There were plenty of emotions at all levels to be taken in during Thursday afternoon’s postponed Toyota 200 at Darlington (S.C.) Raceway.
Winner Chase Briscoe clutched his second NASCAR Xfinity Series win of the season, just two days after learning he and his wife Marissa suffered a miscarriage of their baby girl.
On the flip side, 2018 NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series champion Brett Moffitt experienced one of his most emotional races in his career after returning to the cockpit after recovering from two broken legs suffered in a motocross bike accident on March 14, the same day he was to be competing in the Truck Series race at Atlanta (Ga.) Motor Speedway.
The COVID-19 pandemic though halted racing action at Atlanta nearly 10 weeks ago with Moffitt deciding to take the unexpected day off and have some fun.
Unfortunately for Moffitt, the fun day turned out to be pure hell.
And that ride through hell continued for nearly two months.
Through aggressive rehabilitation and coaching from life advisor Josh Wise, Moffitt found himself in tip-top shape and healthier than he ever had been when it was time to go racing at
Darlington’s Too Tough To Tame track on Tuesday.
Mother Nature soaked his return to the seat leaving the popular driver another day and a half to only ponder what awaited him behind the wheel.
But when the checkered flag waved Thursday afternoon, Moffitt felt immediately grateful and emotional about the 167-laps he had just completed for Our Motorsports.
While campaigning a championship ride with GMS Racing in Trucks, Moffitt has piloted the No. 02 Chevrolet Camaro for the newly formed Xfinity Series team Our Motorsports on a race-by-race basis.
With Our having a link to GMS Racing through the team’s equipment, Moffitt has given the rookie team a glimpse of what could lay ahead.
Thursday’s race was no exception.
In his first race since being medically cleared to driver, Moffitt would return to Darlington for the first time in nearly five years with some knowledge on how to attack Darlington’s 1.36-mile egg-shaped oval.
But without practice or qualifying to dial in his No. 02 Fr8Auctions Chevrolet Camaro, Moffitt was not sure what to expect.
Starting 22nd, Moffitt would patiently work his way forward. Not pushing his race car over the edge, the Grimes, Iowa native was able to cleverly inch his way forward while remaining on the lead lap.
Hovering outside the top-10 at the end of Stage 2, Moffitt would muscle himself into the top-10 throughout Stage 3 and while it appeared that he could seal the deal with a top-10 finish at the end of the race, Moffit slipped back to 11th late in the race to earn his best Xfinity Series finish since an 11th at his home track of Iowa Speedway in 2017 driving a second car for GMS Racing.
On two sides of the spectrum, 11th felt like a win.
“It was freaking awesome man,” Moffitt exclaimed after the race. “In all seriousness, I was really proud of the car Our Motorsports brought to Darlington.”
Moffitt explained that even with three solid top-20 finishes in the opening four races of the season, Darlington was different for his Our Motorsports team.
“We normally haven’t been good unloading and there (Darlington) we fired off good and got better all race,” added Moffitt. “Personally, I was really proud of how the race went between my injury and not running Darlington in five years, I was nervous or anxious to get racing, so to have a really good run was emotional in a good way for me.”
While 11th was a career-best finish for team owner Chris Our and crew chief Joe Williams, all the feelings that he had experienced before the race – Darlington was a victory for all.
“I’ve been through a lot the last two months, I really have, so to leaving Darlington the way we did was amazing and I’m pumped.”
Moffitt will return to the team next week at Charlotte competing in both the Xfinity Series race on Monday night and returning to his Truck Series duties on Tuesday, but before Moffitt can set sights on his responsibilities in Trucks, his goal to keep elevating the performance of Our Motorsports remains a priority.
“I think they are still in the building stage and if they continue on the path they are, only good things will come,” Moffitt said.
Man what a emotional day after breaking both femurs two months ago to a p11 finish our first race back I am PUMPED UP! I can’t thank everyone @OurMotorsports enough for the effort they have put in during this time and stuck behind me through it all! That is a damn win for us! 🍻
— Brett Moffitt (@Brett_Moffitt) May 21, 2020
Follow Chris Knight on Twitter @Knighter01.
