Two weeks ago, Wyatt Tinsley won the eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Series exhibition Clash at Daytona. As it turns out, that race proved to be a harbinger of things to come because Tinsley followed it up with a win in the regular season opener at Daytona to earn his first career eNCCiS win and likely clinch a spot in the playoffs in the No. 20 Quiktrip/Kansas City Pioneers Toyota.
“It feels amazing man,” Tinsley told eNASCAR’s Blake McCandless post-race. “The Clash was honestly a learning experience. I can’t thank Pioneers and Quiktrip enough, and I’m so proud of everyone and everything.”
Defending eNCCiS champion Steven Wilson began his title defense on a high note, securing the runner-up spot in his No. 10 M80 Ford despite being on the verge of engine failure on the last lap.
“I was trying to help out Wyatt [Tinsley] pretty much that whole last run,” Wilson reflected afterwards. “I was committed, and whatever happened at that point happened.”
The two Spire Motorsports Chevrolets took up the next two spots as Malik Ray and Casey Kirwan finished third and fourth, respectively. Bobby Zalenski completed the top five in his No. 18 Interstate Batteries/Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota.
TONIGHT’S ACTION
Nick Ottinger earned the right to lead the 40-car field to green with his 26th career eNCCiS pole. Ottinger led the opening lap, but he then quickly surrendered the lead to Michael Cosey Jr. on lap two.
The race settled into a long green-flag run, with most drivers choosing to run in either the top or bottom line and a little bit of three-wide racing towards the back of the pack. All the while, Cosey Jr. led the way in his red No. 38 Front Row Motorsports Ford from the top lane until Parker White inherited the point on lap 25.
As the race approached the halfway point, the teams began to think about green-flag pit stops with a projected pit window of 38-42 laps. The first takers came in on lap 41 with a group of about 10-12 cars entering their pit stalls for service. Over the next four laps, the remainder of the field came down for tires and fuel, and the pack ultimately formed back together into one big three-wide pack.
As the laps wound down, tensions began to rise throughout the field, with several near-crashes. With 30 laps remaining, the yellow flag finally flew for the first time in 2024 after contact between Daniel Faulkingham and Darik Bourdeau led to a chain reaction that involved several drivers,…
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