Daniel Hemric makes honest admission after losing to Corey Heim at Watkins Glen: “He did a really good job and I didn’t”

When Daniel Hemric lost to Corey Heim at Watkins Glen on Friday, August 8, he knew it wasn’t an easy win. There were three overtime restarts that Heim had to battle, besides tackling a fast-charging Hemric on the last one. But in the end, it was Heim who had the last laugh.

Heim recorded his sixth career Craftsman Truck Series victory of the season and his fourth consecutive on a road course. Hemric, on the other hand, finished second, marking his career-best performance on a road course.

The former NASCAR Cup Series driver knew he could have done a better job on that last restart. After all, he had a major tire advantage over Heim and his No. 11 Toyota. Speaking with a reporter after the race, the McAnally-Hilgemann Racing driver said:

“He (Heim) did a really good job and I really didn't to be honest with you. Having that much of tire advantage...just still thought we were going to be in the mix there.”

Hemric avoided two incidents with his teammate Connor Mosack, saving enough fuel to place himself on the outside front row for the second overtime restart. He lost his chance, but another caution paved the way for the driver to record his second win of the season.

However, Hemric couldn’t hold off Corey Heim on the closing laps.

“The 11 had to make a big block on me down the front straightaway and let me get to where I wanted to be in 1,” Daniel Hemric explained (quoted by Yahoo Sports). “I thought I had him where I wanted to be, but man, he just had a lot of potential starting in the esses, and it was all I could do not to drive into his door.”

Only one race remains until the playoffs kick off at Darlington Raceway on Saturday, August 30. Next up for the drivers is the eero 250 at Richmond Raceway.

Scheduled for next Friday, August 15, the 250-lap event will stream live on FS1 (7:30 p.m. ET onwards) with radio updates on NASCAR Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

Daniel Hemric explains his decision to join McAnally-Hilgemann Racing for the 2025 season

Just last year, Daniel Hemric was driving a Cup car under the banner of Kaulig Racing. But he finished the season with zero wins, four top-10s, and a P29 finish in points. The Kannapolis native knew he needed a new team, which would help him regain his winning momentum.

But why did he choose trucks? Daniel Hemric had not driven full-time in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series since 2016, so why now?

“I got a couple of texts from folks inside the industry if I had any thoughts or any consideration of possibly driving a Truck,” Hemric said in an exclusive interview with The Racing Experts. “I said ‘Well, obviously it would have to be a race-winning organization.’”

“And next thing you know, I was on the phone with Bill McAnally, and he literally started our conversation off with “Hey, I want you to know, and I want to go on the record that I’m calling you,’ and we started to talk,” he added.

As things stand, Daniel Hemric is open to doing a couple of races in the Cup and Xfinity Series if the opportunity arises. But even then, he said he would first take it over with McAnally to see if his schedule allows the detour.