Sammy Smith won first Truck Series race at Talladega in overtime

NXTbets Pro | Published On: October 24, 2026

Smith’s breakthrough

Smith won the Love’s RV Stop 225 at Talladega Superspeedway in overtime and edged Tyler Ankrum by 0.091 seconds for his first NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series victory. Smith took the lead on the final lap in the No. 7 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet and held it to the checkered flag after 88 laps of racing that kept the field close all the way to the finish. The win came in Smith’s 11th Truck Series start and gave him a breakthrough moment in a race where track position mattered late. Smith led 21 of the race’s 88 laps, enough to put him in control for stretches and keep him in range when the final run began. Ankrum settled for second, Austin Green finished third, Ty Majeski took fourth and Kaden Honeycutt rounded out the top five. The margin at the line showed how little room there was for error once the race reached overtime. Smith did enough when the moment arrived, and he did it with the lead changing hands at the very end.

Talladega overtime

Talladega delivered the kind of race that can turn in a single lap. The event featured five cautions and two major crashes, and the late stoppages repeatedly reset the order. Gio Ruggiero won Stage 1 and Tanner Gray won Stage 2, but neither stage win settled the outcome. The key moment came on lap 79, when a crash involving Thomas Annunziata, Kaden Honeycutt and Grant Enfinger brought out the caution that sent the race to overtime. That incident forced one more restart and gave the front-runners one last chance to settle things on the final lap. Smith was in the right place when the race resumed and made the move he needed when the finish came into view. The overtime restart put the pressure on everyone at the front, and the race ended with Smith first to the stripe after the lead swapped hands in the closing moments. Talladega asked for patience, timing and one clean push to the finish, and the overtime finish delivered all three.

Smith future

Smith’s win capped a busy day that carried more than one big moment. Earlier in the day, he said he will race full time for TRICON Garage in 2027, then followed that announcement with the biggest result of his Truck Series career. The sequence gave the day a clear arc, with a future plan in place and a breakthrough win to match it. Smith left Talladega with his first series victory, a final-lap pass and a postrace burnout in Victory Lane. The celebration fit the result. He earned the win in overtime, survived the late-race chaos and turned his 11th start into a landmark moment. The combination of a first victory, a close finish and a new full-time commitment made for a race day with real weight. Smith did not need a long list of laps led to close the deal. He needed the lead at the right time, and he got it on the final lap after a race that kept shifting around him. The burnout in Victory Lane finished the job and put the day’s defining image in place.