The Milwaukee Mile Clean Harbors 175 Race Preview

Grant Enfinger, No. 23 Champion Power Equipment Chevrolet Silverado RST

Milwaukee Mile Stats

– Grant Enfinger will make his first CRAFTSMAN Truck Series start at Milwaukee on Sunday

– Grant will also make his first ARCA Menards Series start at Milwaukee prior to the Truck Series race on Sunday

2023 NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series Season Stats

– Starts: 17; Wins: 2 (Kansas I & Gateway); Best start: 2nd; Stage wins: 1; Top 5s: 6; Top 10s: 9; Laps led: 133; Current points position: 6th (+24 to the cutline)

– About Champion Power Equipment: Since 2003, Champion Power Equipment has earned a reputation for designing and producing the market’s finest power equipment. From our original headquarters in Santa Fe Springs, California, Champion has expanded its North American footprint to include facilities in Jackson, Tennessee, Milwaukee, Wisconsin and Toronto Canada. Today, Champion’s product line has expanded to include portable generators, home standby generators, inverter generators, engines, winches and log splitters. With over 2.5 million generators sold in North America, Champion is a market leader in the power equipment field. Visit ChampionPowerEquipment.com for more information.

– Chassis History/Info: Enfinger and the No. 23 team will compete with GMS Racing chassis no. 357 at Milwaukee. This truck was just freshly built by the team at GMS Fabrication, and will make its debut on Sunday.

– Milwaukee Rookie: Milwaukee is one of two tracks (North Wilkesboro being the other one) that Truck Series veteran Grant Enfinger has no prior experience at. When asked about racing at this historic venue, Enfinger replied by saying that he has been looking forward to the opportunity to check another track off his “bucket list” and noted that the wore out racing surface should be a natural fit for his driving style.

– Double Duty: All about that track time. Grant will make his second ARCA Menards Series start of the season this weekend at Milwaukee as he gets back behind the wheel of the No. 97 CR7 Motorsports Chevrolet entry. The 2015 series champion competed with this same car in the ARCA race at Charlotte Motor Speedway earlier this year, advancing 22 positions from his starting spot at the rear to finish in a respectable fourth place effort.

– Hensley at Milwaukee: Though Milwaukee has not been on any NASCAR national series schedule since 2009, veteran Crew Chief, Jeff Hensley, has a lengthy notebook on the Mile. Jeff won a pole with Mike Skinner in the 2007 Truck Series race, and in six total NCTS starts, his trucks have started in the top-10 four times. He called drivers to top-10 finishes on three occasions with Skinner in ’07 and ’08, and Brian Scott in 2009. Hensley also called nine NASCAR Xfinity Series events at the track, earning two top-10 finishes with drivers Curtis Markham in 1995 and Tracy Leslie in 1997. As a driver, Hensley made two NXS starts in 1984 and 1985, qualifying in the top-10 both times and finishing ninth in the latter.

– Indianapolis Recap: The defending race winner at Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park had high hopes of competing for the win after a strong qualifying start of sixth place. Enfinger would add a total of 12 stage points with finishes of seventh in stage one and third in stage two, but would have a costly pit stop at the beginning of the third stage. Having to return for a second time due to the lug nuts not being properly fastened, Enfinger would restart deep in the field. Without the aid of many cautions, Grant would scratch his way through the back half of the running order, but would ultimately have to settle for a 12th place finish.

– #FearTheFinger Playoffs Profile: Enfinger’s two race wins at Kansas Speedway and World Wide Technology Raceway, along with a stage win, gave him 11 playoff points at the start of the Round of 10. His 12th place result at IRP, paired with the added benefit of stage points, left him with a 24 point buffer to cutline drivers Nick Sanchez and Matt DiBennedetto heading into Milwaukee. Grant is five points behind his nearest competitor, Zane Smith, and 23 points behind current point leader, Corey Heim.

– From The Drivers Seat: Since you have never raced at Milwaukee before, what are you looking to gain by competing in the ARCA race before the Truck Series race on Sunday?

“Any laps around a track are good laps, especially at a place that I’ve never been to. So, I appreciate Codie (Rohrbaugh, CR7 Motorsports Team Owner) for the opportunity to run their car, and more than that, it’s really fun racing in the ARCA Series. Overall, I’m looking forward to racing at Milwaukee; it’s a track that I’ve heard a lot about, and Hensley has raced there before, but I’ve never seen the place. I’m anxious to get there and get practice started on Saturday with our Champion Power Equipment Chevy, and hopefully we’ll have some good speed in the race.”

– From The Pit Box (Jeff Hensley): It’s been a while since you’ve last been to Milwaukee, but what type of characteristics do you remember about this track that you can use to your advantage on Sunday?

“Milwaukee is a tough track. I mean, people talk about flat racetracks, but this place is flat. Like it’s extremely flat. So it’s hard to set up for; there’s always been an issue where you fight that balance of being just free enough on entry to where you can be somewhat aggressive but still turn in the center and try to make the straightawaways as long as you can by getting in the throttle as quick as you can get pointed good. That’s where I feel you make your time is from the center of the corner off. You’ve got to be able to rotate in the center and manage the throttle and stay in the racetrack. I think it’ll be racy, I think there’s going to be a lot of tire falloff, or at least that’s how it was in the past and I don’t see that getting any better. If your truck’s pretty decent, I feel like you’ll have the ability to widen out the racetrack and pass some guys with different options, but it’s a tough ole’ racetrack.”

Race Information

– Round: NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series race No. 18 of 23 (Playoffs Round of 10)

– Track Location: The Milwaukee Mile – West Allis, Wisconsin

– Race Name: Clean Harbors 175

– Broadcast: Sunday, August 27th at 4:00 PM ET live on FS1 (TV), MRN (Radio), and Sirius XM NASCAR Channel 90