NASCAR
Layne Riggs Leads FRM 1-2 at Loudon, 2026 Truck Chase Field Finalized
LOUDON, N.H. – It took until double overtime, but the class of the 2026 Truck Series season reigned supreme once again at New Hampshire. Layne Riggs’ No. 34 Front Row Motorsports Ford was unbeaten at The Magic Mile, leading 106 of 189 laps in a regular season title-clinching day. Behind him, the final spots in the 2026 Chase were handed out to a few more championship hopefuls. 10 drivers will now decide the 2026 Truck title across seven races, as go time is now for the Truckers.
Despite starting on pole, Riggs was not the man to beat early on. This title went to Cup Series star Connor Zilisch, who swept both stages in the Spire Motorsports No. 71. Riggs’ No. 34 team made the right adjustments throughout the race, however, and got their driver out front for the final stint. A pair of late restart-triggering incidents sent the Team EJP 175 to bonus racing twice, but Riggs was money on each restart.
“Statement win, I mean this is awesome,” Riggs said. “Thank you to all the fans. I got a lot of people in the stands today, so thank you guys so much. Love coming up here. I’m ready for some lobster. I don’t know if we’re gonna have any in victory lane, as we’re only truck guys. I think they need to have lobsters at the truck race, too, not just Cup. Thank you to everybody, Front Row Motorsports, Ford Racing, Bare Knuckle Boxing Brawl on the side again, got them another win. I wouldn’t say dominant, though, I thought I was off a little bit. I thought I was in trouble. [Connor] Zilisch got by me, Chandler [Smith] got by me. I was just really, really tight, couldn’t get a run where I needed it. But my crew chief Dylan Capello and engineer Jonathan, they made some excellent, excellent adjustments there at the end. Thank you to my teammate Chandler for racing me clean there at the end. I mean, 1-2 for Front Row Motorsports, it’s in the name, so super excited. I just love this place,I love this type of racetrack. Let’s bring on the chase. We only got seven left. Just no mercy.”
Layne Riggs and Chandler Smith both just edged out Kaden Honeycutt, Stewart Friesen, and Connor Zilisch. The rest of Loudon’s Truck top-10 were: Tristan McKee, Christopher Bell, Daniel Hemric, Justin Haley, and Parker Eatmon.
Speaking of The Chase, the last berths were awarded to: Grant Enfinger, Daniel Hemric, past champion Ben Rhodes, and Tyler Ankrum. Ankrum’s No. 18 barely made the cut after battling brake issues all race and finishing 16th.
“It’s extremely rare you come to a place as fast as this and have no rear brakes and can’t fix the problem,” Ankrum said. “We’ve had adversities like this through the year, and I thought we were done with them. Luckily Eddie D’Hondt, my spotter, gave me some advice. Definitely did not want to come to New Hampshire and perform like that. Got lucky. Did not perform like we belong in the Chase. We need to move on past this and go to the shop and improve and race for the championship.” Ankrum just beat out Stewart Friesen and Jake Garcia for this last championship ticket, as both led laps earlier on Hail Mary strategies. The full reseeded Chase grid for the Trucks can be seen below.
Reseeded @NASCAR_Trucks points for The Chase in 2026#NASCAR pic.twitter.com/NKm8b3haud
— Peter Stratta (@peterstratta) August 22, 2026
The 10 title contenders now get a bit of a break before their gauntlet run starts. Trucks return to action at Bristol Motor Speedway on Thursday, September 17. Front Row Motorsports has owned the Tennessee track lately, with three of the last four wins here. The UNOH 250 will go green at 8 p.m. ET on FS1, NRN, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.
Written by Peter Stratta
Be sure to follow us on Twitter/X
Be sure to follow the writer on Twitter/X
Photo Credit to Sean Gardner/Getty Images
