TRUCKS: Daniel Hemric Snags First-Career Truck Win in Dramatic Finish

Daniel Hemric captured the victory in Friday's NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series event at Martinsville, his first career win in the series. | Photo Credit: Logan Riely, Getty Images

After spending several years jumping between NASCAR’s National Series, Daniel Hemric has landed back in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, driving for McAnally-Hilgemann Racing. On Friday, that move paid off with a victory.

The Kannapolis, North Carolina-native brought his No. 19 Gates Hydraulics Chevrolet Silverado RST onto the frontstretch to celebrate his victory, after passing teammate Tyler Ankrum late in the going to secure victory in the Boys and Girls Club of the Blue Ridge 200.

While Hemric wasn’t the dominant truck throughout the evening, the 34-year-old driver was just laying back in the weeds, and when things got crazy at the front of the pack – not once, but twice – the NASCAR veteran swooped in to take all of the glory.

“We found a way there at the end,” Hemric told FOX Sports after the race. “I wanted to race Tyler [Ankrum], obviously we have a long season ahead, and I wanted to race him as clean as I could. I’ve walked out of here twice thinking that there’s a missing spot in my dining room for a clock, so it’s cool to finally get one here.”

RACE RESULTS: Boys and Girls Club of The Blue Ridge 200 at Martinsville

It’s the third consecutive victory at Martinsville Speedway for McAnally-Hilgemann Racing, who swept both events at the half-mile paperclip last season with Christian Eckes, in the exact same chassis that the No. 19 team brought back to Martinsville, Virginia.

Hemric was the benefactor of some strange happenings in the final laps of the event, which started with contact between Corey Heim and Kaden Honeycutt on a late-race restart, which cut down the tire on the No. 11 Toyota Tundra TRD Pro.

Heim, who led a race-high 149 of 200 laps, was then removed from contention, and the fight was left between Ty Majeski and Kaden Honeycutt. Then, in a matter of laps, the No. 45 and No. 98 were battling for the lead, when the two made contact and crashed into Turn 1.

That handed the lead to the McAnally-Hilgemann Racing teammates, who battled it out amongst themselves for the victory at the end of the race.

Tyler Ankrum, who hasn’t been to Victory Lane in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series since 2019, finished in the runner-up position, posting another solid result in his No. 18 Chevrolet Silverado.

Jake Garcia recorded his first top-five finish with ThorSport Racing, bringing his No. 13 Quanta Services Ford F-150 home in third-place, his best result since the 2023 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series season-finale at Phoenix.

Chandler Smith and Ben Rhodes completed the top-five finishers in Friday’s 200-lap contest from Martinsville Speedway. Corey Heim rebounded from a late-race flat tire to finish in sixth-place.

Andres Perez de Lara earned a career-best result for Spire Motorsports in seventh, while Rajah Caruth, Stewart Friesen, and Lawless Alan – making his first of four starts this season in the No. 1 for TRICON Garage – rounded out the top-10.

Leaving Martinsville, Corey Heim continued to hold the points lead in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series over Ty Majeski by 20 markers, with Chandler Smith, Daniel Hemric, and Stewart Friesen inside the top-five.

The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series will have an off-weekend, then return to action at Bristol Motor Speedway for the second race in a three-race short track run for the series. Coverage of the event will be on Friday, April 11 at 7:30 PM ET on FS1, NASCAR Racing Network, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.