After a miserable start to the 2024 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series campaign, Chase Purdy is finally seeing a glimmer of hope, after a strong third-place run in Friday’s Long John Silver’s 200 at Martinsville Speedway.
With Purdy joining Spire Motorsports – which purchased the assets of Kyle Busch Motorsports at the end of last season — expectations were pretty high. Though he didn’t capture any wins with KBM last season, he was able to churn out a respectable 1o top-10 finishes. However, in the early part of this year, that same success has not been found.
Before Friday’s 200-lap contest at Martinsville, Purdy had failed to record a finish better than 15th at Atlanta Motor Speedway through the opening five races of the season, scoring three results outside the top-20, despite just a single DNF in the season-opener at Daytona International Speedway.
Now, after surviving a caution-plagued event at the half-mile paperclip, Purdy’s luck has seemingly turned around.
Notching his best result of the season, the No. 77 Bama Buggies Chevrolet Silverado crossed the start-finish line in third place, earning critical points in each stage of the race, a refreshing change of pace for the team, which entered Friday’s event sitting 20th in series point standings.
“After tonight, I feel pretty damn good about it,” Purdy said about his season so far. “This team can do it. This team can win, we’re winners, and we will win and I truly believe that. It’s not if, it’s when.”
With a late-race caution leading to a three-lap green-flag shootout, picking the right lane was the key to a solid finish. Luckily, his veteran spotter, Brandon Benesch, was able to make the perfect call, giving the No. 77 the best possible chance of finishing the race inside the top five.
“I honestly put it in my spotter’s hands and I just took it from there,” Purdy shared. “I told him, ‘Look man, I don’t know what you want to do here but whatever you choose, I’m game.’ He made the right decision.”
Not only was Friday a fantastic night for Purdy, but it was a great night for Spire Motorsports, as well. Accompanied by a seventh-place result by Rajah Caruth and an eighth-place by Sammy Smith, Friday’s Long John Silver’s 200 at Martinsville Speedway marked the first time the organization put three entries inside the top-10.
As the organization celebrates a successful outing at Martinsville, they can take this positive momentum to Texas Motor Speedway, home to Purdy’s career-best finish of second place.
“Obviously, we’re here to win races,” Purdy said after the race. “So never truly satisfied with third, but tonight was a good night to get the ball rolling in a good direction.”
