There was a moment in time on Friday, during the final laps of the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Championship Race at Phoenix, where, in the distance, you could see the pitchforks being sharpened and the torches being lit.
Corey Heim, who had a record-breaking season in pretty much every single stat category that exists, was in danger of not clinching the NASCAR Truck Series title following a late-race caution (courtesy of Connor Mosack) that sent the event into Overtime.
A native of Marietta, Georgia, Heim hadn’t just been the dominant driver of the 2025 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series campaign, but he’d also put a whooping on the field in the Championship Race, leading nearly 100 laps. However, a strategy call by the other three Championship 4 drivers, to take two tires, nearly ended it all for the No. 11.
RACE RESULTS: 2025 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Championship Race at Phoenix
That was, until Heim, at 23 years of age, made one of the craziest and most unbelievable moves in the history of the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, diving inside SEVEN-WIDE (nearly to the inside wall) to get himself back in the game, within striking distance of Ty Majeski and Kaden Honeycutt when another caution was displayed.
From there, with a significant tire advantage (and really, just being Corey Heim in 2025), the No. 11 Safelite Toyota Tundra TRD Pro was untouchable and drove away from the pack on the restart, collecting a record-extending 12th victory on the season and FINALLY, after two years of heartbreak, earning himself a championship.
“I just am so grateful to be where I’m at. So thankful for the TRICON Garage, Toyota taking a chance on me years ago, Safelite, Mobil 1, Yahoo, Celsius, for every bit of their support. I was so stressed out ever since we went to the ROVAL. I’ve been, like, so terrible to talk to as a person, so stressed out,” Heim said. “This is just such a relief, to say the least. So thankful for everybody. There are so many names I could go through, Trevor (Bayne, Competition Mentor, TRD) and Blake (Koch, Competition Mentor, TRD) for all my prep work, 23XI for everything they do for me on the development side. There’s such a long list. Thankful for everybody involved.“
When the checkered flag was displayed, Heim found himself with nearly a one-second lead over defending NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series champion Ty Majeski, who will finish second in the final point standings to Heim. It’s the second straight year that Majeski and Heim will take up the top two spots in points.
Kaden Honeycutt, in his first year competing full-time in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series (and having done so with three different organizations), will come home third in final point standings, after coming home in third place.
Layne Riggs brought his No. 34 Ford F-150 home in fourth, rebounding from an early-race penalty and the loss of his crew chief and truck chief before the drop of the green flag. Front Row Motorsports will place the No. 34 fourth in Owner’s Standings as a result.
Rajah Caruth ended his stint as a full-time driver in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series with a top-five run for Spire Motorsports. Jake Garcia was sixth, with Corey LaJoie seventh, Chandler Smith eighth, Tyler Reif finishing ninth in his NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series debut, and Jack Wood rounding out the top-10.
Tyler Ankrum, after sustaining damage in a late-race accident and being off in pace throughout the entire afternoon, finished 14th, and will come home fourth in NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series point standings for 2025.
Despite what some would consider a tame-ish event, several hard accidents definitely got the attention of viewers, including one where Andres Perez de Lara got a substantial amount of air. Later in the race, Cole Butcher got slammed into the wall hard, as well, ending both of their nights — which had both, in their own ways, been promising.
The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series will now enter a period of hibernation, which, thanks to FOX Sports and Jamie Little, we know will last exactly 105 days. The 2026 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series season-opener at Daytona will take place on Friday, February 13, 2026 on FOX Sports 1.
