By Seth Eggert, Associate Editor
DARLINGTON, S.C. – The decision of what lane to restart in ultimately left Ty Majeski with a top-five finish after a chance at victory at Darlington Raceway.
With 26 laps to go the ThorSport Racing driver had run down and passed Christian Eckes for the lead in the Buckle Up South Carolina 200. Majeski then cruised away from the defending Darlington winner as well as fellow NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series veteran Grant Enfinger. That was until the final caution waved that pushed the race into overtime.
Majeski led the field onto pit road and was the first off of pit road on four fresh tires. Still in the lead, the Seymour, WI native had first choice of inside or outside lane on the restart. He debated with his crew chief, Joe Shear Jr. and his spotter on which lane to choose. Ultimately, he went with the data and chose the outside.
The push on the restart from his teammate, Jake Garcia, came too late. At the same time, Majeski spun the tires, allowing NASCAR Cup Series driver Ross Chastain to take the lead, and the victory. The 29-year-old slipped back to fifth by the time the checkered flag waved.
“Obviously [I] probably should have taken the bottom,” Majeski admitted. “We were going back and forth on the radio; the data shows take the top. So that’s the safe route. However, I got the lead on the bottom on a restart and then I was leading and then got beat on the bottom on the next restart.
“So, I saw the bottom work twice. I should have went with my gut and I didn’t. It’s circumstantial. If I get a good push on the top, maybe the top works. I thought the No. 1 (Colby Howard) would, I guess the No. 45’s help formulated before mine did. The No. 1 got a better launch and the No. 13, and I got an okay launch, spun [my tires] a little bit. But he just honestly had better help with the 1 on the bottom, and that was all she wrote.”
Although Majeski qualified 16th in the No. 98 Soda Sense/Curb Records Ford F-150, he quickly moved up the running order. He finished the first stage in third and was fourth in the second stage, earning an additional 15 points.
The fifth-place finish was Majeski’s fourth top-five of the season. It was also the 22nd top-five finish of his Truck Series career.
The top-five kept Majeski fourth in points. He is 61-points behind leader Eckes and is 101 ahead of the playoff cutline, currently held by fellow ThorSport driver, and defending champion, Ben Rhodes
Next for Majeski is a trip to the newly repaved North Wilkesboro Speedway for the Wright Brand 250 on Saturday, May 18 at 1:30 p.m. ET on Fox Sports 1. The race will also be broadcast on the Motor Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, channel 90.