Corey Heim Dominates for Inaugural Lime Rock Win

Corey Heim racing in the LiUNA! 150 at the inaugural Truck Series race at Lime Rock Park. (Photo: Josh Jones | The Podium Finish)

LAKEVILLE, Conn. — In a near-perfect effort, Corey Heim dominated the LiUNA! 150 at Lime Rock Park to score his fifth win of the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series season.

Heim led 99 of the 100 laps and swept the stages during the race to score his 16th career victory. The only lap Heim did not lead during the race was on the final restart when Layne Riggs crossed the start/finish line first, but Heim took the lead back out of Turn 1.

He also became the first driver in the history of the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series to win three consecutive road course races.

“Yeah, that was nothing short of incredible,” said Heim. “These road courses, I really look forward to them, pre-event and whatnot, and I really prepare for them. So, to see all that pay off with Safelite, Tricon (Garage), Toyota, it’s super special.”

Corey Heim celebrating after winning the LiUNA! 150 at Lime Rock Park for his fifth victory of the season thus far. (Photo: Josh Jones | The Podium Finish)

Out of 15 races so far this season, Heim has five wins, a series record 14 stage wins and a 144-point lead in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series standings. Even with those statistics, he is still looking for more this season, remembering some of the heartbreaking defeats his team has suffered this season.

“Obviously, the truck was so good today,” Heim said. “I can’t complain one bit about that. A flawless day, and we will take that and move forward and try and collect some wins that we should have had this year.”

On the final restart, aggression struck the field heading into Turn 1. The likes of Riggs, Jordan Taylor and Kaden Honeycutt all lost numerous positions after running inside the top five for most of the race. This opened up an opportunity for teams running mid-pack to steal a good finish, and ThorSport Racing was a major beneficiary of this.

Corey Heim won the LiUNA! 150 at Lime Rock Park, leading 99 of 100 laps in the process. (Photo: Josh Jones | The Podium Finish)

Ben Rhodes and Cam Waters scored fourth and fifth-place finishes, respectively, while Ty Majeski worked his way up to finish in second place amidst his points battle to make the playoffs.

“We kept getting it better progressively each and every run,” said Majeski. “So, got it close at the end, had a shot at Corey (Heim) and probably got a little over-zealous in Turn 4, hit the curb and kind of ruined my shot to make him a least a little nervous and try to force him into a mistake.”

Even though it has been a bit of a down season for both Majeski and ThorSport Racing, the defending champion now finds himself 38 points above the provisional cutline heading into the final three races of the regular season. Majeski brought up the upcoming stretch of races, including the playoffs and his excitement to turn his team’s season around.

Corey Heim during his dominating performance at Lime Rock Park during the LiUNA! 150. (Photo: Josh Jones | The Podium Finish)

“This is the point when I want to turn our season around,” Majeski said. “Going to IRP (Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park), Watkins Glen and Richmond next. Three really good tracks for us, so I’m excited for this playoff stretch.”

The other driver finishing inside the top five was Gio Ruggiero in third place. Rounding out the top 10 were Chandler Smith, Josh Bilicki, Brent Crews, Daniel Hemric and Tyler Ankrum.

The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series will be off for a few weekends, returning Friday, July 25 at Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park for the TSport 200 at 8:00 p.m. EST on Fox Sports 1, NRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

Stage 1 Top 10 Results

1. Corey Heim
2. Layne Riggs
3. Jordan Taylor
4. Brent Crews
5. Connor Mosack
6. Kaden Honeycutt
7. Chandler Smith
8. Rajah Caruth
9. Ty Majeski
10. Thomas Annunziata

Stage 2 Top 10 Results

1. Corey Heim
2. Layne Riggs
3. Jordan Taylor
4. Connor Mosack
5. Chandler Smith
6. Kaden Honeycutt
7. Ty Majeski
8. Thomas Annunziata
9. Rajah Caruth
10. Grant Enfinger

LiUNA! 150 at Lime Rock Park Finishing Results