MC MOTORSPORTS: NEWS

Cmejla goes flipping at Las Vegas, has career high 3-DNF night
November 22nd, 2023 | 10:36 PM CT

It was one of those nights of ups and downs for Marty Cmejla during November 21st, 2023's edition of NR Night in America. The night had big storylines for MC Motorsports as there were 2 new drivers making their debuts with the team - Patrick Connell and Daniel Mosteller. You can read more about Patrick Connell and Daniel Mosteller's nights by clicking the hyperlinked text in regards to their name.

Marty Cmejla had a successful Race 1 at Talladega which you can read about here, but for Race 2 is when the problems began. The race being highlighted by NR Night in America Hall of Famer Daniel Mosteller making his MC Motorsports debut was the big storyline. Cmejla qualified 13th at Monza for Race 2 with the Xfinity cars.

At the start of the race, he made a big move to the inside on the frontstretch. Not knowing the track limits, the grass came and he spun on the grass. He hit the inside wall then got hit by Parker White. This resulted in major wheel damage. He then wanted to watch Dmos try and win, so he killed the car. Cmejla finished 34th and added a DNF to the stats.

Marty Cmejla crashes at Monza, ending his race.

The next race was at Cmejla's worst-luck track: Las Vegas Motor Speedway - Oval. This race would be with the Gen-6 Cup Cars. Cmejla would drive the Patriotic #39 MC Motorsports Chevrolet. Cmejla survived the opening crashes. But after racing for a Top 5 spot, Oumar Diallo hit-checked Braden Muhvic on the frontstretch. Muhvic got loose and overcorrected back into Diallo. Cmejla had no where to go.

Cmejla bounced off the wall at wild speeds. Tobias Matheson's #07 had nowhere to go. He hit Cmejla and flipped Cmejla over. Cmejla did a quick 360 flip in the air before landing on the car's side for several feet, spewing sparks along the asphalt. Cmejla was able to get back on all 4 tires, but had too much damage to continue with 48 minutes of required repairs. It would be an 18th-place finish (Matching his Vegas average), and the 2nd DNF of the night.

Cmejla goes upside down down the frontstretch at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

Round 4 was at Rudskogen Motorsenter. Cmejla started 10th. He ran in the Top 10 for the entirety of the race. On Lap 1 entering Turn 1, a 90-degree left-hander, for the first time, Cmejla took an off to avoid the chaos. Cmejla survived Lap 1 but nearly got wrecked multiple times.

There were some more restarts and he survived. But he was running 9th when Gavin Austin spun ahead. Cmejla was making his corner and Gavin gassed it up into Cmejla, giving Cmejla significant wheel damage. This would make the race go into overtime.

Gavin Austin gasses it up into Cmejla's right front at Rudskogen.

Cmejla's goal was a Top 10. With this damage it would be hard. He was sitting in the Top 10 coming to the white flag. In the long-straight downhill sweep corner, Cmejla had his left sides in the grass and he began to slow. This resulted in a spin for himself. He couldn't save it so he had to reverse. Now he got moved to 11th. Cmejla was panicking to get a Top 10.

Cmejla self-spins on the last lap at Rudskogen.

Luckily, William Schmitt and some others spun before the checkered flag. Cmejla would luck into a Top 10, but he would finish 9th. "I think that a Top 5 was easily going to happen if we didn't make that mistake. A lot of cars spun where I would have been," Cmejla said.

The final race was Xfinity Homestead. Daniel Mosteller would be on MC Motorsports again for this race. Cmejla had a good car and got put on a good tire strategy after a caution. But, on the exit of Turn 2 on his new tires, he got loose and almost spun. He lost tons of time.

Cmejla then was trying to catch back up. On old tires was the #76 of Joseph Madigan. Cmejla was ripping the top when Madigan went to block for no reason. Cmejla was not pleased and railed his rear end.

"I saw him slow down to my inside, thinking he was letting me by. I wanted to do a hard left, not into him, to again show displeasure. Unfortunately I wasn't clear," Cmejla said.

This is the case here. He barely clipped Madigan and they both went hard into the inside wall. Cmejla would DNF for the 3rd time on the night - a career high. Cmejla says he would have easily had a Top 10 if he didn't do that to Madigan.

Cmejla intentionally wrecks Madigan on "accident", ending his night at Homestead.

The sad thing about it is that the winner of the race, Ryan Honeycutt, was on the same tire strategy. In fact, Cmejla restarted in front of him. If Cmejla hadn't slid out of 2, this all could have been avoided and Cmejla might have been in victory lane.

"The mistakes need to stop," Cmejla said. "Too many of them tonight. I need to be better," were Cmejla's final words on the night.