NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Rookie of the Year candidate Dalton Sargeant and GMS Racing have parted ways, the team announced Wednesday morning.
The team had filed an entry for Sargeant ahead of Sunday’s Chevrolet Silverado 250 at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park.
GMS Racing president Mike Beam said in a statement, “Due to a unfortunate circumstance with Sargeant Motorsports, Dalton Sargeant will no longer compete with GMS Racing full-time in the Truck Series for the remainder of the 2018 season. Until the issue is resolved, Spencer (Gallagher) will serve as the fill-in driver of the No. 25 Chevrolet entry beginning this weekend in Canada.
“We hope a solution can be agreed upon and to see Dalton back racing GMS equipment in the near future.”
Shortly before 10:00 a.m., Wednesday, Sargeant offered the following statement through his Twitter account.
“It’s difficult to put into words but effective immediately I will not be completing this racing season as the driver of the No. 25 truck for GMS Racing.
“I’ll take away so many great memories from competing in these first 16 races in the Camping World Truck Series. This series is truly one of the best racing series in the world and I’m honored to have raced against some of the most talented drivers in NASCAR this year. I’ve learned so much from the beginning of the season and grown exponentially as a driver. I look forward to continuing that transformation in the future.
“I’ve also had great partners this season, and the support from Performance Plus Motor Oil, Safety Kleen, Scott Shop Towels and many more have meant so much to my family and me. We’ve worked hard to represent all of our partners and to make them proud each and every week.
“This is unfortunate for everyone involved, but all we can do right now is stay focused and work hard towards the 2019 racing season. Words alone cannot fully express my profound appreciation for all of the support I’ve received this year from my family, friends, partners and, of course, the amazing NASCAR fans that I’m privileged to meet
each and every week. Thank you all.
“I look forward to seeing everyone at a racetrack soon.”
Sargeant, a native of Boca Raton, Fla. joined the Truck Series powerhouse team after spending 2017 competing in the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards driving for Cunningham Motorsports. After winning three races and finishing second in the championship standings to Austin Theriault, Sargeant joined GMS Racing in January to contend for the Truck Series title.
However, Sargeant struggled to find his footing aboard his No. 25 Performance Plus Chevrolet Silverado scoring just one top-five and four top-10 finishes in 16 races thus far this season.
Sargeant and crew chief Doug Randolph had scored two top-10 finishes including a career-best third-place effort at Pocono (Pa.) Raceway last month in the last five races.
The team missed the Truck Series Playoffs after finishing 11th at Bristol and ranked 10th overall in the championship standings.
Following his first career top-five at Pocono, Sargeant was asked if he could pinpoint the reason for the surge in their on-track performance, Sargeant had a hard time responding, but said he believed the team started to turn the corner at Chicagoland Speedway in late June.
“I don’t know,” quipped Sargeant. “Overall, we made some good momentum from really at Chicago. We’ve made some big changes to our truck that have seemed to work out well not only for myself but for GMS as a whole. You just looking at the 24-truck getting a win at Gateway and whatnot.
“Overall, we’ve been slowly picking up some speed. Working with Doug Randolph we’ve been getting more of a feel for each other. Him knowing what I like, and we’ve been just been building off that and getting stronger each and every weekend.”
In addition to ARCA, Sargeant also competed in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series with starts across both the East and West divisions. He tallied one win, two poles, 10 top-five and 13 top-10s in 18 starts overall.
Sources tell CATCHFENCE.com that Sargeant does not plan to drive for another Truck Series team this season and will regroup for 2019.
Follow Chris Knight on Twitter @Knighter01.
