Stewart Friesen (No. 52) battling Kyle Busch (No. 7) during the FR8 250 at Atlanta Motor Speedway. (Photo: Hayden Hutchison | The Podium Finish)
HAMPTON, Ga. — In a heartbreaking defeat, Stewart Friesen finished second to Kyle Busch in a thrilling photo-finish to end the FR8 208 at Atlanta Motor Speedway.
With two laps to go, Friesen got a great push down the back straightaway from Bayley Currey, cleared Busch for the lead and took the white flag.
It was not long as Busch got back to the inside of the No. 52 truck in Turns 1 and 2.
This led to a drag race between the two drivers down the back straightaway and into Turns 3 and 4 where the two were still separated headed to the start/finish line. Friesen held a narrow lead at the restart zone but Busch used the side draft to inch back in front of Friesen, claiming the win by 0.017 seconds.
“We had a shot and I guess I got too far off my help there coming off the back on my last lap,” he said. “I thought I could pack some more air on him coming out of [Turn] 3 and surge ahead, but just had the surge at the wrong time and he came back.”
Stewart Friesen (No. 52) racing at Atlanta Motor Speedway. (Photo: Hayden Hutchison | The Podium Finish)
When thinking back on the finish, Frisen recalls a moment in Turn 3 where he thought Busch would be able to fight back as the two battled to the checkered.
“I tried to control him the best I could,” Friesen said. “(I) got to the top and tried to pack air on him (Busch) and I just knew when we surged ahead there into (Turn) 3 I went ‘ah man, he’s gonna be able to pack back on me and come back,’ and that’s what happened.”
For Friesen, a win would have been his first since 2022 at Texas Motor Speedway and Playoff appearance since the same season. There have been a lot of changes with his Halmar International No. 52 team over the past few seasons and believes this result is a product of the behind-the-scenes effort being put in.
Stewart Friesen (No. 52) racing against Chandler Smith (No. 38) during the Fr8 208. (Photo: Hayden Hutchison | The Podium Finish)
“It’s just a product of a lot of hard work. We’re building our own chassis and bodies and not because we want to, but just because it’s kind of a necessity within the series right now,” said Friesen. “It’s really old school the way this series is. It’s hand-fabricated, cheap metal bodies and hand-built chassis, and it’s cool to see our guys take it from the tubing rack to the race track and have good results.”
Even with the tough defeat, Friesen still leaves Atlanta with a momentum-building run and sits in seventh place in the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series standings heading into their next race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
“Just a big shot in the arm for our race team to be upfront where we belong and racing for wins,” he said. “It takes a village to keep this deal going down the road and I’m proud to have at least a top three out of it.”
