The Craftsman Truck Series opener at the Daytona International Speedway was a tough watch for spectators. A lot of novice drivers, wanting to prove themselves, got involved in wrecks from the get-go. Among the fleet, there was Ty Dillon, who made his way back into the Truck Series after three years to find his competitive edge. However, the first-ever race of the season didn’t go according to plan for the former Cup driver.

The race saw a total of 12 cautions, out of which 10 were crashes. It was carnage, with trucks being dismantled on every caution and stoppage. A race on a superspeedway like Daytona demands drivers to race in a draft, but the truck drivers had plans of their own. Many of them became victims of this unwanted chaos, and unfortunately for Dillon, he was caught up in the very first wave of the crash. Interestingly, it wasn’t any other truck or driver that took Dillon out of the race. So, if not the wrecks, what was the reason for Dillon’s early exit from the Truck Series Daytona race?

Ty Dillon highlights the actual cause of his exit from the Daytona race

Ty Dillon – Richard Childress’ grandson – returned to a full-time schedule in the Truck Series for the first time since 2013. After a decade, he was back in the series with Rackley WAR, and his very first attempt to get points for his team ended in an early crash. While the race was chaotic, with drivers bumping and wrecking, Dillon’s demise in the race was caused by a patch of grass on the side of the racetrack.

Dillon, after the race, explained his experience of competing amongst the rookies as he also vented his frustration with the track. “Chaos, a lot of craziness. I think a lot of guys in good trucks that have never done this before and it’s real fast in a hurry. Nobody really drafts anymore in practice.”

Hinting at how he would want NASCAR to be involved, he said, “We don’t really put rookies in a good spot to learn. They just get thrown into the fire, and that’s kind of what it looks like.”

“With my experience, I knew something was going to happen,” Dillon added. “That’s why I got myself to the bottom to have a spot to bail. Sure enough, it happened. We got to get rid of that grass back there because I think if the grass wasn’t there, I’d get through clean. I hit the grass and knocked the front tires out of my hand and then was trying to catch the throttle.”

The crash during lap 6 of the race saw Dillon bow out early and place #35 in the standings. Reflecting on his time at Daytona, he expressed, “We were hoping for a good night, cash in a bunch of points. But for whatever reason, Daytona hasn’t been real kind to me. Just hate to be taken out so early and not really have a chance.”

Despite the rash driving on display, he felt that perhaps he was a little bit at fault as well, as he explained how he could have avoided this fate early on in the race.

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Dillon felt that a better gameplan would have served him well at Daytona

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The Craftsman Truck series has been a hotbed for young, talented race car drivers who are looking to prove themselves. Perhaps they were too eager and on the edge for the Friday night race at Daytona International Speedway. Dillon was aware of the fact that things could turn ugly, but the actual display certainly took him by surprise. However, he felt that a better game plan and a respectable starting position would have served him well during the race.

He revealed, “Maybe that’s on me for not having a better game plan of being patient with these young drivers and getting myself in the middle of it right away. But we had a game plan from a month ago to try to score stage points. Unfortunately, we didn’t qualify strong enough to where it was going to be easier. But hey, this is going to happen. It’s a bunch of young guys trying to make a name for themselves and you know it was pure chaos.”

With a sub-par showing at the Daytona International Speedway, Ty Dillon and his team will look to bounce back stronger in their next race at the Atlanta Motor Speedway.

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