Smith nails late restart to win Trucks Series race

KANSAS CITY, Kan. — Zane Smith drove away from pole-sitter John Hunter Nemechek and Ty Majeski on a restart with 9 laps to go at Kansas Speedway on Saturday night time for his third NASCAR Truck Sequence victory of the season.

The 22-year-old Smith, who moved from GMS Racing to Entrance Row Motorsports earlier this 12 months, was slicing via lapped visitors with a snug cushion on the remainder of the sphere when Dean Thompson crashed within the closing laps.

Smith selected the within lane and launched away from the pack on the restart so as to add to his season-opening win at Daytona and his victory at Circuit of the Americas. Majeski was second and Grant Enfinger third whereas Nemechek, the winner final weekend at Darlington, obtained a horrible leap on the ultimate restart and wound up sixth.

“Simply so cool. That was one in every of my simpler ones I’ve ever needed to win,” Smith mentioned, “however that late-race restart scared me somewhat bit. Good factor I did not have one other one there as a result of I am caught in fourth (gear), so sorry about no burnout.”

As for Nemechek?

“I spun tires. Did not get a superb push from behind. It is on me,” he mentioned. “I spun the tires. That is just about it.”

Majeski’s career-best Truck collection end got here every week after ending fourth at Darlington.

“We have been actually shut,” he mentioned. “We saved easing on the changes all night time, getting the steadiness higher on each run. … We have been actually hitting it off this 12 months. It has been a ton of enjoyable.”

Chandler Smith was fourth and Christian Eckes completed fifth.

Corey Heim, the 19-year-old from Georgia, bounced again from a crash within the ARCA race earlier Saturday to win the opening stage. The shock winner at Atlanta was by no means challenged after getting previous Nemechek for the race lead.

Heim then spent the second stage chasing Smith, who cruised to his fourth stage win, earlier than his night time went awry. Heim’s engine started inflicting issues and he slapped the wall whereas operating sixth within the ultimate stage.

On the transfer all through the primary two phases was Stewart Friesen, whose journey from the again of the sphere wasn’t practically as irritating as his journey to Kansas.

Friesen had so many journey woes — he spent the earlier night time in a New York Metropolis airport — that he wasn’t on the monitor in time to qualify, so Bubba Wallace climbed into the No. 52 for follow and time trials.

Friesen’s flight landed concerning the time that Wallace certified fifth, however the driver swap despatched him to the rear for the beginning. He completed 14th.