DARLINGTON, S.C. -- Zane Smith dealt with struggles early in his rookie season, but he has been far more consistent this season as a sophomore. Gaining experience in the Cup Series has helped him progress, but another crucial factor has been the reunion with Ford Performance and Front Row Motorsports.
"I was only gone for exactly one year, so it kind of feels like I'm back home in a sense," Smith told AltDriver at Darlington Raceway. "I had kind of gotten to learn just the processes of things when I was in the (Front Row) truck.
"So I feel that curve hasn't been a big undertaking at all. I feel it's been really smooth and felt kind of right back, ready to hammer on it, I'd say, week two or three."
Smith kicked off his rookie season at Spire Motorsports with a 13th-place finish in the Daytona 500, but then he finished 29th or worse in five of the next six races. His average finish through seven races was 29.0, and he was 35th in the Cup Series standings.
Compare those numbers to this season. Smith's finishes in the first seven races were 36th, 11th, 29th, 9th, 23rd, 11th, and 16th. His average finish is 19.3, and he is 23rd in the standings. He remains below the playoff cutline, but he enters Darlington as a more consistent competitor.
"It helps so much being able to start a year strong and just being able to kind of capitalize on those points," Smith said. "It's really hard to dig yourself out of a hole, which some guys are going through.
"I mean, the one race that stands out to me is Daytona. We had a lot of speed but scored no points that weekend. I'm still paying that penalty."
Smith is in a better situation this season than he was early in 2024 while driving for Spire Motorsports. Yet, work still remains for the California native.
He can add more top-10 finishes to his resume, and he can find ways to score more points early in the races. This is something he did in the summer and fall last season, which paid dividends early in the race weekends.
"It's just really important to try to score some stage points and ultimately just score a good finish and carry that momentum into the next weekend," he said. "You have a good finish, you go out later in qualifying, the track's in a better shape, and there's just so many benefits.
"If you qualify better, you get a better pit pick, and you stay on the lead lap, run up front on that first stage. Your whole race looks different."
Smith will aim to continue this progress this weekend at Darlington Raceway, one of the most difficult tracks in NASCAR to conquer. After that, he has dates with multiple tracks where he delivered top-10 and top-five finishes.
This list includes Nashville Superspeedway, where he finished a career-best second last season and Watkins Glen International, where he finished fifth.