NASCAR Truck Series: Who are the favorites to win the 2019 Eldora Dirt Derby?

Sheldon Creed

In his rookie Truck Series season, Sheldon Creed is 105 points below the playoff cut line. He needs to win a race in order to make the playoffs. Fortunately, he will be a contender in the Eldora Dirt Derby.

First of all, Creed has a strong GMS Racing team behind him. Teammate Brett Moffitt has won two races this season, and he is the defending NASCAR Truck Series champion.

More importantly for Creed is his crew chief Jeff Stankiewicz. Stankiewicz reunited with Creed as his crew chief before this past Saturday’s race at Pocono Raceway. The duo teamed together for the 2018 ARCA Menards Series season, and Creed won the championship. With their camaraderie, Stankiewicz makes Creed a better driver.

The ARCA Menards Series competes annually at two dirt tracks. While Creed never won dirt track race in this series, he did take a pole position pole and lead over a quarter of the laps (105 of 416) in his four dirt track starts. He recorded four top 10 finishes, three top four finishes and two runner-up finishes, and an average finishing position of 4.50 in these four starts.

He knows how to race at dirt tracks.

Moreover, Creed has experience in the Truck Series at Eldora Speedway. He has competed in three Eldora Dirt Derby races already, although his statistics aren’t great. He has recorded an average starting position of 16.67 and an average finishing position of 19.33.

However, he showed some improvement in the 2018 Eldora Dirt Derby. He finished his heat race in second place and therefore started the feature in sixth. He ultimately finished in 15th.

Now Creed competes full-time in the Truck Series, and his #2 Chevrolet will likely be at its best at Eldora Speedway. The combination of Creed, crew chief Jeff Stankiewicz and GMS Racing make him a good upset pick for the 2019 Eldora Dirt Derby.