Matt DiBenedetto 10th in Daytona opener

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — In his NASCAR Camping World Truck Series debut, Matt DiBenedetto finished inside the Top-10, avoiding late-race crashes in the season opener at Daytona Friday night.

DiBenedetto crossed the line 10th in the NextEra Energy 250 at Daytona International Speedway, avoiding a lap 99 crash that involved 17 trucks and a crash on the final lap of overtime.

“We played the ride strategy, waiting on a crash,” DiBenedetto said to The Racing Experts. “It kind of worked out, but it didn’t. I’m glad we were all in one piece, but the strategy didn’t necessarily work out as far as going for the win.”

The Top-10 finish is only the second for his team Rackley W.A.R. in its second season in the Truck Series. 

“It’s a solid start to the year,” DiBendetto said. “I can’t complain about a top-10 to start the year.”

But the true measuring stick for expectations, DiBendetto said, would come at Las Vegas, the next race on the schedule on Mar. 4.

“That’s going to be a good teller, and moving forward, we’ve got a really big variety of tracks right off the bat, so it’s going to show  where we stack up,” DiBenedetto said. “I want to see victory lane, 100 percent.”