Grant Enfinger wins NASCAR Truck return to IRP with last lap pass

BROWNSBURG -- After an 11-year hiatus, NASCAR returned to Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park on Friday evening with a bang. The ARCA Menards Series kicked off the night with an action-packed race won by Chandler Smith. The NASCAR Camping World Truck Series followed with Grant Enfinger winning a thrilling race that was capped off with a last lap pass.

ARCA returned to the .686-mile Brownsburg short track Friday evening after being left off the 2021 schedule. Chandler Smith, 20, entered the Reese's 200 as a two-time defending champion of the event, having won the last two races held in 2019 and 2020. Smith, now driving full-time for Kyle Busch Motorsports in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, made the Reese's 200 his first ARCA start of the year teaming up with Venturini Motorsports. All of Smith's career ARCA victories have come driving for Venturini Motorsports.

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It was a race between two Smith's. Sammy Smith (no relation to Chandler), racing for Kyle Busch Motorsports, started on the pole ahead of Jesse Love, Chandler Smith, Taylor Gray and Nick Sanchez. Rajah Caruth, the series points leader heading into the race, started from the 7th position.

The 18-year-old Sammy Smith appeared to have the advantage from the drop of the green flag. He led the early stages of the race, holding off Jesse Love and Taylor Gray. Chandler Smith quickly moved up from his third place starting position and began to challenge the younger Smith. Lapped traffic became a major issue for Chandler Smith. He was held up multiple times while looking to make a pass for the lead. It wasn't until after the first race break that Chandler Smith was able to take the lead and never look back.

Driving double duty, Chandler Smith celebrated his ARCA victory with his Venturini team rather quickly before getting ready to drive another 200 miles, this time behind the wheel of his Kyle Busch Motorsports race truck.

The ARCA points championship became closer with Rajah Caruth holding just a one-point lead over his teammate and second-place driver Nick Sanchez. Daniel Dye is five points out of the championship lead in third.

Fans continued to pack the grandstands and viewing hill to watch NASCAR make its return at the conclusion of the ARCA race. The first race of the NASCAR Truck Series playoffs did not disappoint. Every fan in attendance was treated to a spectacular show that featured plenty of on-track action.

"I've said for six months that (IRP) should never have been off the schedule. This is a Truck Series track," said Grant Enfinger after the race. "Not only do you have strategy, you also have multiple lanes."

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Enfinger entered the race at IRP below the cutline. He had not won a race since 2020 and had relatively struggled throughout the season. Enfinger qualified well and started from the fifth position. However it was KBM teammates John Hunter Nemechek and Chandler Smith who held the early advantage.

"IRP itself is not one of my better places. It just doesn't fit my driving style," said Enfinger post-race. "I recognized that from years past and I tried to change my mindset coming in here."

Enfinger never lost sight of the leaders, however. He scored stage points in both stages, finishing fifth at the end of Stage 1 and second at the end of Stage 2. Those extra points helped Enfinger's points deficit, but he needed to win to secure his chances at advancing to the next round.

Late in the race it appeared Ty Majeski was going to run away and score his first career NASCAR Camping World Truck Series victory. However, a late race accident involving Carson Hocevar and Colby Howard bunched up the field and gave Enfinger an opportunity at victory. A spin from Taylor Gray off the front bumper of John Hunter Nemechek set up a NASCAR Overtime finish.

As the field sped into Turn 1 with two laps left, race leader Nemechek slid up the racetrack and made contact with the wall in Turn 2. That allowed Zane Smith to sneak into the lead before quickly being overtaken by Enfinger as they took the white flag on the frontstretch. The 37-year-old from Fairhope, Alabama, crossed the line first in front of roaring fans, who had waited eleven long years to see NASCAR's IRP return.

"I changed my whole outlook on short track racing to come here tonight," said Enfinger. "I'm a guy who likes to get into the throttle really early even if I can't get wide open. This is a place where I feel like you have to dive-bomb in there, give up the center, then get back in the gas once."

Despite the odds being against him before the start of the race, Grant Enfinger's hard work and great strategy calls by his team allowed him to break a 38-race winless drought, dating back to Martinsville in October 2020. It also propelled him from the bottom of the playoff grid to the top.

Enfinger and his GMS Motorsports team will try to continue their momentum when the series heads to Richmond, Virginia on August 13th.

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: NASCAR Trucks: Grant Enfinger wins series' return to IRP on last lap