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via Imago

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Last year, North Wilkesboro gave us one of the wildest moments of the NASCAR Cup Series when Kyle Busch and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. squared off, not on the track, but off it. Tempers boiled after Stenhouse Jr. believed Busch had wrecked him intentionally early in the race. After the early exit, he waited for Busch by his hauler, only to land a right hook to his face, which led to a big brawl. Busch didn’t flinch. He said, “If he wants to get in my face, that’s fine. He’s been a pain in the a– for years.”

Stenhouse didn’t hold back either. “I’ve had enough of his crap. I’m done letting it slide. I told him I’d see him after.” The clash wasn’t just about racing lines or broken bumpers. It was years of frustration exploding in one shove-and-swing saga that had fans buzzing all week. North Wilkesboro was no longer just a throwback; it was a pressure cooker. That post-race brawl reminded NASCAR Nation that rivalries aren’t dead. They’re just waiting for the right spark. And that night, the spark came from two veterans who didn’t need words to tell their story, just fists. It also cost Stenhouse Jr 75,000 dollars and his father a lifetime ban.

It is just not possible to rewrite a similar script, but the Truck Series race delivered just that. This time, Toyota’s up-and-coming driver, Corey Heim, was on the receiving end, whereas Xfinity Series outcast Chandler Smith was the one who took the cake after a dramatic overtime finish led to flared tempers and post-race exchanges.

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Chandler Smith concedes to Corey Heim!

On Saturday at the Window World 250, Chandler Smith took the checkered flag. But it wasn’t a clean pass. It wasn’t a commanding drive. It was a case of being in the right place at the wrong time for everyone else. On the final lap of overtime, Smith was third when his teammate, Layne Riggs, made contact with race leader Corey Heim going into Turn 2. Heim spun. Smith stayed low and slipped through the wreckage to steal the win.

Smith had started in the back and clawed forward. He was right on the bumper of the #11 truck before the caution flew. It could’ve been a thrilling end to the race as both Heim and Smith were committed to the battle. But, it after a somewhat controversial finish, thanks to Riggs’ antics, and Smith conceded that he wasn’t on par with the #11 team. “I didn’t think we were as good as the 11. We had a tire advantage, and he still checked out. That last restart, I did everything but the right thing. My teammate, Layne Riggs, executed perfectly, and we came out on the right end of the stick,” Smith said post-race. He gave props to Heim, saying, “They had a really fast truck today.” The humility in his voice said it all. Smith won, but he knew who really deserved it.

Notably, Denny Hamlin‘s protégé Corey Heim had the fastest truck all day. He led 162 of 255 laps and held the lead with older tires when the green flag waved for the overtime restart. Riggs was behind him, Smith on the inside. Heim cleared both. But coming out of Turn 4, Riggs dived low, got inside, and bumped Heim up the track. Heim spun, and Smith pounced. The Tricon Garage driver didn’t mince words after the race. “Just scum racing on his part,” he said of Riggs.

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Is Layne Riggs a reckless racer or just a fierce competitor? What's your take on his style?

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“He did it to me earlier in the race and didn’t learn his lesson. I’ve raced him clean for years. I just continuously get used up by him,” he further added. On pit road, Heim confronted Riggs face to face. “You’re racing like a f—— idiot. Calm down or else someone’s going to take care of you,” he told him. Heim walked off before Riggs could respond. Riggs, for his part, didn’t back down either. “I feel like he got really loose into Turn 3 and opened the bottom up, and I went for it. I slid him up the track but left him a lane. It’s North Wilkesboro on the last lap. I didn’t do anything wrong,” he said.

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The Front Row Motorsports driver made clear he wasn’t racing for friends. “If I’ve got a reputation for going for wins, I’m not going to regret that.” The history between Heim and Riggs goes back to their Late Model days. Heim even referenced it, saying, “It’s been the same thing since Late Models.” For him, Riggs is a repeat offender. For Riggs, it’s just hard racing. But there’s no doubt who the loser was on Saturday, Corey Heim. He dominated the race, stayed out when others pitted, managed worn tires to perfection, and still walked away with nothing but a 17th-place finish.

The rest of the field scrambled through the smoke. Tyler Ankrum snuck into third. Daniel Hemric and Grant Enfinger followed in fourth and fifth. Ty Majeski, Gio Ruggiero, Kaden Honeycutt, Kyle Busch, and Sammy Smith rounded out the top ten. Busch, in his second Truck start of the year, was fast but got tagged twice for pit road speeding and never recovered. Notably, in his previous start at Atlanta, he had dominated the track for a win.

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NASCAR Truck Series Window World 250 at North Wilkesboro results:

FinTruckDriverLapsStatus
138Chandler Smith (x)255Running
234Layne Riggs255Running
318Tyler Ankrum255Running
419Daniel Hemric255Running
59Grant Enfinger (S2)255Running
698Ty Majeski255Running
717Gio Ruggiero #255Running
845Kaden Honeycutt255Running
907Kyle Busch (i)255Running
107Sammy Smith (i)255Running
1115Tanner Gray255Running
1213Jake Garcia255Running
1366Luke Baldwin255Running
1452Stewart Friesen255Running
1571Rajah Caruth255Running
1681Connor Mosack #255Running
1711Corey Heim (S1)255Running
1888Matt Crafton254Running
1975Patrick Emerling254Running
2091Jack Wood254Running
215Toni Breidinger #254Running
221Brent Crews254Running
2399Ben Rhodes254Running
2477Andres Perez de Lara #253Running
2542Matt Mills253Running
2626Dawson Sutton #253Running
2744Conner Jones251Running
2876Spencer Boyd251Running
2933Frankie Muniz #248Running
3002Jayson Alexander242Running
3122Tyler Tomassi209Out
3267Ryan Roulette153Out
332Derek White96Out
346Norm Benning62Out

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Is Layne Riggs a reckless racer or just a fierce competitor? What's your take on his style?

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