Story By: NASCAR – ROSSBURG, OH – Second can be bittersweet. And it was for Stewart Friesen in 2017.
The proven star on dirt won the pole and led a race-high 93 laps last year in the Eldora Dirt Derby, but fell victim to an opportunistic Matt Crafton in the late stages of the race to finish second on his favorite turf.
At the time, it was Friesen’s first top-10 finish of the season and should have been a shining moment for the driver who finished second in the Super DIRTcar Series points in 2016. But Friesen didn’t go to Eldora to finish second and it stung.
But 2018 has already been a very different season for Friesen, who has posted four top fives and seven top 10s, as well as a pole at Texas. And Eldora just may be the track where he can get in the win column.
This marks Friesen’s third visit to the half-mile dirt track in Ohio. His NASCAR Camping World Truck Series debut came at Eldora in 2016 when he managed a 12th-place start but finished 22nd due to a crash. He’s hoping that third time’s the charm and he can score his first NASCAR victory on the surface he grew up racing on.