- 2/18/2025 8:00 PM EST - Starting Grid - 1. #17 Dallas Pataska - 2. #94 Thomas Wolfe - 3. #*63 Henry Kallhoff(i) - 4. #23 Cody Leach - 5. #66 Ray Gill - 6. #56 Tommy Carrol Jr - 7. #97 John Connor - 8. #30 Mason Hoeffner - 9. #37 Joe Wright - 10. #*60 Zack Saunders(i) - 11. #19 Jim Mott - 12. #16 Nathaniel Campbell - 13. #69 Caleb Tipton - 14. #6 Stephen Menke - 15. #04 Cody Porter - 16. #28 Jonathan Leger - 17. #95 Pete Morales - 18. #18 Vince Mitchell - 19. #*89 Boyd Hoggan(i) - 20. #24 Noah Spaulding - 21. #22 Nic Vasquez - 22. #14 Cameron Albertson - 23. #00 Garth Griswold - 24. #29 Stewart Harding - 25. #9 Haden Higginbotham - 26. #51 Nim Silva - 27. #54 Cory Mott - 28. #45 Zach Johnson - 29. #57 Michael Deitch - 30. #5 Allen Phillips - 31. #81 Steven Carlile - 32. #*72 Caleb Begg(i) - 33. #20 Austin Runkel - 34. #88 Tyler Bellanger - 35. #2 Zander Short - 36. #35 Thomas Villano - 37. #3 Ben Lawson - 38. #11 Nishil Condoor - 39. #48 Logan Giesbrecht - 40. #1 Noah Hamilton
It was Duels week in the Majors Garage Cup Series (MGCS) at Daytona International Speedway on Wednesday night. Fifty-five drivers turned out to battle for their spots in the prestigious Daytona 500 in the MGCS, a race that every driver dreams of participating in. Unfortunately, fifteen drivers will have to watch next week’s race from the stands, missing the chance to be part of this iconic event.
Qualifying
The qualifying session during Speedweek is the most important qualifying session all season long. Drivers aren’t just racing for the pole and the chance to be on the front row when the green flag waves next Wednesday night and the broadcast booth yells “boogity” repeatedly. Dallas Pataska would keep the wheels on that 17 Majors Garage car on fire this week, claiming the pole. We all better get used to this showdown between Pataska and Thomas Wolfe for the rest of the year. Wolfe would claim the second-place starting position and start outside Row 1 in the Big Show next week. Duel 1 and Duel 2 would have 18 Franchised entries in each race. Duel 1 would have 11 open car entries, and Duel 2 would have 10 open cars, but only the top open car from each Duel would advance to the big show!
Duel 1
The excitement could be felt throughout the speedway as Pataska led the first Duel field to the green flag. The race would run green for almost the first half of the 60-lap race before green flag pit stops began. The first group peeled off into the pit road, and all were able to execute pit stops safely. Still, last year’s Daytona 500 winner Nic Vasquez and Garth Griswold got caught speeding off pit road. Just as the first group exited the pit road, the first yellow flag came out for the race on Lap 26.
Two more cautions would occur before the end drew near as drivers tried everything, they could to reach the front. With the Franchise Cars racing for valuable Stage Points and the Open Cars trying to qualify for the Big Show, the finish was guaranteed to be exciting.
The exciting finish came to fruition as the caution came out with 2 to go; one green-white-checker wasn’t enough as the field couldn’t get around to the white flag before the caution flew again. Pataska, who had led the field for the last third of the race, maintained his position up front. Henry Kallhoff, John Connor, Caleb Tipton, and Ray Gill were lined up second through fifth behind him. Pataska would take the green flag, and Kallhoff would help push on Pataska while the outside line of Gill and Tipton would try their best to stay with them. The high line, though, would fall apart coming out of four, and Pataska and Kallhoff would pull away as Pataska would win the first Duel. Kallhoff would lock himself into the big race next week, finishing second, beating out all the open cars.
“It means a lot to my team and me to make the Daytona 500; we are a small team compared to the other teams out there, and to make it in despite the odds against us is special.”
Henry Kallhoff, #63 Kallhoff-Deitch Racing
Duel 2
The drivers in Duel 2 had to be somewhat apprehensive after seeing the chaotic ending to Duel 1. Usually, each Duel is the polar opposite, but these two were very similar. Thomas Wolfe led the field to green, and the drivers shuffled throughout the field until the first caution came out on Lap 9. Once the race returned green, it would stay green until it was time for more gogo juice around Lap 31.
Green flag pit stops played a pivotal role in Duel 2, just like they did with Duel 1. Ben Lawson and Zack Saunders would both have issues on pit road. Lawson would try to get slowed down when the car broke free and sent him sliding into the wall, sustaining significant damage to his race car. Zack Saunders would receive a black flag for a pit road violation, which would cause Saunders to have a drive-through penalty. A black flag for speeding in Duel 1 took the reigning Champion out of contention; that same fate looked in store for the #60 machine with 22 laps to go.
The field spread out during these pit stops, and Stewart Harding took the lead in a pack with Justin Bell, Stephen Menke, and Cody Leach, hoping the race would stay green. Their wish wouldn’t come to fruition, though, as the caution lap would come out with 16 Laps to go. But it was Saunders’s wish that was granted, allowing him to catch up with the pack.
They would get back to racing with 12 to go, as Menke would lead the field to green, being pushed by Cody Leach. The field would run side by side as the Hollywood Motorsports boys Allen Phillips and Nathaniel Campbell would move to the front with 8 to go. Still, miscommunication between the two would bring out the caution with seven laps to go as Nathaniel Campbell moved up to block the high line run. Phillips was a little late on the run, causing a significant stack-up behind them before the field began crashing behind them.
Phillips escaped the incident unharmed, but when the green flag waved for the green-white-checkered finish, Phillips would get turned into the right wall in Turns 3 and 4. The field would have to be restacked again for another try. That green-white-checkered was also unsuccessful as wrecking occurred behind the leaders going into Turn 1.
3rd Times the Charm
Menke would bring them to the green flag again, but unlike the last two times, Munatsi Major was ready on the outside and cleared Menke before going to the low line into Turn 1. The top line would evaporate for the most part as they went down the backstretch. Major would stay in front to take the white flag, and Menke and Harding stalk him from behind. Menke would move heading into Turn 1 to the outside, and the entire bottom line would follow him, leaving Major out to dry on the bottom. Menke would reclaim the lead, with Harding, Saunders, and Jonathan Leger finishing the Top 5.
Menke may have led the charge out of Turn 1 like a fat colonel leading the charge on the battlefield. Still, the army behind him would swallow him up as Harding and Saunders moved past him to the inside. Harding would be one turn away from victory as Saunders would leave him like a stormy one-night stand to the high side. Out of nowhere, Cody Leach appeared with a massive run on the outside as he blew by Saunders and Harding; coming to the line and getting a push from Tommy Carroll Jr., Cody Leach would get to the line first, capturing the win of Duel 2.
NEXT WEEK
The duels kicked off the week at Daytona and more exciting racing will be coming here this week. The Hero Project K-9 ARCA Series will kick off action live on Sunday Night, followed by the VRS Truck Series on Monday, and the Team Conti Sim-Performance Dash Series on Tuesday. The big final show will be 40 cars for 200 laps to see who will be crowned the 2025 Daytona 500 Champion.
MORE: Cup standings / Trucks Schedule
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