Ram announces reentry to NASCAR Truck Series, unveils concept race truck to race this year
Ram is officially moving back to NASCAR after leaving 13 years ago, the company announced.
The Ram brand said that it will begin its reentry in the NASCAR truck series, unveiling a newly developed Ram 1500 concept race truck in a black-and-red color scheme. Ram Brand CEO Tim Kuniskis announced the decision last week to reenter the market at a private media event, anticipating a public announcement at Michigan International Speedway on June 8.
"We figured we might as well go back to racing, back to America's motorsport, back to NASCAR," Kuniskis said. "First with truck, with the intention to go to (NASCAR Cup Series) after that."
The return to NASCAR marks the second time in a week that Kuniskis has decided to reverse course on previous decisions made by Ram. On Thursday, June 5, the brand announced it would be returning the HEMI engine to its 1500 pickup trucks one year after removing them.
The HEMI is back: Citing customer feedback, Ram returns V8 HEMI engines to 1500 pickups
While the truck shown to the news media is still officially a concept truck, Kuniskis said he expects a short timeline for a Ram vehicle to take to the tracks at a NASCAR race.
"We've been working on this for a while. That's the real truck, we didn't cobble that up," Kuniskis said, gesturing toward the concept vehicle. "We'll be on track in Daytona in eight months."
In video advertisements, Kuniskis is depicted behind the wheel of the new race truck, though he said he won't be the one racing Ram's vehicles. In fact, Ram has yet to select a racing team.
Analysts: Ford May sales surge indicates its made-in-America marketing is working, for now
"I got a truck. I got the attention. I'm writing a deal with NASCAR, I'm going to Daytona," Kuniskis said. "How I'm actually going to do that? What's my team going to be? How am I going to do it? I don't know. We're looking for a date to the prom right now."
Liam Rappleye covers Stellantis and the UAW. Contact him at LRappleye@freepress.com.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Ram will officially be rejoining the NASCAR Truck Series
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
USA Today
21 minutes ago
- USA Today
Denny Hamlin wins NASCAR race at Michigan, taunts crowd with OSU chant
Denny Hamlin wins NASCAR race at Michigan, taunts crowd with OSU chant BRISTOL, Mich. — Denny Hamlin's life hasn't been easy recently. He's waiting on the birth of his baby and his team is dealing with a lawsuit that could have profound impacts on how they race. But on Sunday afternoon, none of that seemed to affect him at Michigan International Speedway in the FireKeepers Casino 400 as he claimed his 57th career NASCAR Cup Series victory, ranking him 11th on the all-time list. Hamlin passed William Byron with three laps remaining in the race and held on as Byron ran out of fuel. Hamlin, himself, had just enough gas left for a burnout. It was Hamlin's third career win at Michigan and his first since Aug. 21, 2011. During his celebration after the race, Hamlin taunted a crowd – which was offering a mixture of boos and cheers – by breaking out Ohio State's "O-S-U" chant, leaning into his role as a provocateur. Chase Briscoe led on pole at the start of the race, but it wasn't long before William Byron took the lead. Stage 1 was a clean affair with no cautions – a statement that would not be true for the remainder of the race. Chris Buescher, who started in sixth, pursued Byron for much of the stage, eventually overtaking him at Lap 35. Buescher won Stage 1. In Stage 2, anarchy broke out on the track. Lead changes abounded as yellow flag after yellow flag waved from the finish line. The starting order was mixed at the start as teams pitted, and one notable jump was from Carson Hocevar, a native of Portage, Michigan, who moved from 10th at the end of Stage 1 to third at the beginning of Stage 2. Ultimately, though, that wouldn't matter. A yellow flag followed by a red flag on a crash on Turn 2 at Lap 67 that took out Alex Bowman and Cole Custer, along with the pit changes drivers opted for, scrambled the order again and again. Byron proved steady again, winning Stage 2 as well despite all the cautions. At one point, Michigan native Brad Keselowski was in the top four, but lost it after Ryan Blaney spun into the fence for the final caution of the second stage. Exiting that caution, Hocevar executed one of the best passes of the day, slingshotting himself into third place around both Tyler Reddick and Ross Chastain to claim third at the end of the stage. The Portage native wasn't done, either. More cautions came in Stage 3, but Hocevar took the lead after a rear-tire blowout from Todd Gilliland gave the field the seventh caution of the day. As fuel concerns became more prescient, Byron seemed content to sit behind Hocevar until late in the race. He wouldn't need to, though. On Lap 182, Hocevar suddenly began slowing, dropping place after place at Turn 3 as his tire blew out. Byron retook the lead as Denny Hamlin loomed behind him, pushing the No. 24 car to use more and more fuel. As the laps ticked down, Hamlin kept pushing Byron, and at Lap 196, the two of them battled for the lead for an entire lap. Hamlin eventually made the pass and took the lead with three laps remaining in the race. And with just enough gas, Hamlin crossed the finish line to win the day.
Washington Post
24 minutes ago
- Washington Post
The Mystics get out and run their way past the struggling Sun
Sonia Citron snatched a rebound and took off in a blur. She sped past defenders who were running without the ball but still couldn't keep up. For the second time in the game's first four minutes, the No. 3 draft pick went coast to coast for an easy layup as the Connecticut Sun looked stuck in slow motion.
Associated Press
26 minutes ago
- Associated Press
Athletics beat Orioles 5-1 to win their first series in more than a month
WEST SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — Max Muncy homered and Jacob Wilson and Tyler Soderstrom each had two hits and an RBI as the Athletics beat the Baltimore Orioles 5-1 on Sunday to win their first series in more than a month. Sean Newcomb (1-4) struck out three in three scoreless innings in relief of starter Jacob Lopez for the win. Grant Holman pitched a scoreless eighth and Mason Miller tossed a 1-2-3 ninth to end it. The A's last won a series May 2-4 when they took two of three against Miami. They hadn't won a series at home since they won two of three against the Chicago White Sox from April 25-27. The Athletics took a 1-0 lead off Orioles starter Tomoyuki Sugano in the first inning after Lawrence Butler led off with a base hit before scoring on Soderstrom's two-out single. A throwing error by catcher Jhonny Pereda on a pickoff attempt led to an unearned run off Lopez as the Orioles tied it in the second. Pereda atoned for the errant throw with a go-ahead RBI double in the Athletics' second. Butler drove in a run on a fielder's choice before Wilson singled to make it 4-1. Muncy led off the eighth against Bryan Baker with his third homer for the final run. Lopez allowed four hits in four innings and struck out five before giving way to Newcomb. Sugano (5-4) allowed four runs — three earned — and eight hits in 4 1/3 innings. Scott Blewett, reacquired by Baltimore on Friday from Atlanta, followed and retired all five batters he faced. The Orioles were coming off a three-game sweep of the Mariners in Seattle. Key moment Pereda's RBI double recaptured the momentum and gave the A's the lead for good. Key stat Wilson finished 2 for 4 and has multiple hits in five straight games and seven overall while going 20 for 40 during a nine-game hitting streak. The rookie shortstop raised his batting average to .372 and trails only the Yankees' Aaron Judge, who began the day hitting .390. Up next The Athletics will play three against the Los Angeles Angels beginning Monday. Neither team announced a starter. The Orioles head home for six games and hadn't announced a starter for the first of three against the Tigers beginning Tuesday. Detroit will start RHP Sawyer Gipson-Long (0-0, 7.36). ___ AP MLB:
