Hemric Hoping Lime Rock Provides One For The Road

Daniel Hemric (Rusty Jones/Nigel Kinrade Photography)

LAKEVILLE, Conn. — Past NASCAR Xfinity Series champion Daniel Hemric sees a golden opportunity when the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series makes its debut at historic Lime Rock Park circuit Saturday.

Hemric has been on an impressive run of consistency in his return to the Truck Series with McAnally-Hilgemann Racing, but hasn’t had the kind of consistent winning success that he’d like.

The first trip back to victory lane for the No. 19 NAPA Auto Care Chevrolet came at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway in March. He hasn’t taken home a trophy since, though he’s been close several times.

Not only does Hemric have a lock on the fast-approaching Truck Series playoffs, but the Kannapolis, N.C., native is also batting .500 on top-five finishes through the first 14 races, with seven such runs.

His most recent outing fits that stat, as he finished fifth at the ‘Tricky Triangle’ of Pennsylvania’s Pocono Raceway last weekend, but it’s not enough for the motivated veteran.

With the first of three road courses on the Truck Series calendar, beginning with the short and technical 1.473-mile Connecticut course this weekend, Hemric knows even with a brand-new circuit that some of the best drivers in the world will rise to the challenge, given proper practice time.

He intends to be one of those who adapts quickly.

“The playing field always gets leveled when you go to a racetrack for the first time. That will change after we have 50 minutes of practice Friday and everyone gets comfortable with the racetrack and what we need out of our trucks,” Hemric said.

It’s been nine years since Hemric made a Truck Series start on a road course, but he can trust in his wealth of experience in the Xfinity and Cup Series, as well as MHR’s overall strength in the discipline.

The team has yet to earn a road course win, but MHR trucks do have five top 10s turning both left and right, most recently with Christian Eckes at Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas, last year.

“MHR has a history of running well at the road courses, so it’d be nice to continue that and get our NAPA Auto Care Chevrolet in victory lane on Saturday, rain or shine. We’re going to have to qualify up front to do that,” Hemric said.

Qualifying pace at Lime Rock Park will be crucial, with no competition taking place Saturday on pit road due to controlled, non-competitive pit stops.

“All your gains will be on the racetrack since we have controlled pit stops this weekend. Pit road has been a strength of ours this year, so everything that happens on track will be even more critical this weekend,” Hemric said.

With the season he has built so far with MHR, Hemric seems on the brink of powering through the world-famous Sam Posey Straight to earn yet another win in a resurgent season in NASCAR.

Broadcast coverage of the LiUNA! 150 from historic Lime Rock Park is scheduled for Saturday, June 28, at 1 p.m. ET, live on FS1, the Motor Racing Network, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, channel 90.