazing. Being in the Cup Series is tough, just racing every single week. I’ve gotten like a million people asking me ‘is this really what you want to do on your off weekend?’ Absolutely, nothing beats racing. I tell everyone that I’m young, and I wish I could do this every single weekend of the year.”
“Just so happy for Seth Smith (crew chief) and my whole team, David Gilliland Racing, and Ford especially. Thank you Front Row Motorsports and Frontline Enterprises for letting me do this, just really really cool and I’m so thankful.
“I love the Truck Series,” Gilliland went on. “It felt like I ran here forever, so to be able to come back and get one is so special. I just had an amazing truck, these DGR guys prepared me a good one. My dad literally called me Monday afternoon and asked if I wanted to run, and I was in. Just an amazing truck, these guys work so hard and the 17’s been fast a lot this year. Finally getting it a win, I think they’re close to the owner’s playoff too, so hopefully it helped them a little bit. I’ll be anxiously watching the rest of the year now. I feel like a little part of me is going to stay in this truck.”
Behind Gilliland and Nemechek, top finishers included Zane Smith, Ty Majeski, Stewart Friesen, Derek Kraus, Matt Crafton, Grant Enfinger, Tyler Ankrum, and Ben Rhodes.
Only three races remain in the Truck Series regular season, as Nashville Superspeedway is up next. The Rackley Roofing 200 will be Friday at 8:00 p.m. ET on FS1, MRN, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90. Last year’s race also saw the DGR 17 win, with Ryan Preece behind the wheel. With tight battles for the regular season championship and the Playoff cut line, who can win it this time?
Written by Peter Stratta
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Photo Credit to David Gilliland Racing via Twitter
