Truck Series Victory Lane Still Elusive For Taylor Gray

Taylor Gray in action Friday at Talladega Superspeedway. (John Harrelson/NKP for Toyota Racing photo)

TALLADEGA, Ala. – Coming off turn four Friday evening at Talladega Superspeedway, Taylor Gray saw his first NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series victory there for the taking.

Unfortunately for the 19-year-old from Artesia, N.M., his efforts fell just short once again.

Gray finished second for the third time in his Truck Series career after being edged out by .041 seconds at the checkered flag in the Love’s RV Stop 225, defeated by race-long dominator Grant Enfinger in a last-lap duel where both drivers were chasing a guaranteed berth in the Championship 4.

He had the run he wanted coming into the tri-oval, pushed by Tyler Ankrum in the far outside lane, but Gray couldn’t utilize the momentum to the fullest after Ankrum spun behind him off the bumper of Daniel Dye.

As Ankrum skidded across the track and into the rest of the lead pack, Gray was left with no help in his side-by-side duel to the finish line against Enfinger. He got to Enfinger’s right-rear quarter panel, but couldn’t drag the veteran back far enough to sneak ahead for the victory.

It meant that while Enfinger hoisted a trophy and cemented his name into the title race Nov. 8 at Arizona’s Phoenix Raceway, Gray was left on pit road with a sour taste in his mouth and a 13-point deficit to make up over the next two races if he wants to join Enfinger in the battle for the Truck Series crown.

“I’m proud that we stayed engaged all day as a team and fought hard to get what we got,” said Gray. “I can’t thank TRICON [Garage] and Toyota enough for bringing really fast trucks to the racetrack the last few months. Now I just need to figure out why I’m finishing everywhere else and not capable of winning yet.

“I don’t know if I’m living life wrong somewhere or what, but it’s definitely frustrating.”

It could have easily been disastrous, however, as Gray spun into the turn-one grass during a lap-62 melee while trying to avoid the spinning trucks of Jake Garcia and Layne Riggs entering the banking.

Luckily, Gray escaped without any damage to his No. 17 Place of Hope Toyota Tundra TRD Pro and was able to keep himself in contention to pounce near the end.

He lined up second for the final restart with nine laps left, slotted into fourth quickly after the green flag, then laid in wait until attempting to make his move on the final lap. It just didn’t quite work out.

“At the end of the day, I can’t be too upset,” Gray noted. “You’re pretty lucky if you can finish second (at Talladega). My TRICON Garage guys stuck with me and stayed with it all day to put us where we wanted to be for the final laps.

“We didn’t get the stage points we needed to really go anywhere in points, and that’s the tough part with just two more [races] to go to try and get ourselves to Phoenix, but we’re not about to give in. We know what we’re capable of and we’re ready to keep getting after it.”

Gray will take his next shot at advancing into the Championship 4 when the Truck Series returns to action at Homestead-Miami (Fla.) Speedway. Coverage of the second race in the Round of 8 is set for Saturday, Oct. 26 at noon ET, live on FS1, the Motor Racing Network, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, channel 90.