NASCAR Truck Series race at St. Petersburg could be chaotic

All the ingredients for a chaotic NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race on the streets of St. Petersburg, Florida, on Saturday are present. 

Friday’s practice session was cut short after drivers got less than 15 minutes of track time due to rain. Qualifying was then canceled, with the starting lineup for Saturday’s race set by the NASCAR rulebook. 

Why Saturday’s race could be chaotic

Not only will Saturday be the first time the Truck Series has ever raced on a street course, but it will also be the series’ first stop on the streets of St. Petersburg as it joins IndyCar for a doubleheader race weekend. 

Six-time IndyCar winner James Hinchcliffe and four-time IndyCar champion Dario Franchitti, the latter of whom has seven-time NASCAR champion Jimmie Johnson as his crew chief, are just a couple of the names in a star-studded field. 

Kaden Honeycutt was fastest during the shortened practice session, while Hinchcliffe and Franchitti were fourth and 19th, respectively. 

At the start of Friday’s practice session, ThorSport Racing driver Cole Butcher crashed, incurring heavy damage on his No. 13 Ford. That will force Butcher to a backup truck for Saturday’s race.