Four men will head to Phoenix with a shot at a NASCAR Truck Series title — Corey Heim, Tyler Ankrum, Ty Majeski, and Kaden Honeycutt. One of them will leave as champion. But if Friday night at Martinsville was any sort of preview, the rest of them might as well start shopping for silver medals.
Because Corey Heim didn’t just win — he issued a statement written in tire smoke and sheet metal. He led 77 laps, swept both stages, and won his 11th race of the season — this time in overtime — to secure his place in the Championship Four. If dominance were a sport, Heim would have lapped the field months ago.
After climbing from the truck, Heim looked like a man already focused on the desert showdown.
“We’ve got a big race next week and a lot of momentum heading into Phoenix,” he said. “It was a rocky race there getting behind on track position, but once we got out front it really showed that we had something to work with here. It feels sweet to close it out. It’s going to be tough, but I’m confident we can do it.”
The night wasn’t kind to everyone. Rajah Caruth, Daniel Hemric, and Grant Enfinger all saw their playoff hopes detonate before the checkered flag. Layne Riggs came in needing nothing less than a win to advance and drove like it — leading early until chaos arrived in the form of Andres Perez, who got sent into the wall by Matt Crafton just eight laps in.
Then came fluid on lap 22, another caution, and Riggs telling his crew he was “just cruising.” That confidence lasted about as long as a snowball in Turn 1. On the restart, Riggs missed a shift, dropped through the order, and watched Majeski pounce like a man who’d smelled opportunity from a mile away.
Later, a dejected Riggs admitted the missed shift might’ve sealed his fate.
“It all kind of started with that missed shift on that restart,” he said. “I’ve never missed a shift in a truck my whole career. We do have some new transmissions, and I guess I’m just not quite used to them yet. I’m pretty upset about that. I think things could have been a lot different.”
A five-lap shootout ended Stage 1, with Heim gliding past for the win — the first of what would become a long night of collecting wins. By Stage 2, Heim was firmly in control, while Caruth’s title hopes evaporated after contact with Honeycutt left him with a shredded tire and a date with the Turn 1 wall. Caruth refused to get out at first, as if sheer stubbornness could fix a bent suspension, but even he had to call it a night.
Heim cruised through the rest of Stage 2 like it was a Sunday drive, notching his 21st stage win of the season — yes, twenty-one — and making it clear that he’s operating in a different zip code than the rest.
The final stage saw Brent Crews and Gio Ruggiero try their luck up front, with playoff chaos brewing behind them. Hemric threw a Hail Mary by staying out but was promptly penalized for jumping the start, and just as his team sighed, Toni Breidinger got turned into the wall by Corey LaJoie. It was that kind of night.
Hemric’s faint hopes vanished on lap 163 when his truck finally gave up the ghost. Up front, Crews led by 1.6 seconds when Ruggiero decided to turn Connor Mosack into the Turn 3 wall — chaos, round whatever. Mosack asking his team where Ruggiero was at, and not to shake his hand.
With 15 to go, Heim took the lead again before Bailey Curry’s solo spin brought out yet another yellow. When the green flew with nine laps left, Heim launched like he’d been saving something special.
Then came the final overtime: Jones, Garcia, and Sutton got together, and the whole playoff picture came down to Heim, Honeycutt, Majeski, and Riggs. Riggs restarted fifth, Majeski ninth, and Honeycutt sitting just behind Heim.
When it was done, Heim took the win, Honeycutt finished second by less than half a second, and Riggs clawed his way to third — not enough to save him. Majeski’s seventh-place finish was just good enough to take the final playoff spot, leaving Honeycutt to advance on a tiebreaker.
For Honeycutt, that runner-up finish felt like a championship in itself.
“It’s awesome,” he said, his voice shaking with emotion. “I could have easily been on the couch after July. I worked my ass off with my dad in our garage to get to this point. I hate that I didn’t execute that last restart very well to beat Corey, but it doesn’t matter anymore. I’m glad that he got the win and we get to go fight for a championship now next week. It’s pretty incredible.”
He added later:
“I should have very easily been on the couch in July and not in the playoffs. Thanks to amazing people like Chris Larson, Jimmie, Al Hankey, and Toyota. I’m so grateful — regardless if we win it or not, it’s been an amazing season for me. Just the fact that I even got here is pretty incredible.”
So, it’s set. The Championship Four are headed to Phoenix. And while anything can happen in NASCAR, let’s be honest — Heim has nearly 100 more points than the next guy and more wins this year than the other three combined. Calling him the favorite isn’t bold — it’s obvious.
At this point, the only thing that might stop Corey Heim is if someone forgets to put gas in the truck.
Greg was a writer for DriveTribe supporting Amazon's The Grand Tour and has been published in major publications across the country including the Los Angeles Times, the Cleveland Plain Dealer and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. He was also a contributor to Chicken Soup for the NASCAR Soul, published in 2010, and the Christmas edition in 2016. He wrote as the NASCAR, Formula 1, Auto Reviews and National Veterans Affairs Examiner for Examiner.com and has appeared on Fox News. He holds a BS degree in communications, and a Masters degree in psychology. He is currently the weekend Motorsports Editor for Autoweek and a regular contributor to Forbes.
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