Four drivers make their Truck debut in M&Ms 200
NEWTON, Iowa — Chandler Smith, Mason Massey, CJ McLaughlin, and Juan Manuel Gonzalez each made their Truck Series debut in Sunday’s M&Ms 200.
Smith was the highest finishing driver of the four, finishing eighth after leading the opening 55 laps with the No. 51 KBM Toyota. Smith went over what he felt during the final run of the race.
“It was just super loose, and I had my hands full even racing around anybody, not even racing around anybody. It felt like I was on a dirt track a little bit there for a bit. I mean, if we ever go to a dirt track, I’ll be pretty solid.”
Massey and McLaughlin both drove for Reaume Brothers Racing. Massey, who made two starts in the K&N Pro Series East in 2014, drove his #34 Hicklin Garage Doors Chevrolet to a 21st place finish.
“Our goal coming into this was to finish the race. We had a pretty good truck, just fought being tight all day long and made it better on a couple stops.”
“It feels really good to make my first start. We’ve been working for a while to get here and from here, we try to work our way up, get more sponsorship. Anybody who comes on board, I promise you, you will not find a harder worker out here.”
McLaughlin has raced three times in the ARCA Menards Series this season and scored one top ten. McLaughlin drove his #33 Sci Aps Chevrolet to a 23rd place finish.
“It was a pretty big learning curve from the ARCA series into the Trucks so just trying to get used to how the truck kind of yaws in the middle of the corner.”
“We’re looking to do some Xfinity races but we’re waiting on the NASCAR approval process.”
Juan Manuel Gonzalez was knocked out of the race early on after hitting the wall. He finished 30th.
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Jonathan Fjeld View All
Jonathan Fjeld is the co-owner of the The Racing Experts, LLC. He has been with TRE since 2010.
A Twin Valley, MN, native, Fjeld became a motorsports fan at just three years old (first race was the 2002 Pennsylvania 500). He worked as a contributor and writer for TRE from 2010-18. Since then, he has stepped up and covered 24 NASCAR race weekends and taken on a larger role with TRE. He became the co-owner and managing editor in 2023 and has guided the site to massive growth in that time.
Fjeld has covered a wide array of stories and moments over the years, including Kevin Harvick's final Cup Series season, the first NASCAR national series disqualification in over 50 years, Shane van Gisbergen's stunning win in Chicago and the first Cup Series race at Road America in 66 years – as well as up-and-coming drivers' stories and stories from inside the sport, like the tech it takes for Hendrick Motorsports to remain a top-tier team.
Currently, he resides in Albuquerque, N.M., where he works for KOB 4, an NBC station. He works as a digital producer and does on-air reports. He loves spending time with friends and family, playing and listening to music, exploring new places, being outdoors, reading books and writing among other activities. You can email him at fjeldjonathan@gmail.com
Good job CJ, Brought it back with the fenders still on it!