At the end of Stage 2 Friday night at Phoenix Raceway, the two-time NASCAR Camping World Truck Series champion Matt Crafton, was able to clinch his way into his second consecutive Championship 4 at Homestead-Miami. He will now be seeking his third career championship.
Before he got there, though, Crafton had to fight his way in despite an uncharacteristic-like year for the No.88 Menards Toyota Tundra.
At Daytona, he was involved in wild last lap ride, where he went up in the air and landed on the ground. Even with that wreck, Crafton was relegated to a 14th place finish. Throughout the rest of the season, it was up and down for Crafton. However, it wasn’t until Eldora in July, where he scored his first victory of 2017 season, locking himself into the Playoffs for the second consecutive year.
When the Playoffs started in Loudon, Crafton only finished outside the top 10 once, which took place recently at Phoenix Raceway this past weekend due to a crash. finishing 21st. With the accident at Phoenix, he is still just a bit bitter, even though he will be searching for the third championship of his career.
“The 19 just hooked the 27 (Ben Rhodes),” Crafton said. “No racing about that – but I just said, I told Ben (Rhodes), ‘That ain’t fair, but next week.”