Victorious under the lights: Chandler Smith wins Craftsman Truck Series season opener

Chandler Smith wins a nail-biter, under the lights at Daytona. (Photo by Sean Gardner)

The 2026 NASCAR Craftsman Truck series kicked off Friday night, under the lights of Daytona International Speedway.

The field for this race had an abundance of big names. From veterans like Michael McDowell, three-time NASCAR Champion Tony Stewart, to young, up-and-coming phenom Carson Hocevar. 

It didn’t take long until we had some drama in this one. Cleetus McFarland, making his Truck Series debut, brought out the first yellow. McFarland gets loose and ends his night early on just lap six.

At the end of stage 1, Carson Hocevar narrowly wins the stage in a photo finish over the No. 15 of Taylor Gray who NASCAR declared the winner prior to review. 

The return of NASCAR legend Tony Stewart was cut short after Tony was involved in an incident after the No. 98 of Jake Garcia got loose out of turn 4 and collecting the No. 25 Kaulig Ram. 

Chandler Smith wins stage 2 over a surging Layne Riggs, and being victorious by just half a second over his Front Row Motorsports teammate. 

In the final stage, the 77 of Carson Hocevar looked to be in contention for the win. Unfortunately for the Spire Motorsports driver, he suffered a flat left-rear which ended any shot he had at claiming the checkered flag. 

The last few laps came down to who had the perfect strategy. Chandler Smith picked the right lane which ultimately surged him to a photo-finish victory and start off his 2026 campaign victorious.

The NASCAR Craftsman Truck series will take on another super speedway next week. As they will head to the high banking of Echopark Speedway.