The field is now set for the 2019 NASCAR Gander Outdoors Trucks Series playoffs. Eight drivers take on seven tracks with the best being crowned at the Homestead-Miami Speedway in November with the crown.

So, who will it be?

Races

Round 1

Aug. 15 – Bristol Motor Speedway 8:30 p.m. ET FS1/MRN

Aug. 25 – Canadian Tire Motorsports Park 2:30 p.m. ET FS1/MRN

Sept. 13 – Las Vegas Motor Speedway 9 p.m. FS1/MRN

Round 2

Oct. 12 – Talladega Superspeedway 1:30 p.m. FS1/MRN

Oct. 26 – Martinsville Speedway 1:30 p.m. FS1/MRN

Nov. 8 – ISM Raceway 8:30 p.m. FS1/MRN

Championship 4

Nov. 15 – Homestead-Miami Speedway 8:30 p.m. FS1/MRN

Drivers

Grant Enfinger – 0 wins, 7 Top 5’s, 13 Top 10’s

Brett Moffitt – 2 wins, 9 Top 5’s, 11 Top 10’s

Stewart Friesen – 1 win, 9 Top 5’s, 11 Top 10’s

Matt Crafton – 0 wins, 6 Top 5’s, 14 Top 10’s

Ross Chastain – 3 wins, 6 Top 5’s, 13 Top 10’s

Johnny Sauter – 1 win, 3 Top 5’s, 7 Top 10’s

Austin Hill – 2 win, 4 Top 5’s, 8 Top 10’s

Tyler Ankrum – 1 win, 3 Top 5’s, 6 Top 10’s

Manufacturer Preview

Toyota has won five of the last six championships in the Truck Series with two by ThorSport Racing, two by Kyle Busch Motorsports and one by Hattori Racing Enterprises. The only non Toyota team to have won in that time frame is GMS Racing with Johnny Sauter. If you go back to 2006, all of the Truck Series titles have been taken by a Chevy or Toyota team.

In this year’s playoffs, you have three of the eight Trucks being of Ford nature with Crafton, Sauter and Enfinger. They may enter 1-2 in the regular season points standings and driving for a team that has won two championships, both by Crafton, since 2013, but are with a manufacturer that hasn’t won a championship in the series since 2000.

Toyota has two drivers in Hill and Ankrum. Hill, is driving for the defending series champions but has won just one race since the season opener in Daytona.

That leaves the remaining three to Chevy with Chastain, Friesen and Moffitt for three different teams.

Past Trends

Since this new format was started in 2016, we’ve seen at least two drivers each year that were seeded in the top four make it to the final round. The top four seeds this year as Moffitt, Enfinger, Friesen and Hill. Trends say that at least two of them make it to Homestead in November with a shot at the championship. The last two years saw three of the four make it in fact. Another trend is, every year the second seed has made it though too.

That’s great news for Enfinger.

Who’s The Favorite

Has to be Chastain right? He’s finished in the top 10 in all but three races, one was on dirt which isn’t a strongsuit for him and the second was his DSQ after his Truck failed inspection after winning in Iowa. He’s been the top driver all year and enters the playoffs as hot as anyone.

1. 45 Chastain – Three wins and a top 10 machine, he’s my pick to win the championship. The No. 5 seed won the title in 2016 and will again in 2019.
2. 24 Moffitt – I think it’s a Chevy 1-2. Moffitt, has six top seven finishes in his last seven starts on the regular season and is the defending series champion so we know he knows how to get the job done. He’s good on the tracks in the playoffs and should keep his Truck up front to make it to the Championship 4.
3. 52 Friesen – A 1-2-3 Chevy? Why not? Friesen has five top five finishes in his last seven regular season starts and finally got his win under his belt. He’s been good at the tracks in the playoffs too and I think he finally gets to the Championship 4.
4. 13 Sauter – He’s struggled lately with zero top five finishes in his last nine starts on the year and two top 10’s in that same time frame. But, he had five top 10 finishes in his first six races of the year and six straight years in the top four of the final standings. I think he finds a way to get there again.
5. 17 Ankrum – The youngster has been really good lately and I think will be the shock of the playoffs. He has three top 10 finishes in his last four starts and four in his last nine. I think he gets out of the first round as he can contend in Bristol and shock everyone on the road course. In Round 2, he has two short tracks (Martinsville, Phoenix) that he can be comfortable on. Talladega may be the race that eliminates him.
6. 98 Enfinger – Good thing he has playoff points now. He’s only scored one top five finish since June after having four in his first six races of the season. If he can get out of the first round, then watch out. He finished second in Daytona back in February and is always good on his hometrack at Talladega. It’s just that I don’t know if he can get out of the first round without top fives. The tracks in the first round other than Vegas don’t necessarily favor him.
7. 16 Hill – He won the season opener by has scored just two top five finishes in his last nine starts. He has just two top 10’s in his last seven starts on the year at that. In fact, three of his last five starts have seen him finish 30th or worse.
8. 88 Crafton – He hasn’t won in two years. His last top five was at Texas in June. He’s been a top 10 machine but the lack of wins and top fives cost him a shot at advancing past the opening round.