The NBCSN Short Track Series had its best night of the week that featured Landon Cassill and Ryan Preece as beneficiaries to a strategic pair of races on Wednesday.
The pair advanced to the series championship race on Thursday.
Landon Cassill, Ryan Preece win Myrtle Beach Short Track Races
The six-driver field was worried about tire wear at the historic short track from the start of the first of two races.
So much so, that Ryan Preece went from first to last-place on the initial lap of the first race.
He caught a lot of flack for it from his competitors, but Preece was saving his tires to make a push for it later on.
Preece eventually got the win, and it prompted Cassill to look at his tires.
“I looked at my tread, and still had 80-something percent left on my tread after the first race,” Cassill said. “I knew I could push that down to the 70’s [in the second race] and still be fine.”
Just 11 laps into the second race of the night, Cassill made a move to take the lead.
He started pushing his tires and building on his lead throughout the 45-lap event.
“I just kept driving,” Cassill said. “I think those guys were waiting for [my tires] to just fall off.”
By the end of the race, Cassill sat almost two seconds ahead of second-place, even with a handful of laps to go. No one was going to catch him.
So, Cassill and Preece, along with others, advance.
Thursday’s championship race will consist of 10 drivers combined with the five winners and five select drivers that earned, ‘Peacock Provisionals’ from Steve Letarte for their racing this week.
Championship Race Field
William Byron
Kyle Larson
Christopher Bell
Ryan Preece
Landon Cassill
Kyle Busch
Denny Hamlin
Chase Briscoe
Parker Kligerman
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
The race will be televised by NBCSN and is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. ET on Thursday.
