Matt Crafton To Retire From Full-Time Nascar Craftsman Truck Series Racing

Matt Crafton, driver of the #88 Slim Jim/Menards Ford, waves to fans as he walks onstage during driver intros prior to the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Baptist Health 200 at Homestead-Miami Speedway on March 21, 2025 in Homestead, Florida. (Photo by James Gilbert/Getty Images)

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Three-time Nascar Craftsman Truck Series champion Matt Crafton is set to retire from full-time racing at the end of the 2025 season.

Crafton, who’s competed with ThorSport Racing for the majority of his career, will step down as the driver of the No. 88 truck. Ty Majeski, who won the Truck Series title in 2024, will move from the No. 98 entry to the No. 88 truck.

Crafton won back-to-back championships in 2013 and 2014, along with the 2019 title, a year in which he didn’t win a race. He has 15 career victories, all of which have come with ThorSport Racing. His last victory came at Kansas Speedway in July of 2020.

Throughout Crafton’s career, he has been supported by one sponsor: Menards. His 23-year relationship with the chain is among the longest in Nascar history.

This year, he only has three top 10s with an average finish of 18.3, almost seven positions lower than his career average of 11.8.

Crafton made his Truck Series debut in 2000 with ThorSport Racing. He only left the team in 2004 to compete for Kevin Harvick Inc. before returning to ThorSport a year later.

A rare lifetime Truck Series driver, Crafton could be a future Nascar Hall of Famer due to his success in the series. The only major Truck Series driver in the Hall of Fame is Ron Hornaday Jr., who won four titles and 51 races. Jack Sprague was nominated to be in the Hall of Fame. He won three championships, as well, but had 28 wins.

Crafton never had a major opportunity to compete for wins in the Cup Series or Xfinity Series. He replaced a few drivers for qualifying sessions over the years, as well as an injured Kyle Busch in the 2015 Daytona 500, finishing 18th. He made two other Cup Series starts in 2019 and 2023. He also made three Xfinity Series starts for Richard Childress Racing in 2013, with two third-place finishes.