Chandler Smith Wins Fresh From Florida 250 at Daytona

Chandler Smith won a dramatic Fresh From Florida 250 at Daytona International Speedaway on Friday, kicking off the 2026 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series season. The win came just one day after Smith missed out on a spot competing in the Daytona 500 on Sunday.

In order to grab the win, Smith had to execute a daring pass to the inside of three other trucks coming to the finish line. As John Hunter Nemechek attempted to defend against Gio Ruggiero and Christian Eckes, Smith drove his No. 38 Front Row Motorsports Ford along the bottom of the racing groove and to the lead. Seconds later, he crossed the finish line in first place as the aforementioned three drivers plus Ty Majeski finished four-wide behind him.

The four-wide finish of the Fresh From Florida 250. ⓒ Eryn Harris

“I want to shout out all glory to God. Without Him, none of this would be possible,” Smith said after exiting his winning truck. “And I am super, super grateful that I serve such a loving God that blessed me with such a good group of men and women around me at Front Row Motorsports.”

By winning on Friday, Smith is now an eight-time winner in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series. He also finds himself in the points lead after the first of 25 races in the 2026 season. In his second full-time season driving for Front Row Motorsports, Smith is off to a good start pursuing his first career championship.

A Race of Champions

Travis Pastrana finished 15th on Friday. ⓒ Eryn Harris

Friday’s race was a star-studded affair, with many of racing’s biggest names competing in special one-off starts. NASCAR legend Tony Stewart made his first start since 2016, and YouTube star Cleetus McFarland competed in his first ever Truck Series race. There were also several NASCAR Cup Series contenders entered in the Truck race, including Carson Hocevar, Michael McDowell, Ricky Stenhouse Jr, and John Hunter Nemechek. Travis Pastrana, the iconic motocross and stunt driver, also joined in on the action.

Also significant on Friday was the debut of Ram trucks in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series. Dodge as a company exited NASCAR from 2013 to 2025, before returning this year with Kaulig Racing in the Truck Series. Brenden ‘Butterbean’ Queen was the highest-finishing Ram driver, placing seventh in the No. 12 truck. He was joined on Kaulig by Stewart, as well as full-season teammates Daniel Dye, Justin Haley, and Mini Tyrrell.

One Dramatic Save

Second-place finisher Gio Ruggiero. ⓒ Eryn Harris

Though he didn’t win the race, perhaps the most impressive move of the night came from 21-year-old Gio Ruggerio. As he attempted to make the pass for the lead in his No. 17 Tricon Garage Toyota, Ruggiero was turned sideways on the backstretch during the final lap. Initially appearing to be gone without a prayer, Ruggiero stayed in the throttle and rejoined the field in third. He was almost able to maneuver around Nemechek for the win, but was thwarted by a last-second block.

“It was tight there at the end of the race,” Ruggiero said. “Everybody was trying to do whatever it takes to win, and that’s what I did for myself and my team.”

McFarland and Stewart

Three-time NASCAR champion Tony Stewart. ⓒ Eryn Harris

Two of the first drivers to be taken out of contention Friday were two of the most prominent: Cleetus McFarland and Tony Stewart. On Lap 6 McFarland lost control of his truck coming out of Turn 4, over-correcting to the left and impacting the inside wall hard. The No. 4 Niece Motorsports Chevrolet then slid into the infield grass before coming to a stop.

Cleetus McFarland at the infield care center. ⓒ Eryn Harris

“It’s impressive those guys can run three-wide for that long,” said McFarland, whose racing experience was mostly confined to DIY events and the ARCA Menards Series. “When that thing stepped out, I mean you just have a couple feet on either side. I didn’t have the ability to gather it up. So I wrecked myself.”

Stewart was the next casualty, being hooked into the outside wall by Jake Garcia in the race’s first stage. Initially Stewart and Kaulig Racing tried to repair the No. 25 Ram truck, but they ultimately called it a night. “It’s fun to come back here, it was fun to watch the style these kids run,” the 54-year-old said. “You could tell the guys, their trucks felt good right out of the gate. They were aggressive, it’s like man…I wish I had the confidence to do that.”

Cleetus McFarland’s No. 4 truck is towed away from the scene of the accident. ⓒ Eryn Harris

Race Results:

1. No. 38 – Chandler Smith (Front Row Motorsports)
2. No. 17 – Gio Ruggiero (Tricon Garage)
3. No. 91 – Christian Eckes (McAnally-Hilgemann Racing)
4. No. 88 – Ty Majeski (ThorSport Racing)
5. No. 62 – John Hunter Nemechek (Halmar Friesen Racing)
6. No. 45 – Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (Niece Motorsports)
7. No. 12 – Brenden Queen (Kaulig Racing)
8. No. 11 – Kaden Honeycutt (Tricon Garage)
9. No. 18 – Tyler Ankrum (McAnally-Hilgemann Racing)
10. No. 52 – Stewart Friesen (Halmar Friesen Racing)
11. No. 5 – Nick Leitz (Tricon Garage)
12. No. 99 – Ben Rhodes (ThorSport Racing)
13. No. 44 – Andrés Pérez de Lara (Spire Motorsports)
14. No. 13 – Cole Butcher (ThorSport Racing)
15. No. 42 – Travis Pastrana (Niece Motorsports)
16. No. 33 – Frankie Muniz (Team Reaume)
17. No. 10 – Daniel Dye (Kaulig Racing)
18. No. 95 – Clay Greenfield (GK Racing)
19. No. 14 – Mini Tyrell (Kaulig Racing)
20. No. 22 – Josh Reaume (Team Reaume)
21. No. 76 – Spencer Boyd (Freedom Racing Enterprises)
22. No. 16 – Justin Haley (Kaulig Racing)
23. No. 15 – Tanner Gray (Tricon Garage)
24. No. 7 – Michael McDowell (Spire Motorsports)
25. No. 81 – Kris Wright (McAnally-Hilgemann Racing)
26. No. 19 – Daniel Hemric (McAnally-Hilgemann Racing)
27. No. 26 – Dawson Sutton (Rackley WAR)
28. No. 1 – Taylor Gray (Tricon Garage)
29. No. 9 – Grant Enfinger (CR7 Motorsports)
30. No. 97 – Jason Kitzmiller (CR7 Motorsports)
31. No. 34 – Layne Riggs (Front Row Motorsports)
32. No. 98 – Jake Garcia (ThorSport Racing)
33. No. 2 – Jason White (Team Reaume)
34. No. 75 – Corey LaJoie (Henderson Motorsports)
35. No. 77 – Carson Hocevar (Spire Motorsports)
36. No. 25 – Tony Stewart (Kaulig Racing)
37. No. 4 – Cleetus McFarland (Niece Motorsports)