NASCAR
Zane Smith Overcomes Late Setbacks for Phoenix Win, 2022 Truck Title
AVONDALE, Ariz. – After finishing as the title runner-up in 2020 and 2021, Zane Smith is 2022 the Truck Series Champion. The Huntington Beach, California native had to rally from deep in the field on two late restarts to find the lead after dominating early. On four fresh tires, Smith made the winning pass on defending Truck champion Ben Rhodes, taking home his first NASCAR championship.
From the pole, Zane Smith proved to be the class of the field early, sweeping both Stages. Stage 2 saw the Front Row Motorsports No. 38 start third, but still claim the green-and-white checkers over John Hunter Nemechek.
After a few turn one restart crashes early in Stage 3, the turning point of this race and championship came inside of the final 20 laps. Hailie Deegan pounding the wall hard, triggered a late caution and bringing all of the title contenders down pit road. While Zane Smith came in leading, the 38 came out ninth after a slow stop. Ben Rhodes came out ahead, but only with two new tires. Smith would restart 11th, but rooted and gouged his way forward once the green flag fell.
By virtue of staying out, non-contender Stewart Friesen restarted as the leader with 10 to go. All of the Championship 4 quickly caught the 52 though; Rhodes, Majeski, and both Smiths were soon in the top four spots.
With the 99’s older tires, the 38 was coming fast on fresh rubber. Rhodes was trying to build up a lead, and was pulling away. That would all change with three laps left, as Ty Majeski spun from third. The 66 was trying to get by the 38 but couldn’t quite get enough traction.
TY SPINS GOING FOR SECOND! pic.twitter.com/02DoTB7VGP
— NASCAR Camping World Trucks (@NASCAR_Trucks) November 5, 2022
This set up an overtime restart, with Chandler and Zane Smith flanking Rhodes’ aging tires. Through turns one and two, both the 38 and 18 got position over the 99, as they were door-to-door at the white flag. Even with Rhodes giving Zane Smith one final shot in turn four, it was not enough to deny the 23-year-old of the title.
“Oh, my God, third time’s a charm,” Zane Smith said after win four of 2022. “I want this s— more than anyone in the world. I don’t care what anyone says. Thank you to all you race fans, my whole team. Oh, my God, I was crying that whole lap.”
“Thank you MRC Construction, so many people in my life that I got to meet that mean so much to me, Chris Lawson, Dylan Cappello, Kyle Moon, Evan, Randy, Bill, Josh Williams, I’ve never heard you get that excited, but I love you so much. My fiancee, McCall, stuck with me with all the brutal times. I’ve wanted this championship for so long. I’ve wanted this moment all my life. Thank you, everyone.
“I wasn’t gonna let it go down like that. I was either backing it in the fence wrecking, or I was leaving tonight with a championship trophy. There were no other options and when I saw the 18 get underneath me I was worried that I got him too loose underneath me. Fortunately, he stayed off of me. I have a lot of respect for all three of them. It’s pretty impressive for some of the racing we’ve seen lately for us three to go at it that hard and that clean.”
“Last year and the year before we showed so much speed and should have won a lot more races than we did. But (team owner) Bob Jenkins is the only reason why I’m here right now. Without him, none of this would be possible. When I came here all I cared about were the guys that were on this team. I had seen their work ethic and I knew the effort they put in and I know they want it as bad as I do. I didn’t care what the trucks or anything looked like all I knew is the work ethic was there and we could make a championship out of this team.”
Coming within a quarter-second of the championship themselves were Ben Rhodes and Chandler Smith. After his late spin from third-place, Ty Majeski had to settle for a dismal 20th-place run.
Other top-10 finishers were John Hunter Nemechek, Stewart Friesen, Grant Enfinger, Corey Heim, Tanner Gray, Kaden Honeycutt, and Carson Hocevar.
In just their third season in the Truck Series, Front Row Motorsports and the No. 38 Ford are champions. This effort comes off of a four-win campaign that saw victories at Daytona, COTA, Kansas, and Phoenix. Zane Smith and this team will return in 2023 to defend this title. After bookending this year with wins, the bar is set very high for the 38 in a repeat effort.
2022 saw a lot of firsts for Zane Smith, capping off the year with his maiden NASCAR title. 2023 will only be bigger and better for the reigning Truck Series champion, as he will attempt the Daytona 500 and other Cup races. Stay tuned all weekend long for remaining coverage of the Xfinity and Cup Series championship races.
Written by Peter Stratta
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Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images for NASCAR
