TRUCKS: Tyler Tanner Makes Tough Field, But Brakes Give Out At Bristol

SOURCE: ElvisOnFire, Rubbin's Racin' Forums

Tyler Tanner picked up the 1st last-place finish of his NASCAR Camping World Truck Series career in Wednesday’s UNOH 200 presented by ZLOOP at the Bristol Motor Speedway when his #36 Mittler Bros Machine & Tool Chevrolet fell out with brake problems after he completed 12 of the race’s 202 laps.  The finish occurred in Tanner’s 9th series start and was the second in a row for MB Motorsports’ #36 team.

Bristol was set to be the 23-year-old Auburn, Washington driver’s seventh start of the 2015 season, a year which began with a season-best 15th at Kansas that improved on his previous career-best of 21st.  Curiously, that 21st-place run came while driving the same MB Motorsports-owned #36 RAM that Blake Koch parked at Dover earlier that season.  This year, Tanner has scored three top-20 finishes for Mittler’s team while parking for him at Dover and for MAKE Motorsports at Michigan.  Last week’s last-placer Justin Jennings was tabbed as driver of Mittler’s primary #63, so it fell to Tanner to park the #36.

Tanner as one of 39 trucks on the preliminary entry list for the 32-truck Bristol event, and even after Clay Greenfield, Brandon Brown, and Chuck Buchanan, Jr. withdrew, speed in practice was still critical.  Tanner timed in 28th of 36 drivers in Tuesday’s opening practice and improved to 26th of 34 in Wednesday’s Happy Hour.  In qualifying, Tanner just avoided having to use a provisional with the 27th-fastest lap of 120.885 mph.

Missing the race were Jordan Anderson in Mike Harmon’s #74, defending LASTCAR Truck Series Champion Caleb Roark for Jennifer Jo Cobb in the #0, B.J. McLeod, whose Christopher Long-owned #45 had made every Truck Series start it had attempted since the fourth round at Kansas, and 19-year-old Cody Lane in his first Truck Series attempt.

Tanner missed driver introductions, keeping him sending him to the back of a field he already trailed, and he left the race under green after 12 circuits.  Caleb Holman, the next retiree, completed 112 laps on the night before his #75 Fuel In A Bottle / Food Country USA Chevrolet tangled with Ray Black, Jr., ending a night that began with a strong 8th-place starting spot.  In 30th was Daniel Suarez, driving for polesitter Kyle Busch, who had an overheating issue on his Arris Toyota with less than 50 laps to go that resulted in the #51 team’s only third finish worse than 9th all season.  29th went to Mason Mingus, whose unsponsored #15 Billy Boat Motorsports Chevrolet had brake issues, while MAKE Motorsports rounded out the Bottom Five with Ryan Ellis in the #1 Hutch Chevrolet-Buick-GMC sponsored Chevrolet.

For more on Tanner, check out his website at http://www.tylertanner.com/

LASTCAR STATISTICS
*This marks the first last-place finish for the #36 in a Truck Series race at Bristol.

THE BOTTOM FIVE
32) #36-Tyler Tanner / 12 laps / brakes
31) #75-Caleb Holman / 112 laps / crash
30) #51-Daniel Suarez / 154 laps / overheating
29) #15-Mason Mingus / 158 laps / brakes
28) #1-Ryan Ellis / 176 laps / running

2015 LASTCAR TRUCK SERIES DRIVER'S CHAMPIONSHIP
1st) Norm Benning, Caleb Roark (3)
2nd) Adam Edwards, Joey Gattina, Stew Hayward, Justin Jennings, Jennifer Jo Cobb, Travis Kvapil, Justin Marks, Tyler Tanner (1)

2015 LASTCAR TRUCK SERIES OWNER'S CHAMPIONSHIP
1st) Jennifer Jo Cobb Racing (5)
2nd) Norm Benning Racing (4)
3rd) MB Motorsports (2)
4th) MAKE Motorsports, Mike Harmon Racing, Win-Tron Racing (1)

2015 LASTCAR TRUCK SERIES MANUFACTURER'S CHAMPIONSHIP
1st) Chevrolet (12)
2nd) RAM, Toyota (1)