Experience meets youth in Truck Series playoffs, and words are flying

Mess with the bull, you get the horns. A phrase that needs little explanation, especially when it's coming from someone like Johnny Sauter, who isn't afraid to do whatever it takes to win. RELATED: Sauter's intense post-race interview After celebrating in Victory Lane at Chicago, Sauter, the 2016 series champion, addressed perhaps the key question of the NASCAR Camping World Trucks Series Playoffs -- How do the veterans feel about the youth movement happening in the series? Sauter's response: He isn't afraid to go toe-to-toe with anyone, even drivers who are half his age. The 2017 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Playoffs field is a melting pot of two veteran drivers, one being Sauter, and six fast-rising young guns who are trying to jumpstart their early careers. MORE: Analyzing the full field Ben Rhodes, driver of the No. 27 Safelite AutoGlass Toyota Tundra, addressed the topic with NASCAR.com after Sauter said "If Ben Rhodes wants a piece of it, let's go" post-Chicago. "I'll make sure to bring my leather gloves," Rhodes told ‪NASCAR.com. "I'll wrestle the cattle up. I ain't scared. He can be a bully all he wants, it doesn't intimidate me." With a championship on the line, all eight drivers -- no matter the age -- want to win it all. Will experience be a factor? Will the motivation to make a statement be the key? The journey begins at New Hampshire on Saturday (1 p.m. ET, FS1, PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).