BROOKLYN, Mich. (AP) — Brett Moffitt isn’t eligible for the season-ending Chase in the NASCAR Truck Series.
Teammate Timothy Peters is, but on the final lap at Michigan International Speedway, that didn’t much matter.
“We just had such a run — we were rolling five to 10 miles an hour faster than them getting into Turn 1,” Moffitt said.
“I knew if there was room to get to the outside, I didn’t care if it was going to stick or not. I’m here to win races.”
Moffitt, who is from Grimes, passed Peters and William Byron to win Saturday’s Trucks race at Michigan by 0.098 seconds, a thrilling ending that gave Red Horse Racing a 1-2 finish.
Peters took second but remains without a win this season — a victory could have solidified a spot in the Chase.
Moffitt won for the first time in six Trucks races.
This was only his fourth start of the year on this series in the No. 11 Toyota, so he’s not eligible for the Chase.
Peters was two laps away from what would have been his first victory of the season, but Byron nosed ahead with a lap to go, and Moffitt was then able to move to the outside and take over the lead.
Daniel Hemric finished third and Byron ended up fourth.
Moffitt was the Sprint Cup rookie of the year last season but said he was victimized when Michael Waltrip Racing folded late in 2015.
“Every year in my career has kind of been like that. I’ve always been at the end of the year not knowing where I’m going to go,” Moffitt said. “Every time, it’s right when I start getting comfortable, it seems like the rug’s pulled out from under me.”