Thomas Annunziata was transported to a local medical facility Saturday afternoon after a fire erupted under the hood of his Tricon Toyota Tundra TRD Pro at Lime Rock Park. He had been running second and closing in on the lead when the truck caught fire under caution in the LiUNA 150.
Annunziata pulled off the track and leapt from the truck, then was taken first to the infield care center before being moved for further evaluation. Tricon said he was awake and alert while being transported, a reassuring update after one truck fire abruptly turned a promising run into a medical check and a cleanup pause for the race.
The stoppage came after Chandler Smith stalled in turn four, bringing out the fifth caution of the race and the third for cause. The race was set to go green on lap 81, but it was briefly red-flagged while crews cleaned up oil spilled during Annunziata’s fire.
The cause has not been identified. Jerame Donley said the team would conduct a thorough investigation, noting that there was a lot of heat and melted material under the truck and that the group would get back to the shop to dissect it and figure out what happened. He also pointed to possible alternator issues elsewhere in the field, but said there was no short, quick answer yet.
The incident landed a day after Annunziata won the ARCA Series race at Lime Rock Park, his second career ARCA win at the same track. It was also his second career Truck Series start, and both Truck Series starts came at Lime Rock Park. He was ultimately recorded 29th in the Truck race, a harsh finish that fit the way the afternoon turned once the fire took hold.
For Annunziata, the immediate concern was not the result but the evaluation after a sudden blaze under the hood. The next answer this race needs is the one the team said it does not have yet: what sparked the fire in the first place.
