Brendan Gaughan will return to the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series in this month’s race at Naval Base Coronado. He will pilot the No. 20 Chevrolet Silverado for McAnally-Hilgermann Racing sponsored by SouthPoint, his family’s casino business. This will be a home race for Gaughan, as the 50-year old is a native of Los Angeles.
Gaughan drove eight full-time NCTS seasons between 2002 and 2013, earning eight wins and a best points finish of fourth in 2003. His other NASCAR accolades include a NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series win in 2014 at Road America and a top-ten finish in the 2020 Daytona 500. It was in 2020 when Gaughan made his latest NASCAR start, a 35th-place finish at Talladega Superspeedway for Beard Motorsports. Despite this, Gaughan has not been out of the driver’s seat, as he won the 2025 Baja 1000 Class 1 in 2025.
This will be a reunion between Gaughan and McAnally. The combination won the ARCA Menards Series West championships in 2000 and 2001, and Bill McAnally made his NCTS ownership debut with Gaughan in 2000. The team’s eight starts together were highlighed by a third-place finish in the 2001 race at Mesa Marin Raceway.
The No. 20 has been a part-time rotational entry this season. Toni Breidinger DNQ’d at Watkins Glen in the team’s debut, and Daniel Dye has earned back-to-back top-15 finishes including a top-ten at Nashville Superspeedway. Mason Massey will make starts later this season beginning with Richmond Raceway, while Dye and Breidinger are both expected to return to the seat at a later date.
Gaughan’s truck stands to be competitive, as Daniel Hemric has finished top-ten on both road courses so far this season. Gaughan has several top-five and top-ten finishes on road courses in the lower series on top of his 2014 Road America win.
Gaughan joins a stacked entry list. Cup Series winners Jamie McMurray and Jimmie Johnson are both confirmed to be racing, and road course aces Kaz Grala and Parker Kligerman are listed on the NASCAR Driver Portal.
