Getty Truck Series drivers prepare for the playoffs.
The Camping World Truck Series season is nine races deep, and the drivers are looking ahead to the playoffs. NASCAR has now announced a major schedule change that will impact the final push to the championship trophy. The second race of the Truck Series playoffs will now take place at Darlington Raceway.
The original schedule had the Truck Series drivers heading to the Canadian Tire Motorsport Park in Ontario. However, COVID-19 and the logistical challenges forced NASCAR to make the significant schedule change. The new race will now take place on Sunday, Sept. 5 at 1:30 p.m. ET. It will set the stage for the Southern 500, the first race of the Cup Series playoffs.
The Xfinity Series will kick off the stacked weekend of racing at the Lady in Black. Austin Cindric, Justin Allgaier, Jeb Burton, and the other top drivers will hit the track on Saturday, Sept. 4 at 3:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN.
The Truck Series Playoff Race is Heating Up After a Trip to Austin
GettyTodd Gilliland celebrates at COTA.
Early in the 2021 Camping World Truck Series season, only two teams contended for wins. ThorSport driver Ben Rhodes won the first two races of the season, and then Kyle Busch Motorsports drivers won the next five. Kyle Busch and Martin Truex Jr. didn’t earn any points due to being full-time Cup Series drivers, but John Hunter Nemechek locked up a spot at the top of the leaderboard.
Once the Truck Series headed to Darlington, however, the playoff race intensified. Sheldon Creed captured the checkered flag at Throwback Weekend and punched his ticket to the playoffs. Todd Gilliland joined him during the first-ever race weekend at Circuit of the Americas.
There are only six races remaining in the Truck Series regular season, and there are six spots left in the playoff picture. Matt Crafton, Zane Smith, Austin Hill, and Grant Enfinger currently sit above the cutoff line, but other drivers could bump them out of the picture by winning any of the remaining races on the schedule.
The Truck Series Playoffs Are Shorter in Length
GettyTruck Series drivers race at Talladega.
The Camping World Truck Series season is shorter than the Cup or Xfinity Series seasons, as are the playoffs. There are three rounds in the hunt for the championship trophy. Three races make up the Round of 10 before the field drops to eight drivers.
The Round of eight continues with three more races before more cuts. The final four drivers move on and take part in the championship race at Phoenix. Only one walks away with the championship trophy and the bragging rights for the next season.
The trip to the 2021 championship race will follow the same format with seven playoff races. The main difference is that the drivers will head to Darlington Raceway instead of taking a trip up north. Though they will still head to Phoenix for the championship race in November.
The next event on the schedule for the Truck Series drivers is the North Carolina Education Lottery 200 at Charlotte Motor Speedway. The race will take place Friday night at 8:30 p.m. ET and will kick off a stacked weekend of NASCAR action.
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NASCAR Makes Major Truck Series Schedule Change