2026 Fresh From Florida 250 Recap — Smith Wins a Four-Wide Daytona Finish by 0.044 Seconds
Saturday, February 14, 2026
The Short Version
Chandler Smith won the Fresh From Florida 250 at Daytona by 0.044 seconds over Giovanni Ruggiero in one of the closest finishes of the 2026 Truck Series season. The final lap turned chaotic — John Hunter Nemechek bumped Ruggiero to grab the lead, four trucks went side-by-side in the tri-oval, and Smith dove to the bottom and won. Eckes was 3rd, Majeski 4th — all four separated by 0.069 seconds.
What Happened
Carson Hocevar ran as an invitational driver and dominated early — leading 20 laps and controlling the race through Stage 1, which he won over Tanner Gray. The pace of the No. 77 suggested a potential runaway, but a flat left rear tire at lap 58 ended his lead run. He spun off turn 4 and fell from first to deep in the field in seconds. Justin Haley inherited the lead — becoming the first RAM manufacturer driver to lead in the Truck Series since Andrew Ranger at CTMP in 2014 — before the field sorted itself out.
Chandler Smith won Stage 2 and stayed in the mix through the final third. The overtime restart put Michael McDowell inside and Kaden Honeycutt outside. Honeycutt cleared for the lead in turn 1, but contact between McDowell and Nemechek caused McDowell to spin off turn 4 and collect Kris Wright. The second overtime restart lined up Nemechek (#62) inside and Honeycutt outside.
On the final lap, Nemechek bumped Ruggiero going down the backstretch, got Ruggiero sideways and slipped to the inside. Ruggiero saved the truck but lost momentum. In the tri-oval, four trucks ran side-by-side — Nemechek blocked Ruggiero as they stacked up, and Smith dove to the bottom underneath all of them. He crossed first.
The Defining Moment
Four-wide in the tri-oval on the final lap. Nemechek’s bump on Ruggiero created the chaos, Smith found the hole underneath, and the margin at the stripe was 0.044 seconds over second place with a four-truck photo finish.
The One That Got Away
Giovanni Ruggiero. He was running second and had a clear line at the win until Nemechek made contact on the backstretch and broke his momentum. The save was impressive — going from sideways at superspeedway speeds to second place at the finish line — but the win was there before the bump.
Numbers That Matter
- Winner: Chandler Smith — No. 38 Ford
- Margin of Victory: 0.044 seconds
- Top 4 gap: 0.069 seconds covered positions 1–4
- Cautions: 6 for 31 laps
- Lead Changes: 32 among 12 leaders
- Stage 1: Carson Hocevar | Stage 2: Chandler Smith
- Notable: Justin Haley became the first RAM driver to lead the Truck Series since Andrew Ranger at CTMP in 2014
Take
Daytona Truck racing is its own kind of chaos — 37 trucks at a superspeedway, drafting in packs, and a finish decided by a fraction of a second after 102 laps of constant position changes. Smith got to the right lane at the right moment and held on. That’s the formula. It worked.
Hocevar’s flat tire at lap 58 is the result that doesn’t match the performance. He was the fastest truck in the field and leading when it happened. Plate racing collects drivers who don’t deserve it, and Daytona collected Hocevar before he could show what the final run looked like.
Tony Stewart ran in the race, finishing 36th after a mechanical failure at lap 39. Frankie Muniz also ran, completing all 102 laps in 16th. The Truck Series Daytona entry list always comes with a few names worth a double-take.
Notes
- John Hunter Nemechek ran as an invitational driver (No. 62 Toyota)
- Ricky Stenhouse Jr. also ran invitational (No. 45 Chevy), finished 6th
- Corey LaJoie ran invitational (No. 75 Chevy), finished 34th before a late retirement
- Christian Eckes finished 3rd — 0.065 seconds behind Smith
- Ty Majeski finished 4th — 0.069 seconds behind Smith