Dillon Wins Truck Title Despite Valiant Run By Race Winner Sauter

Photo Credit: John Harrelson/Getty Images for NASCAR

 

By Reid Spencer
Sporting News NASCAR Wire Service

  

(November 18, 2011)

  

HOMESTEAD, Fla.—Austin Dillon withstood a strong challenge from race winner Johnny Sauter to win the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series championship in Friday night’s Ford 200 at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

NASCAR called the event with 15 laps left with Sauter in the lead and Dillon in 10th place, giving Dillon, 21, the youngest champion in series history, a six-point edge over Sauter in the final series standings.

 

Dillon is the first driver in series history to win the rookie of the year title in his first full season and the series championship the following year.

"I remember my first championship with Dale Earnhardt," said team owner Richard Childress, Dillon’s grandfather. "I had the same feeling tonight watching my grandson."

 

"You can’t go out of the truck series any better than this," said Dillon, who will graduate to the Nationwide Series with RCR next year.

Denny Hamlin finished second in the No. 18 Kyle Busch Motorsports truck, followed by Kevin Harvick, Nelson Piquet Jr. and Joey Coulter, who won the 2011 rookie of the year title. Coulter is a teammate of Dillon’s at Richard Childress Racing.

Early in the race, patience was a virtue for Dillon, who steered clear of potential complications and found a comfortable place to run at or near the back of the top 10.

As the race progressed, so did Dillon, who had worked his way into the second position behind Sauter before Ross Chastain’s spin on Lap 96 caused the fourth caution of the evening. The subsequent restart, however, brought more stress than Dillon ever could have expected.

Dillon fell back to 15th, fearing that he might have a problem with the right front fender on the No. 3 Chevrolet. Shortly thereafter, Sauter clinched most laps led, putting Dillon in danger of losing the championship if he lost more positions by the end of the race.

But Dillon drove back to the 10th position before rain halted the race on Lap 119 of 134 with Sauter in the lead.

"The fender got bent in—I don’t know how it happened," Dillon said. "I didn’t hit anybody on the track, but I think it happened on pit road. We got real tight once I got back there (in traffic). I think it was more on the conservative side when I was three-wide. We were three-wide in the middle, and to force a spot right there was not worth it."

 

Sauter, who won his second race of the season and the fourth of his career, wasn’t aware of how far behind Dillon had fallen on the restart.

"I had no clue," said Sauter, who won more than one event in a season in a top NASCAR touring series for the first time in his career. "Not one time tonight did they tell me where the 3 truck was. It didn’t really matter where he was running. We knew what we had to do, and that was lead the most laps and win the race.

"It’s a huge accomplishment, coming out here and doing what we needed to do. Six points is a bummer. You can think back on the season—dominating Kentucky, broke an axle, 20 to go, leading the race; ORP (Indianapolis), leading the race, flat tire; the lane violation at Texas, 22 points; six points at Pocono. You can go down the list—but everybody can. That’s just racing."

 

Notes: Greg Biffle and Travis Kvapil won rookie of the year honors and truck series championships, but not in consecutive years. Biffle accomplished the feat in 1998 (rookie) and 2000. Kvapil was rookie of the year in 2001 and champion in 2003. … Harvick had clinched the owners’ championship with his No. 2 truck before the series arrived at Homestead.

 

2011 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series

Homestead-Miami Speedway

Ford 200
Race Results

 

1. 13 Johnny Sauter SafeAuto/Curb Records Chevrolet
2. 18 Denny Hamlin Dollar General/DirecTV Toyota
3. 2 Kevin Harvick Hunt Brothers Pizza Chevrolet
4. 8 Nelson Piquet Jr. Piquet Realty Chevrolet
5. 22 Joey Coulter RCR Graphics Center Chevrolet
6. 21 Ty Dillon Charter Chevrolet
7. 24 Elliott Sadler AM/FM Energy Chevrolet
8. 17 Timothy Peters Tire Kingdom/Service Central Toyota
9. 23 Jason White Gunbroker.com Chevrolet
10. 3 Austin Dillon Bass Pro Shops/Tracker Boats Chevrolet
11. 81 David Starr Zachry Toyota
12. 31 James Buescher Exide Chevrolet
13. 33 Ron Hornaday Jr. OneMain Financial Chevrolet
14. 29 Parker Kligerman Cooper Standard Dodge
15. 15 Dusty Davis Red Top Auto Auction Toyota
16. 5 Todd Bodine International Trucks/Monaco RVs Toyota
17. 4 Ricky Carmichael Monster Energy Chevrolet
18. 6 Justin Lofton CollegeComplete.com Chevrolet
19. 88 Matt Crafton Menards/Tarkett Chevrolet
20. 62 Brendan Gaughan Tire Kingdom/Service Central Toyota
21. 9 Max Papis GEICO Toyota
22. 60 Cole Whitt Fuel Doctor/Red Bull Chevrolet
23. 32 Blake Feese Red Hot Insurance Chevrolet
24. 39 Ryan Sieg RSS Racing Chevrolet
25. 98 Dakoda Armstrong Ferrellgas/EverFi.com Chevrolet
26. 51 German Quiroga telcel Toyota
27. 93 Ross Chastain National Watermelon Chevrolet
28. 9 Bryan Silas Rockingham Speedway Ford
29. 57 Norm Benning G.L. Hubbard & Sons Inc. Chevrolet
30. 68 Clay Greenfield Anave Weight Loss Dodge
31. 66 Max Gresham MattyBRaps.com/Gresham Motorsports Park Chevrolet
32. 7 Miguel Paludo Duroline Toyota
33. 74 Mike Harmon KOMA Unwind Chevrolet
34. 38 Dennis Setzer RSS Racing Chevrolet
35. 10 Jennifer Jo Cobb DrivenMale.com Ford
36. 7 Johnny Chapman BOBBER.info Toyota

NASCAR Levies Suspension for Texas Race Against Kyle Busch

Photo Credit: Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images for NASCAR

Known as a driver that embodies the must-win attitude found in all legendary racers, Kyle Busch at the age of 26 years has swiftly fell to 104 race victories in the top-three faucets of NASCAR. A focused, determined individual with the talent to justify his presence as an all-out race threat in NASCAR Sprint Cup, Nationwide and Camping World Truck races, Busch would never accept anything less than victory on the track. A driven winner, this enthusiasm of Kyle Busch has caused him to appear aggressive and downright disrespectful to other competitors. Earning reputation for combativeness in racing, Carl Edwards, Kevin Harvick and even his brother Kurt met the consequences of crossing Kyle Busch's intense self-motivation.

For this weekend's NASCAR triple-header show at Texas Motor Speedway, Kyle Busch again prepared to race in all three major NASCAR divisions starting with the Camping World Trucks Winstar World Casino 350k event Friday night. Qualifying 4th in his Kyle Busch Motorsports #18 Toyota Tundra, the driver/owner was a certified favourite for race victory at the end of the night. On lap 13, Busch battled for 2nd place with the #33 KHI (Kevin Harvick Incorporated) Chevrolet of Ron Hornaday Jr side-by-side into turn one. Passing a lapped truck, Hornaday slightly bobbled his race truck rubbing into Kyle Busch's race vehicle on the outside. Both trucks ran wide up the race track through turn two with the #33 Chevrolet Silverado brushing the wall. NASCAR threw the caution on the Texas Motor Speedway track but the #18 Toyota was instantly racing for the #33 truck of Ron Hornaday Jr. Crushing into the rear of the KHI truck, Busch intentionally turned the #33 into the turn 4 wall hard damaging his own truck in the process. Stunning spectators as well as other race teams alike, NASCAR responded promptly to the deliberate and dangerous actions of Kyle Busch. Indifferent to the penalties occurring in the NHL for dangerous head shots, NASCAR deemed the Friday night retaliation of Kyle Busch against Ron Hornaday Jr an action worthy for benching one of the stock car racing series' most popular bad boys.

Photo Credit: Tom Pennington/ Getty Images for NASCAR

Having originally parked the #18 Toyota Tundra for the rest of the Camping World Truck Series event, Kyle Busch would return to the Texas Motor Speedway to learn he would be forbidden to compete in the remaining races at the 1.5-mile oval including most significantly the NASCAR Sprint Cup event on Sunday. Seventh place in Chase points for 2011, Kyle Busch will be a NASCAR Sprint Cup spectator for the first time since 2004 having to watch his #18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota round the Texas Motor Speedway in the hands of Michael McDowell.  

Ruling on Busch's reckless contact with the #33 Chevrolet, the driver's past skirmishes likely added some weight to NASCAR's rare decision to suspend a driver. In May, Kyle Busch was involved with spinning Kevin Harvick at Darlington. On the pit lane during post-race, Busch forced himself past the #29 Richard Childress Racing car almost colliding with a Richard Childress Racing crew member. A second incident initiated by Kyle Busch in 2011 took place a month later in the O'Reilly Auto Parts 250 Camping World Truck Series at Kansas Speedway. Dissatisfied with a pass by Joey Coulter in the #22 Chevrolet, Busch bumped the competitor's truck hard on the cool down lap. Ironically, the owner of the car Busch confronted was Richard Childress who physically encountered the driver afterwards in the garage area. In the Texas truck race, Busch's wrath was dealt to a truck owned by Kevin Harvick (a pilot of Richard Childress' Sprint Cup car).

A rare occurrence to see a driver parked for an event as a penalty, only two times prior has a driver been suspended from a Cup series event for an incident in another NASCAR event. In the first time following a 2002 Martinsville truck race, Kevin Harvick (under probation for a post-race incident at Bristol Motor Speedway) was unseated from his #29 Chevrolet for the Sunday Cup event. The other time NASCAR levied a race suspension involved Robby Gordon. Wrecking Marcos Ambrose in the late laps of the inaugural Montreal Nationwide event, that incident and Gordon's conduct immediately afterwards led NASCAR to park versatile driver from the July race at Pocono Raceway.

Both Joe Gibbs Racing and Toyota Racing expressed understanding on NASCAR's decision making neutral statements after the penalty was leveled against Kyle Busch. While Kyle Busch remained elusive for much of the day following NASCAR's penalty, the driver at-fault issued an open letter Saturday evening on his website.

To all,

I’ve had a lot of time today to sit and reflect, and try to put my thoughts into words as best I can.

I want to sincerely apologize for my actions during Friday night’s Truck Series race at Texas.

I apologize to my fans, all my sponsors, everyone at Joe Gibbs Racing and Kyle Busch Motorsports.

After talking with my team, it’s great to have their support and encouragement to assure me that there are better days ahead. Even though this took place while driving for Kyle Busch Motorsports, I am sorry for how difficult this has been for everyone associated with Joe Gibbs Racing’s Nationwide and Sprint Cup Series teams.

I’d also like to apologize to Ron Hornaday Jr., and everyone associated with the No. 33 team in the Truck Series.

I understand why I was taken out of the car for the rest of the weekend. NASCAR officials had to act, and I accept their punishment and take full responsibility for my actions.

As a racecar driver, the hardest thing to do is to sit on the sidelines listening to cars on the track when you know you should be out there competing. For this, I have no one to blame but myself.

Through a lot of support from the people around me, I feel like I’ve made a lot of strides this year, but this was certainly a step backward. Moving forward, I will do everything I possibly can to represent everyone involved in a positive manner. However, I know my long-term actions will have more of a bearing than anything I say right now.

Sincerely,

Kyle Busch


NASCAR has not ruled out further actions on Kyle Busch but the chances of further race suspension is unlikely after Texas. While some will argue NASCAR is making an example out of Kyle Busch for his race actions, the driver would probably admit he made an example of himself to earn this hard ruling.

Hamlin Captures First Truck Victory

Photo Credit: Tom Whitmore/Getty Images for NASCAR

By Reid Spencer
Sporting News NASCAR Wire Service

(October 29, 2011)

MARTINSVILLE, Va.—Making excellent use of a fresh set of tires, Denny Hamlin drove through the field after a pit stop on Lap 134 and won Saturday’s Kroger 200 Camping World Truck Series race at Martinsville Speedway in his only start this year.

Ron Hornaday Jr. ran second to make a small dent in the advantage on series points leader Austin Dillon, who finished third. Johnny Sauter ran fourth, followed by rookie Joey Coulter and Kevin Harvick.

The victory was Hamlin’s first in the series in 12 starts, adding the driver of the No. 18 Kyle Busch Motorsports Toyota to the list of drivers, now 23 in number, who have won at least one race in each of NASCAR’s top three series.
“It’s a big deal for me, more than what people probably think,” said Hamlin, who has run one truck race per year in 2009, 2010 and 2011. “When they think we go down to these different series—Nationwide and truck—and we’re just going down there to try to get wins, from my standpoint, it’s very, very tough.

“The truck series is more competitive now than what it’s ever been, and it means as lot to myself to win a truck series race, especially running just one a year, usually. … This was just one of those weekends where everything worked out great for us.”
Hamlin passed Hornaday and Dillon moments after a restart on Lap 187, as Dillon slid up the racetrack in Turn 1 but managed to maintain control.

“We gave it to him—I did,” said Dillon, who expanded his points lead to 11 over 10th-place finisher James Buescher. “Just couldn’t make the first turn and ran into Ron. If I could have made it through the first turn, it would have been me (or) Ron in victory lane, I’m pretty sure. We had faster trucks.”
Hornaday said he expected Dillon to slip in the corner and was prepared for it.

“The lap before the (next-to-last) restart, I cleaned my tires off pretty good, and I still shoved my nose pretty good,” said Hornaday, who gained one point on Dillon and now is tied for third in the standings with Sauter, 15 points back. “When I saw Austin not weaving his truck as much as I did on the (last) restart, I knew he was coming up into me.

“I had to make sure his right front tire was at my door, and I could lean on him back a little bit, so we didn’t get up in the marbles. It worked out for both of us, other than Denny Hamlin snuck through the middle of both of us and stole the win—but we’ll take it.”
Dillon passed Harvick for the lead on Lap 141 shortly after a restart that followed the sixth caution of the race, caused by contact between Germain Racing teammates Todd Bodine and Max Papis, who battled until Papis spun off Bodine’s front bumper.
After Papis spun again to bring out the seventh caution, Dillon led the field to the green flag for a restart on Lap 152 and held the top spot until Ryan Sieg’s spin on Lap 172 caused caution No. 8. Moments before the yellow flew, Hornaday passed Harvick for second, setting up a battle between a four-time champion (Hornaday) and a driver seeking his first title (Dillon).

When the field restarted on Lap 179, Dillon and Hornaday held the top two spots, chased by Hamlin and Sauter, both on fresher tires. One caution later, Hamlin powered beneath both Hornaday and Dillon on a Lap 187 restart and pulled away for the win.



2011 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series
Kroger 200
Martinsville Speedway
Race Results


3 18 Denny Hamlin Toyota / Traxxas Toyota
2 33 Ron Hornaday Jr. Steak-Umm Steaks / Chastity Baker Chevrolet
10 3 Austin Dillon Bass Pro Shops / Tracker Boats Chevrolet
4 13 Johnny Sauter SafeAuto / Curb Records Chevrolet
12 22 Joey Coulter darrellgwynnfoundation.com / RCR Graphics Chevrolet
6 2 Kevin Harvick Tide / Kroger Chevrolet
13 21 Cale Gale Rheem Heating, Cooling and Water Heating Chevrolet
9 17 Timothy Peters GearWrench / Strutmasters.com Toyota
28 62 Brendan Gaughan South Point Hotel and Casino Toyota
5 31 James Buescher Wolfpack Rentals Chevrolet
7 5 Todd Bodine NTB / Service Central Toyota
1 88 Matt Crafton Roto-Rooter / Menards Chevrolet
18 8 Nelson Piquet Jr. QualComm / AutoTrac Chevrolet
21 70 Jeff Agnew Clarence's Steak House Chevrolet
26 23 Jason White GunBroker.com Chevrolet
11 7 Miguel Paludo Stemco Duroline Toyota
8 6 Justin Lofton CollegeComplete.com Chevrolet
15 9 Max Papis GEICO Toyota
14 24 Elliott Sadler Virginia Lottery Chevrolet
29 36 Grant Enfinger England's Stove Works Dodge
16 29 Parker Kligerman Penske Truck Leasing Dodge
22 81 David Starr Zachry / BYF.org / ASI Limited Toyota
17 39 Ryan Sieg Pull-A-Part Used Auto Parts Chevrolet
20 92 Clay Rogers Tri City Tire / Fleet HQ / BTS Tires & Wheels Chevrolet
24 66 Max Gresham World Crown 300 / Gresham & Associates Chevrolet
36 9 Bryan Silas Rockingham Speedway Ford
19 60 Cole Whitt Fuel Doctor / Red Bull Chevrolet
25 51 Josh Richards Joy Mining Machinery / U.S. Navy Seals Toyota
33 57 Norm Benning Norm Benning Racing Chevrolet
31 65 Tyler Tanner EF-65 Ford
27 97 Matt Lofton Strutmasters.com Toyota
34 32 Blake Feese AccuDoc Solutions Chevrolet
30 20 Johanna Long Panhandle Grading & Paving Toyota
32 7 TJ Duke Merrill Lynch Toyota
23 4 Ricky Carmichael Monster Energy Chevrolet
35 93 Mike Garvey S&W Services Chevrolet

Tough, Tactful Trucker Hornaday Takes Atlanta Race

Photo Credit: Geoff Burke/Getty Images for NASCAR

By Chris Nagy:

 

Entering Atlanta Motor Speedway after a gritty short track battle in a Thursday night race Bristol Motor Speedway event, the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series departed from the small 0.533-mile oval to run one of the series' fastest race tracks. As the Camping World Truck Series drivers and teams took on the 17th event of the 2011 season, emphasis grows on the drivers points standings. A close fight among 4 drivers, ThorSport driver of the #13 Chevrolet Johnny Sauter took the lead in the overall points ahead after Bristol. Turner Motorsports driver James Buescher sat only 7 points behind making the outcome of the following races important in defining the which driver holds an advantage for the championship.

 

Circulating the 1.54-mile speedway fastest during qualifying, Ricky Carmichael claimed the pole for the Good Sam Club 200 driving his #4 Monster Energy Chevrolet at a 177.813 miles per hour average speed. As Carmichael took green ahead of the entire 36-truck field for the Atlanta Motor Speedway event, Sprint Cup regular Clint Bowyer quickly skated around the the #4 truck to lead.

 

Bowyer behind the wheel of the #2 Kevin Harvick Incorporated owned Chevrolet truck would install himself as a fixture at the front of the Good Sam Club 200 field for 97 of the 130 laps completed. As Clint Bowyer dominated the Good Sam Club 200 at Atlanta Motor Speedway, brief interruptions saw fellow Sprint Cup interloper Kyle Busch also leading the event for what was a total of 14 laps.

 

As the Kevin Harvick Incorporated #2 vehicle remained firmly as the class of the field of the NASCAR Camping World Truck race at Atlanta, the Good Sam Club 200 race started off as a big game of catch-up for Bowyer's #33 teammate. Ron Hornaday, starting 17th in the Friday night event, was susceptible to the reaction of 8 rows of vehicles. As Hornaday accelerated his #33 Chevrolet, he was unable to anticipate what was a slower than expected start. Nailing into the rear of another race truck, the #33 Chevrolet ended up with significant front end damage to the truck's driver side corner. Under caution periods, the Kevin Harvick Incorporated pit crew for the #33 truck were able to patch up the mingled sheet metal so Hornaday could compete with the top-10 cars. Despite this potential problem, the #33 Kevin Harvick Incorporated (KHI) team would be able to turn this incident into an advantage later in the event.

 

With 5 cautions slowing the pace of the Camping World Truck Series vehicles during the Good Sam Club 200 race at Atlanta Motor Speedway, two separate cautions claimed top point contenders for the driver's championship. Blowing an engine, series rookie and Red Bull Racing development driver Cole Whitt suffered a quick retirement after only 19 laps of competition. With oil from the #60 Chevrolet drawing a caution, Whitt coasted back to the garage area falling considerably in the points through the summer stretch of racing.

 

On lap 60, the yellow flag flew for a second title contender for the 2011 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series crown. Taking the point lead just one race ago, Johnny Sauter slipped slightly in turn 2 brushing the outer wall. Though the damage largely appeared superficial at first sight, the #13 Chevrolet of Sauter required extensive repair which eventually cost the ThorSport race team to finish 29th, 22 laps off the lead lap truck pace.

 

With the final caution landing on lap 79 and concluding on lap 81, a 49-lap sprint to the finish of the Good Sam Club 200 was going to present the risk of empty vehicle fuel tanks prior to the 130th lap. Front runners including Clint Bowyer and Kyle Busch would all require one final green lap pit stop to travel the remaining lap distance of the Atlanta event. As most teams pitted their race trucks, a select few race vehicles were running on alternate strategies that allowed an opportunity to complete the event without a green-lap pit stop. One of those trucks gambling with strategy on track was the #33 Chevy piloted by Ron Hornaday. Filling up at lap 75, the veteran carried out a fuel conservation plan through the long green flag run to the end. Also pushing to the finish of the Atlanta race on a similar strategy to the #33 truck was the #32 Chevrolet driven by Blake Feese. Feese like Hornaday suffered an on-track mishap which caused the #32 Turner Motorsports team to reconsider their race plans. In the late laps, Blake Feese ran in the runner-up position at a distance from Ron Hornaday's #33 truck.

 

In the final laps, Clint Bowyer and Kyle Busch chased down the lead trucks using the fresher tire they obtained through the recent pit stop. Both Bowyer and Busch were able to catch Feese for position but the interval to Hornaday was too great in the final distance. Ron Hornaday captured his 49th career NASCAR truck series victory after leading the last 17 laps around Atlanta Motor Speedway. Clint Bowyer crossed the checkered flag second assembling a KHI 1-2 finish while Kyle Busch followed closely for a 3rd place result. Blake Feese and the #08 Chevrolet driven by Ryan Newman rounded out the top-five for the Good Sam Club 200 at Atlanta Motor Speedway.

 

The race had a massive effect on the series points with Johnny Sauter and Cole Whitt ending the event with off-key results. A new NASCAR Camping World Truck Series point leader emerged with James Buescher. Only 7 points shy of Sauter entering the Atlanta oval race, a 10th place finish in the #31 Chevy truck gave Buescher the points needed for the top spot for the overall standings. Winning the Atlanta race, Ron Hornaday gained 4 positions giving the 4-time series champion an fighting chance for the 2011 title. The top-6 in the Camping World Truck Series is separated by 51 points with 8 races remaining on the 2011 schedule.

 

 

 

 

2011 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series
Good Sam Club 200
Atlanta Motor Speedway
Race Results

1. 33 Ron Hornaday ARMOUR / Ingles Chevrolet
2. 2 Clint Bowyer Bad Boy Buggies Chevrolet
3. 18 Kyle Busch Dollar General Toyota
4. 32 Blake Feese AccuDoc Solutions Chevrolet
5. 8 Ryan Newman Realtree / Brandt Chevrolet
6. 3 Austin Dillon Bass Pro Shops / Tracker Boats Chevrolet
7. 88 Matt Crafton ZECOL / Menards Chevrolet
8. 4 Ricky Carmichael Monster Energy Chevrolet
9. 5 Todd Bodine ServiceCenterAuto.com / NTB Toyota
10. 31 James Buescher EXIDE Batteries Chevrolet
11. 63 Jack Smith Seal Wrap Ford
12. 29 Parker Kligerman  Penske Truck Rental Dodge
13. 22 Joey Coulter # RCR Graphics Center Chevrolet
14. 9 Max Papis GEICO Toyota
15. 39 Ryan Sieg S&W Services Chevrolet
16. 17 Timothy Peters Red Horse Racing Toyota
17. 81 David Starr Zachry / ASI Limited Toyota
18. 62 Brendan Gaughan South Point Hotel and Casino Toyota
19. 51 Colin Braun Bullet Liner Ford
20. 8 Nelson Piquet Jr. AutoTrac / Qualcomm Chevrolet
21. 15 Josh Richards Joy Mining Machinery Toyota
22. 7 Miguel Paludo # Stemco Duroline Toyota
23. 10 Jennifer Jo Cobb HipChixFundraisers.com Ford
24. 66 Chris Cockrum Advanced Comms. Group / AccuTech Chevrolet
25. 23 Jason White GunBroker.com Chevrolet
26. 6 Justin Lofton CollegeComplete.com Toyota
27. 84 Chris Fontaine Glenden Enterprises Chevrolet
28. 98 Justin Marks GoPro Chevrolet
29. 13 Johnny Sauter SafeAuto / Curb Records Chevrolet
30. 78 BJ McLeod Boggy Creek Airboat Rides Chevrolet
31. 20 Johanna Long  Panhandle Grading & Paving Toyota
32. 60 Cole Whitt  Fuel Doctor / Red Bull Chevrolet
33. 9 Charles Vest Rockingham Speedway Ford
34. 7 Johnny Chapman BOBBER.info Chevrolet
35. 38 Mike Garvey S&W Services Chevrolet
36. 93 Dennis Setzer S&W Services Chevrolet

NASCAR Schedule & Weather Forecast: July 15th to 17th 2011

Photo Credit: Jennifer Coleman/ Iowa Speedway

Loudon, New Hampshire
New Hampshire Motor Speedway
NASCAR Sprint Cup/ NASCAR Nationwide Series


Friday:

10:30 am- NASCAR Nationwide Series Practice
Temperature: 27 degrees Celsius (81 degrees Fahrenheit)
Sky Conditions: Sun with clouds
Chance of Precipitation: 0%


11:30 am- NASCAR Sprint Cup Practice
Temperature: 26 degrees Celsius (79 degrees Fahrenheit)
Sky Conditions: Sun with clouds
Chance of Precipitation: 0%


1:40 pm- NASCAR Nationwide Series Practice
Temperature: 28 degrees Celsius (82 degrees Fahrenheit)
Sky Conditions: Sun with clouds
Chance of Precipitation: 0%


3:10 pm- NASCAR Sprint Cup Qualifying
Temperature: 26 degrees Celsius (79 degrees Fahrenheit)
Sky Conditions: Sun with clouds
Chance of Precipitation: 0%


Saturday:

9:30 am- NASCAR Sprint Cup Practice
Temperature: 20 degrees Celsius (68 degrees Fahrenheit)
Sky Conditions: Sunny
Chance of Precipitation: 0%


10:35 am- NASCAR Nationwide Series Qualifying
Temperature: 23 degrees Celsius (73 degrees Fahrenheit)
Sky Conditions: Sunny
Chance of Precipitation: 0%

11:45 am- NASCAR Sprint Cup Practice
Temperature: 23 degrees Celsius (90 degrees Fahrenheit)
Sky Conditions: Sunny
Chance of Precipitation: 0%


3:30 pm- NASCAR Nationwide Series Race (New England 200)
Temperature: 29 degrees Celsius (84 degrees Fahrenheit)
Sky Conditions: Sunny
Chance of Precipitation: 0%



Sunday:

9:00 am- NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Race (LENOX Industrial Tools 301)
Temperature: 30 degrees Celsius (86 degrees Fahrenheit)
Sky Conditions: Rain Showers
Chance of Precipitation: 0%



Newton, Iowa
Iowa Speedway
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series/ ARCA Racing Series


Friday:

3:00 pm- ARCA Racing Series Practice
Temperature: 30 degrees Celsius (86 degrees Fahrenheit)
Sky Conditions: Sun with clouds
Chance of Precipitation: 10%


4:30 pm- NASCAR Camping World Truck Practice
Temperature: 30 degrees Celsius (86 degrees Fahrenheit)
Sky Conditions: Sun with clouds
Chance of Precipitation: 10%


5:30 pm- ARCA Racing Series Practice
Temperature: 30 degrees Celsius (86 degrees Fahrenheit)
Sky Conditions: Sun with clouds
Chance of Precipitation: 10%


6:30 pm- NASCAR Camping World Truck Practice
Temperature: 29 degrees Celsius (84 degrees Fahrenheit)
Sky Conditions: Sun with clouds
Chance of Precipitation: 10%


Saturday:

12:10 pm- ARCA Racing Series Qualifying
Temperature: 30 degrees Celsius (86 degrees Fahrenheit)
Sky Conditions: Cloudy with chance of thunderstorm
Chance of Precipitation: 30%


1:35 pm- NASCAR Camping World Truck Qualifying
Temperature: 31 degrees Celsius (88 degrees Fahrenheit)
Sky Conditions: Cloudy with chance of thunderstorm
Chance of Precipitation: 30%


4:15 pm- ARCA Racing Series Race
Temperature: 32 degrees Celsius (89 degrees Fahrenheit)
Sky Conditions: Cloudy with chance of thunderstorm
Chance of Precipitation: 30%


7:00 pm- NASCAR Camping World Truck Race (Coca-Cola 200 presented by
Hy-Vee)
Temperature: 31 degrees Celsius (88 degrees Fahrenheit)
Sky Conditions: Partly Cloudy
Chance of Precipitation: 30%

Hornaday wins at Texas when Sauter is black-flagged

Photo Credit: Tom Pennington/Getty Images

By John Sturbin
Special to the Sporting News NASCAR Wire Service

(June 10, 2011)


FORT WORTH, Texas—Ron Hornaday Jr. won the Camping World Truck Series WinStar World Casino 400k Friday night when race leader Johnny Sauter was black-flagged for changing lanes on the night’s final restart.

Sauter, who had passed Hornaday for the lead with a powerful run through Turn 4 on Lap 130, was penalized for moving from the outside lane to in front of Hornaday before crossing the start/finish line on a green-white-checkered restart on Lap 167. The race went 168 laps, one beyond its scheduled distance.

“Good way to steal one,” Hornaday said. “I think we had a third- or a fifth-place truck, but it worked out for us. On that restart, he was the leader, but he kind of blocked, basically.”

Asked at what point he realized Sauter had broken the restart rule, Hornaday said, “Soon as the green dropped he turned in my lane, and I was yelling, ‘He’s in my lane!’ At that time we had a second-place truck, but it was a (good) call. I spun my tires, he spun his tires, and his spotter must have said, ‘Clear.’ ”

The black flag call was made by series director Wayne Auton, who Hornaday said specifically addressed the issue during Friday’s driver’s meeting.

“He said, ‘This is your last warning.’ I think he said it three times,” Hornaday said. “ ‘You go into another guy’s lane, better give it back before you get to Turn 1.’ Sticky call. But you can’t change lanes until you pass the start/finish line. And I hate that rule.”

Sauter, the series points leader, was scored 22nd, the last vehicle on the lead lap.

“He’s got a lane to race down there,” Sauter said as he walked to his hauler. “We both spun the tires.”

Asked if he would confront NASCAR officials over the decision, Sauter said, “It’s official, isn’t it?”

Hornaday, a four-time series champion, earned his 48th career victory and first of the season. It was his third victory on Texas’ 1.5-mile quadoval. Parker Kligerman finished second for his third top 10 of the season. He is the second-highest rookie, eighth in the standings.

David Mayhew’s third-place run easily eclipsed his previous best series finish of 14th. Brian Ickler and rookie Joey Coulter rounded out the top five.

Contact between Austin Dillon and Matt Crafton—fourth and fifth in the point standings, respectively—ended Crafton’s night after a grinding crash into the outside and infield retaining walls on Lap 90. The two were entering the quadoval off Turn 4 when Dillon hooked the right rear quarter panel of Crafton’s truck and sent it spinning.

Photo Credit: Todd Warshaw/Getty Images

Crafton exited uninjured, but rather than head for the ambulance, he proceeded to walk toward Turn 4 to “confront” Dillon as he cycled around. Crafton raised his arms in a “What were you thinking?” pose as Dillon drove past. After reviewing the replay, Crafton was considerably cooler.

“I was a little bit loose and trying to get out of the throttle and turn back to the left,” Crafton said. “But when you get hooked in the rear on the front straight, that’s a tough way to go out at Texas Motor Speedway.”

Earlier, Todd Bodine saw his shot at a seventh victory at Texas end via contact and a crash with David Starr. Their crash on Lap 68 in Turn 2 was the second of the night involving Bodine, who was caught up in another Turn 2 incident with Ickler on Lap 52. Bodine won this event in 2009 and 2010.

Busch Outwits Whitt for Dover Truck Win

Photo Credit: Jason Smith/Getty Images for NASCAR

By Reid Spencer
Sporting News NASCAR Wire Service

DOVER, Del.—Victory in Friday's Lucas Oil 200 wasn't the only thing Kyle Busch gained at Dover International Speedway.

He also gained a healthy dose of respect for NASCAR Camping World Truck Series rookie and second-place finisher Cole Whitt.

Pulling away from Whitt's No. 60 Red Bull Chevrolet after a restart on Lap 198 of 200, Busch won the race under caution when Nelson Piquet Jr. and Timothy Peters wrecked on the final lap.

Busch picked up his third truck series victory in five starts this season. Busch won for the second time at Dover—becoming the first repeat winner here—and for the 27th time in the series.

Matt Crafton came home third and claimed the series points lead. Austin Dillon and Kevin Harvick ran fourth and fifth, respectively.

"Cole Whitt did a really nice job," Busch said in victory lane. "I think he's got something going on over there. The guys do a really nice job, and he's fast. He's quick week in and week out, and this is the first one he's really contended for—that I've been in, anyway."

After a long cycle of green-flag pit stops, Busch held a lead of nearly 12 seconds over Ron Hornaday Jr. when NASCAR called the fifth caution of the race for debris on the backstretch. Jason White and Whitt, who took two tires to Busch's four under the yellow, took the green flag side-by-side on Lap 161.

Whitt powered his No. 60 Chevrolet into the lead after the restart, with Busch in pursuit. Whitt opened an advantage of roughly one second before Justin Lofton's spin on the backstretch on Lap 178 brought out caution No. 6 and bunched the field for a restart on Lap 184.

Busch charged into the lead from the inside lane on the restart and held it for a lap before Craig Goess' wreck caused the seventh caution. Not surprisingly, Busch chose the bottom lane for the restart on Lap 192 and quickly pulled away.

"I snookered him (Whitt) on the second-to-last restart, and I got him a little bit there, but on that last restart, he was right with me. We ran down into Turn 1 side-by-side. I chose the bottom because I felt like, running through (Turns) 1 and 2 wide open, it was the faster way around."

But Parker Kligerman, who had run in the top 10 for most of the race, spun and tagged the outside wall under close racing with Whitt on Lap 193. The resulting caution forced the final restart on Lap 198.

Though his first win eluded him, Whitt had much to celebrate.

"Running second to Kyle—a good points day for us—it's like winning the points for us," Whitt said. "We'll take that and move on and go to Charlotte (May 20) and try to win one there."

Busch and Harvick, both on probation for an altercation at last Saturday's Sprint Cup race at Darlington, competed without incident on Friday. The drivers raced for the lead after a restart on Lap 81, with Busch getting the advantage, but a subsequent pit-road speeding penalty to Harvick separated them for the rest of the race.

Kasey Takes Kyle Busch Motorsports Truck to Win at Darlington

Geoff Burke/ Getty Images for NASCAR

By Jared Turner
Special to the Sporting News NASCAR Wire Service


DARLINGTON, S.C.—Kasey Kahne did it again.

Making his first and possibly only Camping World Truck Series start of the year, Kahne cruised to a relatively comfortable win in Saturday’s Too Tough To Tame 200 at Darlington Raceway.

The victory made Kahne the first driver in the truck series to win three of his first four starts.

Second alongside Elliott Sadler on a restart with 53 laps to go, Kahne immediately dispatched of Sadler—who had taken two tires under the previous caution—and never trailed again.

Kahne held on through three more restarts, including a final one with three laps to go, to take the checkered flag ahead of four-time series champion Ron Hornaday Jr. and 2010 Darlington winner Todd Bodine. Matt Crafton and James Buescher completed the top five.

Kahne’s stiffest challenge over the final laps came from Bodine, who once moved alongside before getting loose and falling into the clutches of Hornaday.

“I gave it a shot and got sucked around and got loose and all that and finished third,” Bodine said.

Kahne, a full-time driver in the Sprint Cup Series since, scored truck wins at Darlington and Homestead-Miami Speedway in 2004 and finished second last year at Pocono Raceway.

Saturday marked Kahne’s second appearance in the Kyle Busch Motorsports Toyota normally driven by team owner Kyle Busch, who was vacationing in Cancun.

“This is one of my favorite racetracks,” said Kahne, who qualified second and led four times for 95 of the 147 laps. “I’m really glad I came. I really enjoy driving this thing.”

Matt Crafton remained the series leader, stretching his advantage to six points on rookie Cole Whitt, who moved into second after three races. Whitt finished an impressive eighth after starting from the pole and leading twice for 30 laps before dropping back with a pit-road mistake and engine issue.

Whitt, 19, was making his fourth career truck series start, his first at Darlington.

“The track just kind of suited my driving style, and from the get-go we just kind of fell into the rhythm,” Whitt said.

The race was slowed by 10 cautions, including one for a three-truck wreck involving Johanna Long, Ricky Carmichael and Nelson Piquet Jr. that brought out the red flag for 7 minutes, 37 seconds.

Notes: Kahne’s margin of victory was 1.116 seconds. … Kahne, who started second, became the fourth winner to start inside the top five. Bodine started eighth last year, and Bobby Hamilton started 14th when he won in 2003. … Kahne’s three wins tie Rich Bickle, Andy Houston and Dave Rezendes for 27th on the all-time win list.


Article provided with permission of NASCAR



Pos # | Car # | Driver ('i' denotes ineligibility for championship)| Sponsor/ Vehicle Make

1.18 Kasey Kahne(i) Toyota Toyota
2. 33 Ron Hornaday Jr. Tide / Kroger Chevrolet
3. 30 Todd Bodine Germain.com Toyota
4. 88 Matt Crafton Tarkett / Menards Chevrolet
5. 31 James Buescher Wolfpack Rentals Chevrolet
6. 17 Timothy Peters GearWrench Toyota
7. 2 Elliott Sadler(i) Armour Vienna Sausages / Bi-Lo Chevrolet
8. 60 Cole Whitt Red Bull Chevrolet
9. 13 Johnny Sauter SafeAuto / Curb Records Chevrolet
10. 81 David Starr ZACHRY Toyota
11. 92 Clay Rogers BTS Tire & Wheel Distributor / Fleet HQ Chevrolet
12. 93 Shane Sieg S&W Chevrolet
13. 77 Justin Lofton Lofton Cattle Toyota
14. 29 Parker Kligerman Penske Truck Leasing Dodge
15. 3 Austin Dillon Bass Pro Shops/Remington/Tracker Boats Chevrolet
16. 39 Ryan Sieg S&W Chevrolet
17. 5 Travis Kvapil International Truck / Monaco RV's Toyota
18. 9 Max Papis GEICO Toyota
19. 46 Craig Goess Greenville Toyota of N.C. Toyota
20. 1 Jeffrey Earnhardt Fuel Doctor Chevrolet
21. 15 Dusty Davis Vision Airlines / Emerald Coast Toyota
22. 50 T J Bell LibertyTireRecycling/PinnacleRubberMulch Chevrolet
23. 07 Jamie Dick VIVAAutoGroup.com Chevrolet
24. 66 Justin Marks GoPro Chevrolet
25. 62 Brendan Gaughan South Point Hotel and Casino Toyota
26. 57 Norm Benning Norm Benning Racing Chevrolet
27. 7 Miguel Paludo Stemco Duroline Toyota
28. 22 Joey Coulter RCR / Darrell Gwynn Foundation Chevrolet
29. 25 Tayler Malsam One Eighty Toyota
30. 4 Ricky Carmichael Monster Energy Chevrolet
31. 20 Johanna Long Panhandle Grading & Paving Toyota
32. 8 Nelson Piquet Jr. Qualcomm / Nelson Piquet Chevrolet
33. 23 Jason White GunBroker.com Chevrolet
34. 10 Chase Mattioli CollegeComplete.com Ford
35. 51 Justin Johnson Vision Airlines / Wounded Warrior Toyota
36. 32 Brad Sweet Great Clips Chevrolet