TC Daily Pit Stop: Ty Majeski, Jesse Love Reign Victorious in Double Feature from IRP; Highlights from Friday in Indianapolis; AJ Allmendinger On Pole for Xfinity Race at Indy RC

TC Daily Pit Stop: Saturday, August 12th, 2023

Joseph Srigley

Aug 12, 2023

Photo Credit: Tyson Gifford, Racing America

After a devastating loss last time out at Richmond Raceway, Ty Majeski and Joe Shear, Jr. were not to be denied in Friday’s T-Sport 200 at Indianapolis Raceway Park, the first race of the 2023 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Playoffs.

Piloting the No. 98 Road Ranger Ford F-150 for ThorSport Racing, Majeski led a whopping 179 of 200 laps in Friday’s NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series event at the 0.686-mile short track, including a consecutive stint of the final 161 laps.

Granted, when it comes to a short track race, it’s not often that the final pass for the lead is made with more than 75% of the race remaining. However, much like two weeks ago at Richmond, Majeski was just that strong.

Christian Eckes, Layne Riggs, Carson Hocevar, and Zane Smith completed the top-five.

RACE RECAP
RACE RESULTS
DRIVER POINTS
OWNER POINTS
INSPECTION REPORT

Shane Van Gisbergen ‘Living The Dream’ After 19th-Place in NASCAR Oval Debut

When Shane van Gisbergen took the green for Friday’s NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series T-Sport 200, the New Zealand native had only made 18 laps around the 0.686-mile Indianapolis Raceway Park.

At one point in the race, it could have been argued that Van Gisbergen was punching above the weight of the No. 41 Chevrolet Silverado, as he was battling inside the top-15 against the likes of Chase Purdy (Kyle Busch Motorsports) and Jake Drew (Hattori Racing Enterprises).

“That was awesome,” van Gisbergen said post-race. “A little gutted, ten to go, finally dropped off the lead lap, but had a ball, had some awesome racing with some people, had a lot of fun. Gotta thank Niece Motorsports, Worldwide Express, and the Trackhouse guys for having me. I’m living the dream, it was really cool. Everyone was respectful, it was awesome.”

One Year Later, Site of Truck Series Debut Provides Much-Needed Third-Place Result for Layne Riggs

Last season, Indianapolis Raceway Park served as the venue in which up-and-coming driver Layne Riggs would make his NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series debut. Now, one year later, that same short track is the site of his first-ever top-five, a third-place finish.

The path to get to this point hasn’t been simple, though. After showing immense speed in his second and third starts at Richmond and Phoenix last year, many expected to see Riggs in an expanded capacity for 2023. That hasn’t been the case.

Now, there’s nobody questioning the ability of Riggs, who has since been tapped by Kevin Harvick Incorporated to pilot its entry in the CARS Late Model Tour – it’s quite obvious he deserves to be in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, as he reiterated post-race. However, it really comes down to just one thing: Sponsorship

Late-Race Caution at IRP Helps Jesse Love Snag Seventh Win of 2023 ARCA Season

Jesse Love is now up to seven wins during the 2023 ARCA Menards Series season, but in the closing laps of Friday’s Reese’s 200 at Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park, Luke Fenhaus looked like the driver heading toward victory lane.

Fenhaus had taken the lead from Love with 34 laps remaining, and he was walking away for the win. Then, a late race caution for an incident between Conner Jones and Christian Rose changed everything.

The first-year driver, who was very much in the catbird seat, ended up being a proverbial sitting duck as Love launched his No. 20 Venturini Motorsports Toyota Camry into the inside lane heading into Turn 1 on the restart with 10 laps to go.

Luke Fenhaus finished in second, with Sean Hingorani, William Sawalich, and Lavar Scott rounding out the top-five. Conner Jones, Greg Van Alst, Andres Perez de Lara, Toni Breidinger, and Christian Rose completed the top-10.

Lavar Scott Continues to Impress With Fifth-Place Run in ARCA at IRP

While he may not be a full-time competitor in the ARCA Menards Series, what Lavar Scott has accomplished in a part-time role with Rev Racing so far during the 2023 season is nothing short of remarkable.

The 19-year-old racer overcame an on-track incident with Sean Hingorani in Friday night’s Reese’s 200 at Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park to score yet another top-five finish. The New Jersey native has now recorded three consecutive top-five finishes to begin his ARCA Menards Series career.

Scott credited his team for keeping him in the game when things looked bleak on Friday night.

“Yeah, it feels really good,” Scott said to TobyChristie.com of his fifth-place finish. “It’s a testament. It shows how hard this team works, and how this team cares no matter what happens. It worked out for us, and we got a top-five out of it.”

Video: Christian Rose Confronts Conner Jones After Late-Race Incident in ARCA Race at IRP

Following the Reese’s 200 for the ARCA Menards Series at Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park, Christian Rose and Conner Jones exchanged words, and some slight contact, after climbing from their vehicles.

Rose, who drives the No. 32 Ford Mustang for AM Racing, was frustrated with the Venturini Motorsports driver after a late-race incident that saw the former Division I Baseball Player get turned off the front bumper of the No. 25.

After having a discussion, which looked to be quite heated, Rose went ahead and slapped away the hand of the 17-year-old driver, which caused the people standing around the pair to jump into action.

AJ Allmendinger Secures Third Straight Xfinity Pole at Indianapolis Road Course

To the surprise of literally nobody, AJ Allmendinger will lead the field to green in Saturday’s NASCAR Xfinity Series event at Indianapolis Motor Speedway’s Road Course, scoring the pole in an abbreviated single-round group qualifying session.

Driving the No. 10 Chevrolet for Kaulig Racing for the final time this season, Allmendinger picked up his third pole position of the year, and his third straight first-place starting spot at the 2.438-mile road course in Indianapolis.

Posting a time of 95.033 seconds (92.393mph), the Los Gatos, California native put the Xfinity Series field on blast, leading the session by more than six-tenths of a second over fellow NASCAR Cup Series competitor Ty Gibbs, who will start on the front row for his best start of the year.

Josh Berry put down an impressive lap time, which will slot the JR Motorsports driver into a third-place starting spot for Saturday’s event, while Austin Hill, and Daniel Hemric will complete the top-five starters for the Pennzoil 150.

A guest post by

Joseph Srigley

Managing Editor of TobyChristie.com | Founder of Srigley Stats