Wisconsin short track superstar Ty Majeski will be recognized for winning the inaugural ASA STARS National Tour championship on Friday at the Performance Racing Industry Trade Show in Indianapolis, IN. Majeski became the first-ever ASA STARS National Tour series champion in early November at the Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway, but it didn’t come easy.
A regular on the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, he knew he could run the first seven races without much conflict to his Truck Series commitments. During that time, it looked like Majeski would cruise to the series title.
Three wins in the first seven races put Majeski in command of the title hunt, and the Gearheadz Motorsports team went about building a plan to finish out the tour and run for the title. A pair of DNF’s at Toledo and Winchester dwindled what was a 93-point lead down to just eight heading into the All American 400 at Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway for the season finale.
“We got ourselves in trouble,” commented crew chief Toby Nuttleman prior to the start of the finale. “But I wouldn’t want anyone by our driver in the seat to finish the deal.”
The gremlins that haunted Majeski during the stretch run and let Cole Butcher close the title chase to a single-digit gap seemingly turned the tables early on at Nashville. Butcher suffered a flat left rear tire on lap eight, putting the Canadian driver way behind. Meanwhile, Majeski charged to the front from his 13th starting position, advancing into the top-five by the end of the first stage break at lap 110.
With Butcher down two laps after the flat, Majeski was in great shape. He took the lead on lap 151 and opening up a seven-second advantage soon after. The fourth caution of the evening on lap 190 wiped out the big lead, but Majeski maintained the point heading towards the end of the second stage when a multi-car melee eight laps short of the break changed the make-up of the race.
Coincidentally, it was Butcher who played a big role in the lap 212 accident after making contact with a slowed car mid-pack following a restart. The impact resulted in Butcher’s car suffering heavy front-end damage, which putting fluid on the track. As the leaders charged through the initial impact zone, they hit the fluid and the resulting pile-up took out several of the drivers running in the top-ten. Majeski made hard contact with the wall between turns one and two, causing heavy right-front damage.
The Gearheads Motorsports team thrashed on Majeski’s No.91 during the ensuing red flag and patched the car together to allow the team to continue. He was able to nurse his damaged race car to the end to finish 11th. The effort was enough to secure the title, with Majeski claiming the inaugural ASA STARS National Tour Championship by 32 points and cementing his name in the record book.
“It was really cool to see all the help we got after the wreck,” Majeski commented. “We had five or six different teams helping us and we got it put back together enough to make it to the checkers.”
“What a crazy season. We had almost a 100 point lead with three races to go, and after the race started today, we were basically even with the 28,” Majeski continued. It would have been great to have just race for the championship, but it sure didn’t work out that way…”
Majeski will earn a $5,000 bonus as the ASA STARS National Tour driver’s champion, and his Gearheadz Motorsports team will receive the $25,000 champion’s bonus. The entirety of the top-ten points finishers will be recognized during the ASA STARS National Tour Champions Celebration/Luncheon on Friday, December 8 at PRI.
For more information on the ASA STARS National Tour, please visit the series website at starsnationaltour.com, or be sure to follow the series on social media (Facebook: ASA STARS National Tour | Twitter: @racewithstars | IG: @starsnational).
ASA STARS National Tour
The ASA STARS National Tour debuted in March 2023 for Super Late Model racing in America. Announced in October 2022, many of the best drivers in America will compete in the ten-race national tour with a minimum $100,000 point fund. The championship team will be guaranteed $25,000.
The ASA STARS National Tour is made up of three races from each of the regional pavement Super Late Model Series under the Track Enterprises banner – the ASA/CRA Super Series, the ASA Midwest Tour and the ASA Southern Super Series.
The Team Construction Winner’s Circle program has been announced as a part of the ASA STARS National Tour for licensed drivers/teams with perfect attendance. The program provides additional financial incentives to those teams who support the series.
Track Enterprises, a racing promotions company based in Illinois, will operate the ASA STARS National Tour. It announced the acquisition of Champion Racing Association (CRA) in January 2022 and followed that up with the purchase of the Midwest Tour in July. In October, Track Enterprises President Bob Sargent announced a partnership with the Southern Super Series, which set the table for the formation of the ASA STARS National Tour.
