Jeffrey Hrunka - Motorsports Today Contributor
RICHMOND VA. - Ty Majeski prevails late as fresh tires pay off the dividends to claim his second win of 2024 for the Clean Harbors 250 at Richmond Raceway.
Stage 1:
Christian Eckes led the field to green for the Clean Harbors 250, with Majeski to his outside. He wouldn’t hold the lead for long as Majeski took it from him on lap 13.
Majeski held the lead for 43 laps until Matt Mills put his #42 Chevrolet Silverado into the turn four wall while running in 15th. All but four trucks stayed on the racetrack, with Majeski, Connor Zilisch and Tyler Ankrum staying out.
Sticker tires were the correct call as Taylor Gray and Eckes were the first two drivers to come down into pit road and translated their strategy to a 1-2 at the end of the stage. With the stage victory, Eckes locked up the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Regular Season Championship and gave Gray enough points to put himself into the postseason.
Stage 2:
The second stage started identically to the first, with Eckes getting the jump on the restart to hold the race lead. Grant Enfinger filled in second, kept the pressure on Eckes, and forced him into a mistake, allowing himself to take the race lead with 25 laps to go in stage two.
A spin by playoff hopeful Matt Crafton brought out the caution with 12 to go left in the stage. Ty Dillon, Bayley Currey and Stewart Friesen attempted to flip the strategy to no avail, as they were the only drivers to stay out during the caution period.
Enfinger was the first truck to exit pit road with four tires on and used this advantage to get past the trucks that stayed out on the restart. He took the lead with five to go back and held off Eckes and Daniel Dye to win stage two.
Final Stage:
Three consecutive cautions stalled the final portion of the race, as drivers did not go more than a few laps without making contact with one another. Numerous front runners, including Corey Hiem, Tanner Gray, and William Sawalich, dashed pit road to try to find an advantage through the chaos.
Luckily for the drivers who pitted, the race finally saw a green flag run, which allowed them to use their sticker tires to their advantage. Heim clawed through the field in a matter of laps to take the second on lap 197.
On the other end of the strategy, Dye was the driver most affected by the fresh-tire runners, as he faded from 9th to 13th on the restart. This shortened the gap to the cutline to 11 points with 35 to go.
Heim eventually passed Enfinger for the race lead three laps before a spin by Kaden Honeycutt brought out the caution with 30 to go. Pit strategy was scattered as numerous drivers put on the freshest tires they had.
Sawalich, who got the lead by taking two tires on the restart, got split by Majeski and Enfinger, which gave the #98 Ford F-150 the lead with 29 laps to go. Over a dozen laps after the restart, the race saw its final caution when Chase Purdy turned Zilisch for the final caution of the race.
Majeski got the jump on the restart to power around Enfinger’s #9 Chevrolet Silverado on the outside lane to take the lead with 7 to go. He was able to hold the lead and claim his fifth win of the season, his second one of the season.
“I think it’s just timing,” Majeski said. “These tracks are just good tracks for myself, and our package, and what we do at ThorSport.”
Up Next:
NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series action continues at the Milwaukee Mile Speedway to kick off the postseason with the round of ten. It is the first of three races in the round, in which Bristol and Kansas will also be featured.
Ten drivers will compete in the postseason: Christian Eckes, Corey Heim, Ty Majeski, Nicholas Sanchez, Rajah Caruth, Grant Enfinger, Tyler Ankrum, Taylor Gay, Ben Rhodes and Daniel Dye.
Of the drivers in the playoffs, Majeski carries the most momentum. He is geared to start the playoffs at his home track.
“We see a lot of similarities between Milwaukee and Phoenix, so that’s going to be a good test session for us, said Majeski.”
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