Sheldon Creed roars to Truck Championship in overtime
Brett Moffitt was in position to win his second series title in the last three years until Dawson Cram‘s crash with three laps left in the scheduled distance set up overtime. That forced teams to decide if to pit for tires.
Creed was fourth and decided to pit for four fresh tires. Moffitt and fellow title contender Grant Enfinger stayed on track and restarted first and second.
“Stayed out like a sitting duck,” Moffitt said after the race about being on older tires.
Creed restarted ninth.
MORE: Race results
Moffitt didn’t get a good restart on the older tires and soon found himself in the middle of five wide. He quickly got trapped in traffic. Enfinger was running second on the backstretch but got trapped by Chandler Smith, allowing Creed to pass Enfinger and then Smith on the inside to take the lead.
“I pride myself on restarts and I just nailed that restart,” Creed told FS1 after his fifth win of the year.
The 23-year-old Creed added to his trophy case with the championship. The GMS Racing driver won the 2018 ARCA title, is a two-time Stadium Super Trucks Series champion and an X-Games gold medalist.
Zane Smith, a title contender, finished second.
“It’s just sickening to come up that short,” he said.
Chandler Smith was third and followed by Christian Eckes and Raphael Lessard. Moffitt finished 10th. Enfinger placed 13th.
“It’s frustrating to lose them like that,” Moffitt told FS1.
Asked about overcoming two broken legs in March to have a chance at the championship, Moffitt told FS1: “I guess if broken legs isn’t enough of a handicap, race strategy is I guess. It’s been frustrating. It’s been a frustrating year on and off the racetrack. To be honest, I’m just glad it’s over. Thankful for the opportunity with GMS but definitely not the year we wanted.”
STAGE 1 WINNER: Zane Smith
STAGE 2 WINNER: Brett Moffitt
WHO HAD A GOOD RACE: Chandler Smith’s third-place finish was his fifth top-five finish in his last six starts. … Christian Eckes scored his second consecutive fourth-place finish.
NOTABLE: Sheldon Creed scored the second Truck Series title for GMS Racing. The team won the title in 2016 with Johnny Sauter. … Chevrolet won the manufacturer’s title for the series. … Zane Smith is the Truck Rookie of the Year.
NEXT: The 2021 season is set to begin Feb. 12 at Daytona International Speedway
