For many rookies, challenges and setbacks headline their freshman year on the track. For Thad Moffitt, success and a win carry him into Saturday’s twin late model races at Myrtle Beach Speedway (S.C.) on a positive note.
Racing in the Southeast Limited Late Model Series last weekend, Moffitt claimed the pole and the victory at Anderson Motor Speedway in Anderson, S.C. This was Moffitt’s first trip to Victory Lane in a stock car.
Moffitt felt confident in his team and the strength of his No. 46 Empire Racing Group/Richard Petty Motorsports Development Team Ford after capturing the pole for the event.
He explained, “Going into the race, I felt like we had a chance to win. My first time at Anderson Motor Speedway, it was my second career race in a stock car and we got a top-five finish. That was also Empire Racing Group’s first race at the track. I’ve gotten better since then, so I knew we had a chance to get the win last weekend and we did.”
Currently leading the Southeast Limited Late Model Series points standings, Moffitt and Empire Racing Group hope to continue their success in order to clinch the championship this season.
As Moffitt and his team head to Myrtle Beach Speedway (S.C.) for this Saturday’s “Back to School Night” twin late model event, Moffitt hopes to carry this positive momentum as he seeks his second win of the season.
“We can definitely carry a lot of momentum from the Southeast Limited Late Model Series win to the late model race at Myrtle Beach Speedway. We had the car to beat in both classes last weekend and we can do the same in Myrtle Beach,” Moffitt said.
Moffitt will be making his first race attempt at Myrtle Beach Speedway (S.C) this weekend, but he isn’t intimidated by first trips to a new track, as most of his races so far this season have been his first start at a track.
He added, “This will be my first time racing there, but it has been my first time at a bunch of tracks this season. We go a day early to get prepared and I just work hard and go fast.”
Crew chief, Mike “Grumpy” Cheek, is optimistic about the success Moffitt has shown early in his stock car racing career. He said, “He’s so focused as a driver, it’s unbelievable. We just have to get him in the right position to continue being successful and to keep winning.”
Cheek added that the excitement of Moffitt’s first win will help him moving forward, “We will carry that momentum, for sure. Once you get that first win and understand the focus it requires, the second win always comes a little bit easier.”
Heading into a difficult race weekend, Cheek notices the perfect driving style in Moffitt to be successful on the half-mile oval, “I’m very excited for Myrtle Beach and this is the best I’ve felt going to Myrtle Beach in a long time. The track takes a driver with finesse and Thad is as smooth on the throttle as any driver I’ve worked with.”
Moffitt has made 13 starts in 2016 for Empire Racing Group, the Richard Petty Motorsports Development Team. The grandson of NASCAR Hall of Fame inductee Richard Petty has his sights set on rising through the stock car racing ranks with the team, with the intentions of making his ARCA Racing Series debut by the end of the 2016 season, or early in the 2017 season.
While Moffitt’s stock car racing career has taken off early, the 15-year-old remains focused on learning and gaining more experience each and every weekend that he is in the car. Watch Moffitt continue to add more laps under his belt as he straps into the No. 46 Empire Racing Group/Richard Petty Motorsports Development Team Ford on Saturday, August 20, at Myrtle Beach Speedway (S.C.).
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