Ricky Thornton Jr. and his team shared why they chose to exit the Prairie Dirt Classic at the very beginning of the race.

After completing 10 laps, Thornton decided to take his car to the infield and call it a night albeit he got a little more than he bargained for as he hit the mud that was created after a rain shower that delayed the start of race and took a little bit of a spin before safely making it into the infield. Thornton would finish in 28th place out of the 29 cars that started the race. He started in 19th and had only advanced one spot to 18th due to Chris Simpson choosing to call it a night. Only 14 cars remained on the track by the race’s end.

On Facebook, Thornton and his team shared, “Our team made the decision to start tonight’s feature & pull off to save equipment after a major storm rolled through & left the track extremely muddy.”

“Everyone involved in the event did what was best with the knowledge that they had at the time,” he continued. “The fans ultimately got to see a pretty good race. Glad everyone is safe. Congrats to Brian Shirley on his win, that’s pretty dang cool!”

When one fan questioned why Thornton and his team decided to call it early, the team explained, “In 12 laps he had passed 0 cars. Less than half of the field finished.”

“We’re a little short on motors and the conditions were hard on motors. He made the decision that he felt was best for himself and the team,” the team added. “The fans get entertainment from the race, they still got that, Ricky pulling off changes nothing about the event in the slightest. Remember this is how we pay our mortgage and feed our kids. If Ricky felt the outcome would have been favorable he would’ve continued racing. He’s not an idiot.”

In another comment his team added, “Just because your car owner can pay to fix it doesn’t mean you should race with that mindset. Ours is great & would’ve been fine either way, but Ricky respects them and his crew and knew his limits last night.”

To Thornton and his team’s point, Bobby Pierce revealed he suffered significant damage after finishing in sixth. He posted on Facebook, “LOTS of damage to fix in less than a day & everything is a muddy mess. I’m probably a lil dehydrated & beat up from running the curb for 100 laps. Oh well, Wilmot tomorrow.. another day, another race. Gotta grind.”

He wasn’t the only one with damage. Josh Rice and his team shared that he “broke late in the event after moving from 13th to 8th, eventually taking home a 17th place finish.”

Ethan Dotson’s ASD Motorsports team also revealed they broke on lap 12.

Ricky Thornton Jr.’s next event on his schedule is the North South 100 at Florence Speedway in Walton, Kentucky, but the team is discussing attending the USA Nationals at Cedar Lake Speedway this upcoming weekend. The USA Nationals begin on Thursday, July 31st and continue for three nights through August 2nd. When asked on Facebook if they would attend, Thornton’s team shared on Facebook, “Honeslty not sure, they’ve changed their minds a few times but I’ll be sure to update when I know a final decision.”

What do you make of Thornton’s explanation for exiting the race early?

NEXT: Bobby Pierce Explains What Happened That Caused Big Wreck During Prairie Dirt Classic