The NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series has always been a little unpredictable, and that is part of the charm.
The 2026 field has the potential to be one of the deepest and most entertaining groups the series has ever seen.
It is a wild mix of veterans who want to prove they still have something left, young drivers with real upside and a few surprising names who could completely swing the playoff picture.
First things first.
The series will not include the 2025 champion Corey Heim. Heim has not announced his exact landing spot for next season but he was direct when he said he will not be coming back to Trucks.
Rajah Caruth is also gone after riding strong momentum into a part time O’Reilly Auto Parts Series deal with JR Motorsports.
Caruth is trying to fill in the gaps to run the full season at the next level and his departure leaves another hole near the front of the truck field.
The headliners coming in are almost hard to process.
Kaulig Racing is launching its new RAM program and the lineup feels like something out of a fantasy draft.
Justin Haley is taking a full time seat and he arrives as a Cup Series race winner who will instantly raise the bar.
The team also grabbed defending ARCA champion Butterbean Queen who brings raw speed and a huge fan following along with him.
Daniel Dye rounds out the full time group at Kaulig after spending 2025 getting reps in the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series.
The team even added a “free agent truck” that will use a rotating list of drivers. Kaulig does not plan to release the names until the week before each race but the rumor mill keeps spitting out names like Tony Stewart and Kasey Kahne. If either of those actually show up it becomes one of the biggest stories of the year, easily.
McAnally Hilderman Racing is loading up too.
Christian Eckes is back in Trucks after a stint in the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series with Kaulig and returns as one of the best proven winners available.
Tyler Ankrum stays with the group after a strong 2025 that included a Round of 4 appearance at Phoenix.
The team also brings back Daniel Hemric who brings Cup experience and an O’Reilly Auto Parts Series championship.
That is a group that can win anywhere from superspeedways to short tracks and they feel like a playoff lock before the season even starts.
Front Row Motorsports might be even better.
Layne Riggs is back and is coming off a season where he pushed Corey Heim harder than anyone.
Riggs has a multi-year deal now and looks like a championship favorite before the green flag even waves at Daytona.
Chandler Smith is also expected to return and his victories last season make people believe he can consistently run near the front.
We haven’t even talked about Spire Motorsports yet.
The team has seats to fill, and they still have their No. 7 truck which is also a part/time ride featuring big name cameos throughout the year. Kyle Busch and Kyle Larson are among the names linked to that ride, both previously won in it last year.
Drivers like Ty Majeski—who won a Truck Series title before, and finished second in this years standings—and Gio Ruggerio are also returning to the series.
The best part is that all of these moves overlap. If even half of these teams find speed this could be the most competitive Truck field in years.
There are no easy weeks and nothing simple to predict. It is the perfect combination of chaos and talent.
When it seemed like the Truck Series might take a step back in terms of talent with the departure of Corey Heim, it actually seems to be the opposite. The series is wide open, and full of talent.
On paper this looks like the deepest lineup the Truck Series has ever had. The only question now is who is actually going to survive long enough to make a run at the title.
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