Maybe a pat on the back from the Hendrick couple is the lucky charm. The NASCAR Cup Series Hendrick Motorsports team is at the forefront, with Kyle Larson leading the win tally with four trophies. Similarly, Rick and Linda Hendrick’s charms seem to be working in the Craftsman Truck Series as well. Rajah Caruth, Bubba Wallace’s protégé, came away with his fourth top-five of the season at the right time.

The playoff race, UNOH 200, presented by Ohio Logistics at Bristol Motor Speedway was a thrilling battle between four drivers. Layne Riggs was at the forefront of the group, playing spoilsport with playoff hopefuls. Meanwhile, Caruth got into a feisty battle with Corey Heim for runner-up; although he did not succeed, he praised his team anyway.

Rajah Caruth drops another podium finish

“It’s super cool to see him go through all the motions…being in the right spot and right mindset,” Bubba Wallace happily admitted after Rajah Caruth clinched his first Truck Series win at Las Vegas this year. The two hold a five-year bond, as the 23XI Racing driver mentored Caruth through his rise in NASCAR. And the latter’s 2024 runs keep making Wallace proud, as well as Rick Hendrick.

Qualifying third for the UNOH 200, Rajah Caruth won his first-ever stage. Then a fierce battle for the podium ensued between Corey Heim and Christian Eckes. In the last lap, Caruth put up a photo finish with Heim, with the latter slipping past by a mere 0.022 seconds. He hailed this battle post-race: “I had a chance to win…I don’t feel like I executed that well, I should have run the top five… fun racing with Corey and Christian. They’re the perennial contenders, so to be in the mix of those guys all night was really good. Just replaying what I could have done differently on those last 2-3 restarts.”

Despite his close call for the runner-up finish, Rajah Caruth gushed with gratitude for the Hendrick bosses and his Spire Motorsports team. “Really proud of my Hendrick Cars.com crew, thanks to Mr. and Mrs. Hendricks…Spire, Ally, everybody…Wish it was a win, but proud of it,” Caruth said.

He also hailed the superb Truck he drove and looked forward to next week in Kansas, saying, “This was a really good truck of ours, and guys got a really good setup…I love Bristol, so it was crazy that was my first stage win – a great place for us to get in. Excited for Kansas next week.”

Rajah Caruth’s Las Vegas win stands out in his spectacular run this season. But his unofficial mentor broke a promise then.

Why couldn’t Wallace witness it?

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The Spire Motorsports Truck Series phenom turned heads in March this year. Rajah Caruth led 38 laps at the controls of his blue and white No. 71 truck, including the final 21. Then he finished 0.851 of a second in front of second-place finisher Tyler Ankrum, clinching his first Truck Series victory.

Over 600 congratulatory texts poured in from friends, teammates, and family members. Caruth thanked Mr. H again, as he said, “Thanks so much to HendrickCars.com and Mr. H for putting me in this thing all year.” Even HMS Cup Series drivers congratulated him, with William Byron and Kyle Larson celebrating his win.

But the person who promised to be the first one to congratulate Caruth in Victory Lane was nowhere to be seen. Bubba Wallace made his absence felt, although he explained why he could not come. “I got nervous with about, what 28 to go after final pit stops, I found myself, my fists were clinched. I’m like, ‘that’s weird, relax,’ and then 15 to go, sitting on the couch like super zoned in. 10 to go, I got up and that’s where I was. I just didn’t want him to get ahead of himself.” 

Eventually, Bubba Wallace also hailed Caruth’s great progress. “I was really proud of that. (Tyler) Ankrum was closing in, but I was sure he was saving his stuff, and once he took the white, like, a sigh of relief. Once he made it through 3 and 4, home free, and that was really cool.”

Evidently, Rajah Caruth’s benefactors push him to reach greater peaks every time he hits a racetrack. We expect to see him storm the championship this time, as Caruth leaves Bristol with a 35-point cushion above the cutline.