Corey Heim did not let a late race accident deter his efforts for his TRICON Garage team. (Photo: Rusty Jones | Nigel Kinrade Photography)
BROOKLYN, Mich. — The Irish Hills were unforgiving this weekend for the No. 11 TRICON Garage Toyota Tundra driver Corey Heim. In a record year for the 22 year-old, Corey has risen to the top several times; with four wins, eight top fives, and four poles so far in the 2025 season. With great stats, there have been some hiccups in the road for the Georgia native.
Earlier in the year at Homestead, Heim led 78 laps while also winning the first two race stages. Electrical Goblins appeared during the last stage, with him fighting power issues with his truck, finishing in third while Cup Series favorite, Kyle Larson, ended up winning, after dealing with his own problems during the event.
Later at North Wilkesboro Speedway, the Toyota driver was battling Layne Riggs in the front of the field, making contact in the second turn which caused the No. 11 to be spun out on the final lap. Finishing 17th, Heim was unimpressed and had some choice words to say on pit road to Riggs post-race.
Friday afternoon kicked off with practice for the CRAFTSMAN Truck Series. The track was green, with temperatures similar to those the field would be competing in Saturday. Heim remained focused, noting how much the dirty air was affecting the race truck.
By the end of the session, he wasn’t exactly content with the vehicle, but was more than confident of his team and his driving capabilities. At the last minute, he drove for an ill Jake Finch in the No. 25 Venturini Motorsports Toyota that evening in the Henry Ford 200 race for the ARCA Menards Series. Heim finished second, barely losing to Brendan Queen.
Qualifying ensued early Saturday morning with Heim snatching seventh as his starting position. Hazy skies and humid air welcomed the driver in the early afternoon when the DQS Solutions & Staffing 250 kicked off. Dirty air seemed to play a big part overall with how the race vehicles would handle, driving in open air was key to outrunning the pack.
Stage 1 was caution-free with the TRICON Garage racer won it while battling against Carson Hocevar in the No. 7 Delaware Life Spire Chevrolet. The duo have had quite a past with one another, making the racing something to watch. This sparing match played over into the next stage, with Heim holding Hocevar yet again for the stage win.
When the Stage 1 rolled around, things began to shift with the field seeming to pick up momentum and desire to out drive one another. For Heim, the barrage of cautions from various mishaps of others kept him in a tangle within the top five, even with a brief power issue in his truck, similar to what happened earlier in the season.
Charging onwards, Lap 71 brought out the first of a series of cautions that would whittle down the field’s size. Jack Wood spun in Turns 3 and 4, incurring minor damage. Seven trucks would pit, with the green flag restart on Lap 77.
Last week’s race winner, Rajah Caruth, would be spun out accidentally by Matt Mills, causing the yellow flag to wave the next lap. Some took the opportunity to head to pit road, refueling and swapping out tires before the restart on Lap 83.
Corey Heim had a fast truck for Saturday’s DQS Solutions & Staffing 250 at Michigan. (Photo: Aspen Marcheschi | The Podium Finish)
Calm was not present as another caution was thrown Lap 84, with two more trucks wrecking in Turn 4. This was when Heim decided to change things up. His Safelite Toyota squealed onto the pit road, snagging four tires and fuel.
The decision would have the experienced driver starting back in 17th, with those in front of him either not pitting, or coming just for fuel. It was a slight gamble, this being around the time the power issue momentarily popped up and resolved itself. Rolling around the track, Lap 88 became a red flag, when it was discovered the SAFER barrier needed repairs from the prior wreck.
Once the fixes were applied, Hocevar would pit for fuel, also having the right front fender mended from damage to prevent tire rub. Waving the green on Lap 91, Heim fought and scrambled to the top five, his fresh tires assisting in the move through the pack. He was not the only one who had jumped up to the front.
Grant Enfinger was out front, leading the field while Layne Riggs, Ross Chastain, Hocevar and Heim duked it out for positions behind him. He was only able to hold the attackers off for so long, eventually falling back. Riggs made contact with the wall during the brawl, causing a tire to peel apart. Hocevar made contact with Chastain in Turn 2, with the latter able to save the truck, but slowing down to check the wear on his tires. Riggs’ tire carcass brought out the caution shortly after on Lap 116.
Those in the field who had not pitted earlier darted in, Hocevar came in from having a damaged tire from bumping into Chastain. This helped to put Heim near the front, with his teammate, Giovanni Ruggiero in the No. 17 JBL Toyota, in front of him. Chastain was across from Ruggiero, with TRICON Garage’s Tanner Gray pushing Chastain. Chaos reared its ugly face on the track.
Approaching the waving flag on the restart, the first four trucks pushed and pulled on Lap 121, with Chastain sliding up and being collected by the front of Ruggierio’s truck. This left Heim with no where to go, being partially sandwiched between the two as several more trucks became casualties in the growing pile on the frontstretch.
Inevitably, the caution flag waved as the field limped around the track until pit road was open. Pit crews worked relentlessly. While the damage on Heim’s Safelite Toyota was not the worst in the group, but it was definitely enough to end his chances at snagging the win. Yet, even with a beat up truck, he pushed on. It seemed like there would be several more cautions to be had.
Corey Heim was a victim of circumstance in a late race crash at Michigan. (Photo: Matthew T. Thacker | The Podium Finish)
Those intrusive thoughts were correct, as the first Overtime attempt ended with more wrecked cars on the restart for Lap 126. The second attempt was Lap 132, failing after the Overtime restart never being fulfilled as another handful of race trucks crashed.
These clashes thinned the pack down as Heim avoided another hit. It was the third attempt at Lap 138 that would finally be successful, with no more victims to a roller coaster of a race.
Ultimately Heim finished 18th, a far cry from where the Toyota GAZOO Racing driver wanted to end up at. Yet, thanks to the hard work from his team, he was able to remain out and complete the race without being lapped down.
The break for the CRAFTSMAN Truck Series next welcome is a respite while the NASCAR XFINITY Series and Cup Series head down south to Mexico City. That doesn’t mean the TRICON Garage racer will be resting much.
With the Playoffs looming in the mirror, Heim will continue to push through and work closely with his team to ensure more wins and ultimately another shot at the CRAFTSMAN Truck Series title in November.
