Connor Mosack recorded his fourth top-10 result of his rookie season in the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Trucks Series’ (NCTS) inaugural event at the Charlotte Motor Speedway ROVAL on Friday afternoon. Mosack utilized experience from prior NASCAR Xfinity Series outings on the 2.28-mile circuit to construct his fourth top-10 result of the year and his third top-15 finish in the last four races. With three races remaining on the calendar, Mosack sits 14th in the NCTS point standings.
Mosack took the green flag from the 15th position after he qualified in Group 1 on Friday afternoon. His extensive road course knowledge was on full display on the opening lap as he instantly advanced to 12th once the green flag dropped. The No. 81 Apollo Pex Chevrolet Silverado RST made steady progress during the first segment as he cracked the top 10 by lap 12 and moved to eighth by the time pit strategy began to unfold on lap 16. Crew chief Blake Bainbridge strategized to prioritize an opportunity at victory and pitted prior to the stage break. Mosack pitted from eighth on lap 17 for four tires and fuel and was scored 24th at the end of Stage 1 on lap 20.
Due to contact with another truck following his pit stop, Mosack returned to pit road under the stage caution to repair his left front fender and restarted 23rd on lap 24. His raw speed was showcased again during the second segment as he vaulted to 13th by lap 35 and elected to “flip the stage” by pitting under green for four tires and fuel on lap 36. He was scored 18th on lap 40 at the end of the second stage, but inherited track position for the ensuing restart.
Mosack saved his best stint of the afternoon at the right time. He restarted eighth on lap 45 and ran as high as fifth by lap 50. He had comfortably settled into sixth by the time a caution flew three laps shy of the finish on lap 64. While many trucks elected to pit, Mosack and company elected to stay out and restart on the front row for a green-white-checkered overtime finish. He restarted second and fought valiantly to hold off competitors with significantly fresher tires in his mirror. Despite multiple episodes of door-to-door physicality over the final two laps, Mosack was able to salvage a 10th-place finish.
Connor Mosack Quote:
“It ultimately wasn’t the result we were looking for, or felt like we deserved, but I felt like we put a solid day together from start to finish. Our Apollo Pex Chevrolet had pace the whole afternoon, so I’m really proud of Blake (Bainbridge) and the team for that. We were probably going to finish fifth or sixth, but we had to take a shot at it on that green-white-checkered when everyone pitted. You never know what can happen and thought it was worth the gamble. It didn’t pan out like we wanted, but still good to get a top-10 result for the speed we had today.”
MHR PR