Layne Riggs wins NASCAR Truck New Hampshire race amid nail-bitting Chase battle

It was a Front Row Motorsports 1-2 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway (NHMS), as Layne Riggs claimed the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series victory over teammate Chandler Smith in double overtime.

It’s been an incredible season for Riggs, who enters the Chase as the No. 1 seed with his sixth win of the 2026 Truck season.

Kaden Honeycutt finished third, Stewart Friesen fourth, Connor Zilisch fifth, Tristan McKee sixth, Christopher Bell seventh, Daniel Hemric eighth, Justin Haley ninth, and Patrick Eatmon tenth.

The real battle was the one around the final spot inside the Chase in Saturday’s cut-off race. Stewart Friesen, Tyler Ankrum, and Jake Garcia were all vying for the tenth spot inside the Chase field before the reset, and Ankrum ultimately secured the final berth by seven points over Friesen.

Stages 1 and 2

A stack-up at the start damaged several trucks. Among them was Luke Baldwin, who completely destroyed the nose of his No. 33 from the final spot on the grid. He replaced teammate Frankie Muniz in that truck, who stepped aside for Baldwin after the rookie driver failed to qualify his own entry.

The early carnage didn’t end there either, as Landen Lewis spun into the wall soon after due to contact with John Hunter Nemechek.

At the front, Riggs led the way, but not for long as Zilisch ran him down and snatched the top spot away.

Zilisch went on to win Stage 1 over Riggs, Hemric, C. Smith, Bell, Ruggiero, McKee, Enfinger, Garcia, and Gavan Boschele.

Garcia moved into the lead with a two-tire call during the stage break, and held the top spot for a bit before Smith passed him. 

The next yellow was for Spencer Boyd spinning into the wall. On the ensuing restart, Zilisch took the lead and never looked back. He swept the stages, winning Stage 2 over C. Smith, Riggs, Bell, Garcia, Ruggerio, Hemric, Boschele, Mosack, and Friesen.

Stage 3

John Hunter Nemechek crashes, No. 5 TRICON Garage Toyota; Timmy Hill, No. 56 Hill Motorsports Toyota

Photo by: Meg Oliphant / Getty Images

Friesen rolled the dice, taking a two-tire call and moving into the race lead as his Chase hopes faded. He stayed up front, but quickly lost the lead to Riggs.

In the battle to make the Chase, Friesen was facing both Garcia and Ankrum in the fight for the final spot inside the Chase. Garcia was suddenly at the back after pitting outside the box during the stage break, and Ankrum was struggling with mechanical problems, including brake issues.

That put Friesen in position to move into the final Chase spot, as Riggs drove off with the race lead.

Back in the pack, Nemechek spun, collecting Timmy Hill and Kris Wright as all three trucks suffered significant damage. there was another quick caution after that, with Christopher Bell spinning into the wall.

Riggs continued to lead, but all eyes were on the trio of Ankrum, Garcia, and Friesen, who held the tenth and final spot inside the Chase with almost no buffer.

As the laps ticked away, both Garcia and Ankrum started to chip away at the deficit. With under ten laps to go, Friesen and Ankrum were tied for the final Chase spot.

Soon after, Boschele lost control and slammed the wall, setting up a sprint to the finish. Most of the field stayed out, and Ankrum was one of the last to do, netting a few positions but with fresh tires on the trucks right behind him.

In the first overtime restart, Ruggiero sent it under Riggs for the race lead and lose control, crashing in front of the pack. Mosack, Sutton, Eckes, and Perez all suffered damage in the melee, while Ankrum narrowly slipped by.

The next restart was far cleaner, as Riggs held off Smith for the win. Ankrum was losing positions, but not fast enough to help Friesen, securing the tenth and final Chase spot for 2026.