Storylines Following the 2023 Slinger Nationals

With Ty Majeski's third career win in the Slinger Nationals, another Super Late Model crown jewel is in the books. Here is a look at some of the other storylines and notables from the 44th Annual Slinger Nationals.

NASCAR Stars Tested: A trio of NASCAR Cup Series competitors took part in Tuesday’s Slinger Nationals, but none found it an easy night at the Wisconsin quarter-mile.

Chase Elliott, making his Slinger Nationals debut, was the highest finisher of the three, coming home sixth. Elliott earned the free pass to rejoin the lead lap on the final caution of the race and picked up two positions on the restart to score the sixth-place finish.

Elliott’s Hendrick Motorsports teammate, William Byron, finished 10^th one year after winning the Slinger Nationals. Despite the on-track struggles, Byron enjoyed his trip to Slinger and hopes to return again next year.

“It was tough, we just needed some different things,” Byron told Racing America. “Overall, we had fun. I enjoy this race track. We’ll come back next year, hopefully, and do a little bit better.”

Erik Jones went from fastest in practice on Monday to missing out on the top 16 in qualifying on Tuesday, forcing him to run the Last Chance Qualifier. Jones worked his way to third in that race to earn a spot in the 27-car starting field and ultimately finished 11^th.

“It was up and down, obviously,” said Jones. “We got some damage early. We drove pretty good early, got up to 17^th or 18^th. We got a lot of front-end damage and the car wasn’t quite as good after that. We used a lot of front tire trying to get through the field.

“We had an issue in qualifying, but got it right for the LCQ and the race. We were in a good spot, but we just had too much damage. But that’s racing, especially racing at Slinger.”

NASCAR Hall of Fame inductee and eight-time Slinger Nationals champion Matt Kenseth retired from the race after just 64 laps, finishing 22^nd in the final running order.

Conrad Morgan Turns Back Time Again: One of the all-time greats in Slinger Speedway history, Conrad Morgan is a six-time Slinger Speedway track champion and the 1999 Slinger Nationals champion.

At 75 years old, Morgan proved he can still get the job done behind the wheel of a race car. Morgan clocked in at 11.436 seconds, fast enough for 15th in qualifying to secure his spot in the main event. It was Morgan’s first start in the Slinger Nationals main event since 2020.

Morgan finished 24th, pulling into the pits after 40 laps, but Morgan received a loud ovation from the Slinger crowd during driver introductions after ensuring he would be part of the track’s biggest event of the year.

Van Der Geest Happy With Speed Before Flat Tire: Making his second Slinger Nationals appearance, Levon Van Der Geest started on the pole after the 12-car invert from qualifying and ran near the front of the field throughout the night.

The Kulwicki Driver Development Program Finalist was in contention for a top-five finish in the closing laps when his flat tire led to a caution with four laps to go. Still, Van Der Geest salvaged an eighth-place finish, giving him plenty of reason to smile about the night.

“It looked like it was a flat right-front tire,” said Van Der Geest. “I’m not sure if it was the side-by-side racing with everyone. I don’t think I hit the wall, but when it went down coming out of four, then I hit the wall.

“We got it replaced and got back out there and finished eighth. I was really excited to battle for a fourth or fifth-place finish there. It was a bit of a bummer, but the fact that we had that kind of speed gives me a lot of confidence that we can run with guys like that.”