What Is the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series?
The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series is NASCAR's third national touring series, racing full-size pickup trucks one rung below the Cup Series and the O'Reilly Auto Parts Series. Title-sponsored by CRAFTSMAN (a Stanley Black & Decker brand), the Truck Series is equal parts proving ground for rising talent and a fiercely competitive home for series veterans, close-quarters, contact-heavy racing that regularly produces last-lap finishes.
A season runs from February to November and is decided at Homestead-Miami Speedway on Nov. 6. For the live championship order, see the 2026 Craftsman Truck Series standings, updated after every race.
The 2026 Championship
Ten drivers are in this year's Chase, which ends with the championship race at Homestead-Miami Speedway on Nov. 6: Kaden Honeycutt, Layne Riggs, Chandler Smith, Giovanni Ruggiero, Christian Eckes, Daniel Hemric, Ty Majeski, Ben Rhodes, Grant Enfinger and Tyler Ankrum.
For the current order, including owner standings, see the standings page.
Teams and Manufacturers
Four manufacturers now compete in the series, Chevrolet, Toyota, Ford, and RAM:
- TRICON Garage (Toyota), Kaden Honeycutt, Gio Ruggiero and Corey Heim.
- Front Row Motorsports (Ford), Layne Riggs and Chandler Smith.
- Spire Motorsports (Chevrolet), multi-truck program.
- Halmar Friesen Racing (Toyota), owner-driver Stewart Friesen.
- ThorSport Racing (Ford), veteran Ty Majeski.
- Kaulig Racing (RAM), the series' newest manufacturer story, fielding a multi-truck RAM fleet that includes Justin Haley's No. 16 and a No. 25 driven by action-sports star Travis Pastrana.
2026 Storylines
Kaden Honeycutt's breakout. A CARS Tour graduate, Honeycutt has put together the season of his career, highlighted by a rare ARCA-and-Truck same-day sweep at Watkins Glen (only the second driver to do it) and the first weekend sweep in CARS Tour history, and won at Kansas on Sept. 26.
Corey Heim at Michigan. TRICON Garage's Corey Heim held off teammate Kaden Honeycutt by .065 of a second to win the DQS 250 at Michigan on June 6, in a finish where Honeycutt first pushed him to the front and then tried to take the win for himself.
Remembering Kyle Busch. Busch's final career victory came in the Truck Series at Dover on May 15, 2026, a record fifth Dover Truck win, leading 147 of 200 laps and sweeping the stages, days before his death on May 21. The following weekend at Charlotte, Layne Riggs bowed to the crowd in Busch's honor after winning the truck race, one of the sport's most-felt tributes of the season.
History at Dover. In that same Dover race, Dystany Spurlock became the first Black woman to start a NASCAR national series race, a milestone moment for the sport.
RAM returns. Kaulig Racing's expansion brought the RAM nameplate back to the series, with Travis Pastrana's No. 25 debut adding star power to an already-deep field.
Notable 2026 Races
The series runs one of its toughest stretches in early summer, including Michigan International Speedway in June, before the championship is settled at Homestead-Miami Speedway on Nov. 6. The complete calendar is on the 2026 Craftsman Truck Series schedule.
How to Watch
Truck Series races air primarily on FS1, with select races on FOX. Radio coverage is on the Motor Racing Network (MRN), the NASCAR Racing Network, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio (Channel 90). Check the schedule for each race's broadcast window.
Why It Matters
The Truck Series is where the next generation breaks through, the proving ground that turns CARS Tour standouts like Kaden Honeycutt into national-series winners, and where Cup veterans still come to race hard. For Grand National Today, the Truck Series is a core part of the ladder we cover from regional short tracks all the way to the Cup Series.