As the finale weekend approaches, Speedway Media takes a look at the four drivers running for the NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series 2019 championship. We analyze their chances to win the title while also flashing back on how they got here.
In the first edition of this four-part series, we take a look at Brett Moffitt, driver of the No. 24 GMS Racing Chevy. Moffitt is contending for his second straight championship.
Brett Moffitt – Moffitt has proven that last year’s title reign was no fluke. For the second straight year, the GMS driver returns to the Championship 4 for another shot at the Truck Series championship.
How He Got Here: The 2018 Series Champion caught a lucky break at Iowa earlier this season when the original winner, Ross Chastain, was disqualified, giving the win to Moffitt. The victory caught him by surprise as he was literally getting ready to climb aboard the team plane and head back to Charlotte. With the win, he was guaranteed a spot in the Playoffs.
The win at Iowa wasn’t enough for Moffitt. Having something to prove, the Iowa native went on to earn his first “real” win of the season at Chicago back in the summer. Aside from a crash at Eldora, Moffitt opened up the Playoffs hot with back-to-back wins at Bristol and Canadian Tire Motorsports Park. Since then, however, he has not been back to the winner circle. The GMS driver has had to rely on top fives and top-10s in order to get to the Championship 4. Even at ISM, Moffitt didn’t have the best of performances but he did what he needed to do to lock himself in at Homestead.
Championship Chances: After competing at Homestead, Moffitt knows what it’s like to race in the championship race and realizes that he has to perform to the best of his abilities to win that second championship. At this time last year, the Iowa native was seen as an underdog heading into the title race But, he was the best truck out of the Championship 4 and went on to win the season finale after leading 59 of the 134 laps.
Final Analysis: Moffitt is with a new team this time around in the Championship 4 race, but he has shined in 2019, notching four wins, 12 top fives and 16 top-10 finishes. Despite being with a new team in the final round, GMS is no stranger to competing in the final race of the season. This will be GMS’s fourth consecutive Championship 4 race, since the first one back in 2016. Needless to say, Moffitt’s chances are really good and it would not be a surprise to see him captures his second championship.
