Ty Majeski Drafts Behind Kyle Busch (Photo: Ricky Martinez/The Podium Finish)
HAMPTON, Ga. — Looking to rebound from a 15th-place finish at Daytona International Speedway last weekend, Ty Majeski and the No. 98 Thorsport Racing team rolled into Atlanta Motor Speedway with new optimism.
Starting in the third spot, Majeski had decent track position up front and behind the leaders. To begin the race, the Wisconsin native was able to lead one lap before getting pushed to the middle of the pack. He maintained a strong position in the top five and eventually wound up fifth at the conclusion of the first stage. Majeski was able to lead another lap during the stage as well. In the second stage, he finished seventh to earn even more stage points.
During the final stage, Majeski was putting himself in contention to potentially win the race with very little help from the other drivers as his teammates were too far back to help. After race leader Grant Enfinger had a flat tire late in the race, Majeski advanced into second position right behind the new leader, Kyle Busch. The Thorsport Racing driver continued to put pressure on Busch, but as the checkered flag fell, Majeski could only manage a second-place finishing position.
“It’s a tough spot,” Majeski said about not having teammates to work with in the final 10 laps. “You’re playing with runs and timing. When you drag the brake and try to build the run to try to put him in a spot where he’s got to block. I did what I wanted to do. I got to his bumper down the backstretch and it was in my hands to make the move. He blocked the bottom, so I faded right to try to get to his quarter panel. If the 11 could have gone with me, we probably could have won the race, but it just didn’t work out that way.”
Despite not having a whole lot of help to challenge for the win, Majeski considered the runner-up finish a good day, especially since he had fallen back to 20th at one point during the race.
“Yeah, it was a good day. At one point we were like 20th getting passed by trucks with all kinds of damage. We were so loose in the back. We made one really good call on the cone and went from like 16th. If I would have chose the top, I would have restarted 16th and instead, I restarted third and I was able to get to the lead and hold that track position.”
Up Next: The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series heads west to Las Vegas Motor Speedway on Friday night, March 1.
