The 2019 Ford EcoBoost 200 is a NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series race held on November 15, 2019, at Homestead-Miami Speedway in Homestead, Florida. Contested over 134 laps on the 1.5 mile (2.4 km) oval, it was the 23rd and final race of the 2019 NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series season.
Background
Track
Homestead-Miami Speedway is a motor racing track located in Homestead, Florida. The track, which has several configurations, has promoted several series of racing, including NASCAR, the Verizon IndyCar Series, the Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series and the Championship Cup Series.
From 2002 to 2019, Homestead–Miami Speedway hosted the final race of the season in all three of NASCAR's series: the Cup Series, the Xfinity Series, and the Gander Outdoors Truck Series. Ford Motor Company sponsored all three of the season-ending races, under the names Ford EcoBoost 400, Ford EcoBoost 300, and Ford EcoBoost 200, respectively. The weekend itself was marketed as Ford Championship Weekend. The Xfinity Series held its season-ending races at Homestead from 1995 until 2020, when it was moved to Phoenix Raceway, along with NASCAR's other two series.
Entry list Driver Team Manufacturer 02 Tyler Dippel (R) Young's Motorsports Chevrolet 2 Sheldon Creed (R) GMS Racing Chevrolet 3 Jordan Anderson Jordan Anderson Racing Chevrolet 04 Cory Roper Roper Racing Ford 4 Todd Gilliland Kyle Busch Motorsports Toyota 5 Dylan Lupton DGR-Crosley Toyota 7 Tanner Gray DGR-Crosley Toyota 8 Joe Nemechek NEMCO Motorsports Chevrolet 9 Codie Rohrbaugh CR7 Motorsports Chevrolet 10 Jennifer Jo Cobb Jennifer Jo Cobb Racing Chevrolet 11 Spencer Davis Rette Jones Racing Toyota 12 Gus Dean (R) Young's Motorsports Chevrolet 13 Johnny Sauter ThorSport Racing Ford 15 Anthony Alfredo (R) DGR-Crosley Toyota 16 Austin Hill Hattori Racing Enterprises Toyota 17 Tyler Ankrum (R) DGR-Crosley Toyota 18 Harrison Burton (R) Kyle Busch Motorsports Toyota 19 Derek Kraus Bill McAnally Racing Toyota 20 Colby Howard Young's Motorsports Chevrolet 22 Austin Wayne Self AM Racing Chevrolet 24 Brett Moffitt (CC) GMS Racing Chevrolet 30 Danny Bohn On Point Motorsports Toyota 33 Josh Bilicki Reaume Brothers Racing Chevrolet 34 Josh Reaume Reaume Brothers Racing Toyota 44 Angela Ruch Niece Motorsports Chevrolet 45 Ross Chastain (CC) Niece Motorsports Chevrolet 49 Ray Ciccarelli CMI Motorsports Chevrolet 51 Christian Eckes Kyle Busch Motorsports Toyota 52 Stewart Friesen (CC) Halmar Friesen Racing Chevrolet 54 Natalie Decker (R) DGR-Crosley Toyota 56 Tyler Hill Hill Motorsports Chevrolet 75 Parker Kligerman Henderson Motorsports Chevrolet 87 Camden Murphy (i) NEMCO Motorsports Chevrolet 88 Matt Crafton (CC) ThorSport Racing Ford 97 Jesse Little JJL Motorsports Ford 98 Grant Enfinger ThorSport Racing Ford 99 Ben Rhodes ThorSport Racing Ford
Practice
First practice Grant Enfinger was the fastest in the first practice session with a time of 32.141 seconds and a speed of .
Pos Driver Team Manufacturer Time 1 98 Grant Enfinger ThorSport Racing Ford 32.141 168.010 2 24 Brett Moffitt GMS Racing Chevrolet 32.212 167.639 3 16 Austin Hill Hattori Racing Enterprises Toyota 32.304 167.162
Final practice Stewart Friesen was the fastest in the final practice session with a time of 32.664 seconds and a speed of .
Pos Driver Team Manufacturer Time 1 52 Stewart Friesen Halmar Friesen Racing Chevrolet 32.664 165.320 2 97 Jesse Little JJL Motorsports Ford 32.680 165.239 3 51 Christian Eckes Kyle Busch Motorsports Toyota 32.902 164.124
Qualifying Qualifying was cancelled due to rain. Stewart Friesen was awarded the pole for the race due to his win in the previous week's race.
Qualifying results Pos Driver Team Manufacturer Time 1 52 Stewart Friesen Halmar Friesen Racing Chevrolet 0.000 2 51 Christian Eckes Kyle Busch Motorsports Toyota 0.000 3 45 Ross Chastain Niece Motorsports Chevrolet 0.000 4 24 Brett Moffitt GMS Racing Chevrolet 0.000 5 16 Austin Hill Hattori Racing Enterprises Toyota 0.000 6 13 Johnny Sauter ThorSport Racing Ford 0.000 7 98 Grant Enfinger ThorSport Racing Ford 0.000 8 17 Tyler Ankrum (R) DGR-Crosley Toyota 0.000 9 88 Matt Crafton ThorSport Racing Ford 0.000 10 99 Ben Rhodes ThorSport Racing Ford 0.000 11 4 Todd Gilliland Kyle Busch Motorsports Toyota 0.000 12 2 Sheldon Creed (R) GMS Racing Chevrolet 0.000 13 18 Harrison Burton (R) Kyle Busch Motorsports Toyota 0.000 14 22 Austin Wayne Self AM Racing Chevrolet 0.000 15 02 Tyler Dippel (R) Young's Motorsports Chevrolet 0.000 16 20 Colby Howard Young's Motorsports Chevrolet 0.000 17 44 Angela Ruch Niece Motorsports Chevrolet 0.000 18 3 Jordan Anderson Jordan Anderson Racing Chevrolet 0.000 19 12 Gus Dean (R) Young's Motorsports Chevrolet 0.000 20 54 Natalie Decker (R) DGR-Crosley Toyota 0.000 21 33 Josh Bilicki Reaume Brothers Racing Chevrolet 0.000 22 30 Danny Bohn On Point Motorsports Toyota 0.000 23 8 Joe Nemechek NEMCO Motorsports Chevrolet 0.000 24 15 Anthony Alfredo (R) DGR-Crosley Toyota 0.000 25 10 Jennifer Jo Cobb Jennifer Jo Cobb Racing Chevrolet 0.000 26 7 Tanner Gray DGR-Crosley Toyota 0.000 27 75 Parker Kligerman Henderson Motorsports Chevrolet 0.000 28 56 Tyler Hill Hill Motorsports Chevrolet 0.000 29 04 Cory RoperRoper Racing Ford 0.000 30 9 Codie Rohrbaugh CR7 Motorsports Chevrolet 0.000 31 49 Ray Ciccarelli CMI Motorsports Chevrolet 0.000 32 97 Jesse Little JJL Motorsports Ford 0.000Did not qualify 33 87 Camden Murphy (i) NEMCO Motorsports Chevrolet 0.000 34 5 Dylan Lupton DGR-Crosley Toyota 0.000 35 11 Spencer Davis Rette Jones Racing Toyota 0.000 36 19 Derek Kraus Bill McAnally Racing Toyota 0.000Withdrew 37 34 Josh Reaume Reaume Brothers Racing Toyota 0.000 . – Championship 4 driver
Race Note: Stewart Friesen, Ross Chastain, Brett Moffitt, and Matt Crafton were not eligible for stage points as they were competing for the championship.
Summary Stewart Friesen started on pole, but Ross Chastain quickly pressured him and overtook him by the first lap. However, he was unable to pull away from Friesen and the two built up a large lead over the remainder of the field. Austin Hill caught up to them and overtook Chastain to take the stage win.
Brett Moffitt won the race off pit road after Hill was blocked. Chastain caught up to Moffitt in a similar manner he did to Friesen at the beginning of the race. Hill again caught up to the leaders and passed them, remaining in the lead to take the second stage win.
On lap 51, a caution was thrown for Ray Ciccarelli leaking fluid onto the track. Christian Eckes moved to the front on slightly worn tires. In the final round of green flag pit stops, Eckes pitted 10 laps before the others, while Hill stayed out for an extra 9 laps before pitting. Friesen was hit by Angela Ruch while entering his pit stall, costing him significant time. He later lacked long run speed, eliminating his chances of winning.
Hill won the race by around 1.5 seconds over Matt Crafton, who became the 2019 champion despite not winning a single race during the season. Eckes finished third, giving Kyle Busch Motorsports the owner's championship. Chastain finished fourth and Moffitt finished fifth.
Joe Nemechek, who started 23rd and finished 14th, broke Richard Petty's all-time start record across NASCAR's top 3 series, starting his 1,186th NASCAR race.
Stage Results
Stage One Laps: 40
Pos Driver Team Manufacturer Points1 16 Austin Hill Hattori Racing Enterprises Toyota 102 45 Ross Chastain Niece Motorsports Chevrolet 03 52 Stewart Friesen Halmar Friesen Racing Chevrolet 04 24 Brett Moffitt GMS Racing Chevrolet 05 51 Christian Eckes Kyle Busch Motorsports Toyota 66 88 Matt Crafton ThorSport Racing Ford 07 2 Sheldon Creed (R) GMS Racing Chevrolet 48 17 Tyler Ankrum (R) DGR-Crosley Toyota 39 98 Grant Enfinger ThorSport Racing Ford 210 13 Johnny Sauter ThorSport Racing Ford 1
Stage Two Laps: 40
Pos Driver Team Manufacturer Points1 16 Austin Hill Hattori Racing Enterprises Toyota 102 88 Matt Crafton ThorSport Racing Ford 03 45 Ross Chastain Niece Motorsports Chevrolet 04 24 Brett Moffitt GMS Racing Chevrolet 05 52 Stewart Friesen Halmar Friesen Racing Chevrolet 06 98 Grant Enfinger ThorSport Racing Ford 57 75 Parker Kligerman Henderson Motorsports Chevrolet 48 13 Johnny Sauter ThorSport Racing Ford 39 2 Sheldon Creed (R) GMS Racing Chevrolet 210 7 Tanner Gray DGR-Crosley Toyota 1
Final Stage Results
Stage Three Laps: 54
Pos Grid Driver Team Manufacturer Laps Points1 5 16 Austin Hill Hattori Racing Enterprises Toyota 134 602 9 88 Matt Crafton ThorSport Racing Ford 134 353 2 51 Christian Eckes Kyle Busch Motorsports Toyota 134 404 3 45 Ross Chastain Niece Motorsports Chevrolet 134 335 4 24 Brett Moffitt GMS Racing Chevrolet 134 326 6 13 Johnny Sauter ThorSport Racing Ford 134 357 7 98 Grant Enfinger ThorSport Racing Ford 134 378 11 4 Todd Gilliland Kyle Busch Motorsports Toyota 134 299 12 2 Sheldon Creed (R) GMS Racing Chevrolet 134 3410 27 75 Parker Kligerman Henderson Motorsports Chevrolet 134 3111 1 52 Stewart Friesen Halmar Friesen Racing Chevrolet 134 2612 10 99 Ben Rhodes ThorSport Racing Ford 134 2513 13 18 Harrison Burton (R) Kyle Busch Motorsports Toyota 134 2414 23 8 Joe Nemechek NEMCO Motorsports Chevrolet 133 2315 19 12 Gus Dean (R) Young's Motorsports Chevrolet 133 2216 26 7 Tanner Gray DGR-Crosley Toyota 133 2217 32 97 Jesse Little JJL Motorsports Ford 133 2018 15 02 Tyler Dippel (R) Young's Motorsports Chevrolet 133 1919 14 22 Austin Wayne Self AM Racing Chevrolet 133 1820 20 54 Natalie Decker (R) DGR-Crosley Toyota 133 1721 18 3 Jordan Anderson Jordan Anderson Racing Chevrolet 132 1622 8 17 Tyler Ankrum (R) DGR-Crosley Toyota 132 1823 28 56 Tyler Hill Hill Motorsports Chevrolet 132 1424 16 20 Colby Howard Young's Motorsports Chevrolet 132 1325 22 30 Danny Bohn On Point Motorsports Toyota 132 1226 30 9 Codie Rohrbaugh CR7 Motorsports Chevrolet 130 1127 29 04 Cory Roper Roper Racing Ford 129 1028 25 10 Jennifer Jo Cobb Jennifer Jo Cobb Racing Chevrolet 128 929 17 44 Angela Ruch Niece Motorsports Chevrolet 127 830 21 33 Josh Bilicki Reaume Brothers Racing Chevrolet 113 731 31 49 Ray Ciccarelli CMI Motorsports Chevrolet 48 632 24 15 Anthony Alfredo (R) DGR-Crosley Toyota 0 5 . – Driver won the championship
. – Playoffs driver
References