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.

Harvick Dominates In Rain-Delayed Pocono Debut

Photo Credit: Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images

By Reid Spencer
Sporting News NASCAR Wire Service

(August 7, 2011)
LONG POND, Pa.—Thanks to fuel-saving technique and opportune late cautions, Kevin Harvick had enough gas to survive a green-white-checkered-flag finish in Sunday’s rain-delayed Good Sam RV Emergency Road Service 125 and win the Camping World Truck Series race at Pocono Raceway.

The victory was Harvick’s first in three starts in the series this year and the 10th of his career. Kyle Busch finished second, followed by James Buescher, points leader Johnny Sauter and Austin Dillon.

When the race went three laps beyond its scheduled distance of 50 laps, the only question was whether Harvick had enough fuel in his tank to go the extra 7.5 miles. There was no question about the quality of his ride.

“I didn’t have anything for Kevin,” said Buescher, who lost second place to Busch on Lap 46. “He was in a league of his own.”

Harvick didn’t come to the pits on Sunday, having changed tires for the last time on Lap 15 under caution for rain the day before. The race was suspended two laps later. Harvick said his truck was so strong that he didn’t want to sacrifice track position for fresh rubber.

“I think you saw the 18 (Busch) drive back up through there with tires,” Harvick said. “Tires still meant something. Our truck was just so fast that there was really no reason to give up the track position to come and get tires, since we were good on fuel.

“That’s one of the shortest races I’ve raced in a long time, and the strategy changes a little bit. You’ve got to get out there quick and try to put yourself in position quick on strategy, and you don’t have a lot of chances to make things happen if you’re off the pace.

“They (the team) just did a great job of hitting it right off the truck, and that makes life easy.”

NASCAR called the fourth caution of the race on Lap 32, after a smoking chunk of Nelson Piquet Jr.’s flat right front tire sheared off in the middle of the racing surface on the Long Pond straight.

The caution laps provided cover for those who might have been short on fuel—notably Harvick.

Nevertheless, Harvick, wary of the possibility of a green-white-checkered-flag finish, began shutting off his engine entering Turn 1 to save fuel. But a caution on Lap 37 for a wreck involving David Starr, Brendan Gaughan and Peyton Sellers necessitated the fifth caution and gave Harvick the cushion he needed to make it to the finish of the race.

On Lap 42, Sellers stalled on the access to pit road to cause the sixth caution. Harvick pulled away on the restart on Lap 46, while Busch and Buescher battled for the second position. Harvick held a comfortable advantage, when contact from Dillon’s Chevrolet sent Todd Bodine’s Toyota spinning on Lap 49 to send the race to overtime.


2011 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series
Pocono, Pennsylvania
Pocono Raceway
Race Results

2 Kevin Harvick Ollie's Bargain Outlet Chevrolet
18 Kyle Busch CocoaVia.com Toyota
31 James Buescher Wolfpack Rentals Chevrolet
13 Johnny Sauter SafeAuto/Carrier/Curb Records Chevrolet
3 Austin Dillon Bass Pro Shops/Tracker Boats Chevrolet
22 Joey Coulter DarrellGwynnFoundation/RCRGraphicsCenter Chevrolet
32 Mark Martin Exide Batteries Chevrolet
88 Matt Crafton Menards/Ideal Door Chevrolet
33 Ron Hornaday, Jr. UTZ Snacks Chevrolet
17 Timothy Peters Red Horse Racing Toyota
9 Max Papis GEICO Toyota
5 Todd Bodine International/Monaco RVs Toyota
29 Parker Kligerman Penske Truck Rental Ram
8 Nelson Piquet, Jr. Bozzano/Jontex Chevrolet
60 Cole Whitt Fuel Doctor/Red Bull Chevrolet
6 Justin Lofton CollegeComplete.com Toyota
23 Jason White Gunbroker.com Chevrolet
81 David Starr Zachry Toyota
7 Miguel Paludo Stemco Duroline Toyota
4 Ricky Carmichael Monster Energy Chevrolet
39 Ryan Sieg S&W Services Chevrolet
62 Brendan Gaughan South Point Hotel & Casino Toyota
28 Wes Burton FDNY Racing Chevrolet
57 Norm Benning Norm Benning Racing Chevrolet
66 Peyton Sellers Skills USA Chevrolet
7 Chad McCumbee SS Green Light Racing Toyota
84 Chris Fontaine Stingray Chevrolet/Glenden Enterprises Chevrolet
38 Mike Garvey Sieg Racing Chevrolet
93 Shane Sieg S&W Services Chevrolet
75 James Hylton Norm Benning Racing Chevrolet
89 Chris Lafferty Lafferty Performance/Blue Ox Chevrolet

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

Darlington Truck Race Tamed by Todd Bodine

Mary Ann Chastain/Getty Images for NASCAR

Running a standalone event, the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series returned to Darlington Raceway after a 6-year absence. Assembling for the Too Tough to Tame 200, the visit to the so-called "Lady in Black" was the first time many of the younger truck series regulars to experience the 1.366 mile South Carolina race track. One of those drivers making the initial laps at Darlington was Timothy Peters piloting the #17 Red Horse Racing-owned Toyota Tundra. Fortunate for Peters, those early laps were fast enough to earn the #17 truck the pole position for the Saturday night event.  

Relishing the reputation for being the track too tough to tame, this race kept the track's slogan intact. In the first 10 laps of 147, the yellow flag flew on two occasions for spins involving the #92 of Dennis Setzer and Jason While in the #23 Dodge. White's truck would be the reason for caution again on lap 58 when the Mopar's engine suffered a terminal failure on-track. With 9 cautions 37 laps overall, a remarkably high number competitors within the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series had their will broken by the infamous oval. Topping the list of 16 vehicles that failed to finish the Too Tough to Tame 200 was Brian Ickler, Ricky Carmichael and Mike Skinner.

Timothy Peters led the first 47 laps, reigning Camping World Truck Series champion Ron Hornaday would be the next driver to lead at Darlington. Five leaders would pace the Too Tough to Tame 200 with four of them leading more than 23 laps signifying how important gaining the lead was through the course of the event. The Richard Childress Racing #3 truck handled by Austin Dillon proceeded to lead after Hornaday up until lap 101 once the flag was brought under caution for an incident involving Mario Gosselin and Ricky Carmichael. Through the orchestra of pit road activity, the #30 truck of Todd Bodine was rushed into the lead by his crew. A deciding move for the event, Bodine and his Germain Racing #30 Toyota led the final 46 laps to win the Too Tough to Tame 200 at Darlington Raceway. Starting without intent to run a full Camping World Truck Series schedule, the #30 Germain Racing team were only even originally planning to run the race. However, by their lead positioning in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series driver's standings the team arrived having to miss other previously-planned engagements including a wedding.

After taking pole, Timothy Peters kept his #17 Toyota at the front for the entire event to score a 2nd place for a 1-2 finish for Toyota. Leading a charge of Chevrolet Silverado race trucks, Ron Hornaday finished 3rd ahead of Johnny Sauter and Austin Dillon rounding out the top five.

Elliott Sadler Scores Confidence-Building Pocono Truck Series Win

Photo Credit: Drew Hallowell/Getty Images for NASCAR

By Reid Spencer
Sporting News NASCAR Wire Service

LONG POND, Pa.—Elliott Sadler isn't ready to be written off.

On Saturday at Pocono Raceway, he showed why. Pulling away on the second attempt at a green-white-checkered-flag finish, Sadler won the Pocono Mountains 125 Camping World Truck Series race from the pole, his first victory since 2004 in any of NASCAR's top three touring series.

Sadler, 35, beat Kasey Kahne to the finish line by .445 seconds in a race that went five laps past its scheduled distance of 50 laps at the 2.5-mile triangular track. With his first truck series victory, Sadler is the 21st driver to win at least one race in each of NASCAR's top three divisions. Matt Crafton finished third, followed by Aric Almirola and rookie Justin Lofton in the truck series' first visit to Pocono.

Sadler's win vindicated the faith of team owner Kevin Harvick and provided a welcome highlight in a two-year stretch that has seen Sadler struggle in a Sprint Cup car at Richard Petty Motorsports. Sadler announced July 9 that he will leave the No. 19 RPM Ford at the end of the season.

"It's hard to put in words what this means to me," said Sadler, whose last NASCAR win was Sept. 5, 2004 in a Cup car at Fontana, Calif. "To have a tough couple years like we've had in the Cup series, and things not go like we want to, as far as running up front, and winning races and leading laps and things like that. …

"You sit at home a lot, wondering if you're ever going to make it back to victory lane. Are you ever going to have that situation again? Are you ever going to be in that position again? This, to me—I know it's recent, and it's today—but this is the biggest win in my career.

"There's a lot of naysayers out there, and there's a lot of people that write me off, not giving me a chance to make a comeback and be a strong presence again in this sport. To be able to come here and sit on the pole and win the race and race against people like Kasey Kahne and Denny Hamlin (who finished ninth), who I think are two of the best racecar drivers we have in our sport, means a great deal to me."

Notes: Sadler drove Harvick's No. 2 Chevrolet to the lead in the series owners' standings. The No. 2 truck leads the No. 18 of Kyle Busch, driven by Kahne on Saturday, by two points. … Todd Bodine, who tops the drivers' standings, rallied from a spin on Lap 41 to finish 12th. Bodine leaves Pocono 149 points ahead of Almirola in second.

Naughty and Nice: 2009 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series

Photo Credit: Chris Graythen/Getty Images


With fields consisting of an eclectic pairing of seasoned veterans as well as aspiring rookies, the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series has a long association with rough and tumble race action. The 2009 season was no exception as circuit regulars Ron Hornaday, Mike Skinner, and Todd Bodine defended their turf against younger Sprint Cup series prospects. A difficult year off the track for the truck series, the tour was affected both a drop in corporate sponsorship and manufacturer support as well some poorly-placed rumours on the demise of the Camping World Truck Series after this year. Under an ominous cloud of economic ruins, the 2009 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series assures the future is vibrant for the stock truck circuit.

Looking back at the 2009 calender, XSL Speed Reporter wants to cast light on the memorable season for the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series.

Nice: Matt Crafton Finds His Groove- Matt Crafton career in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series had been a model of perseverance. Since joining the truck series circuit full-time in 2001, Crafton established himself as a consistent competitor by finishing in a top-10 points position in 4 of the 5 previous seasons. However, having run 197 races between 2000 to 2008, Crafton took victory only one time (Charlotte of 2008). In 2009, Matt Crafton, partnered with ThorSport Racing in driving their #88 Chevrolet, was able to gain some sustained attention on his week-to-week performance. Through the truck series' first 9 events, the #88 Chevrolet Silverado finished no worse than 11^th place. Despite being winless in 2009, Crafton's consistency allowed to driver to be the perfect championship adversary to Ron Hornaday Jr and the #33 Chevrolet. With 5 total 2^nd place finishes on the year, Matt Crafton was unable to catch Hornaday but did secure a career best rounder-up position in the truck series points as well as an very honourable mention to the 2009 season.

Photo Credit: Getty Images for NASCAR

Naughty: Mad Matt- In the September running of the Copart 200 at Gateway International Raceway, Matt Crafton, who had quietly been capturing championship-contending finishes all season long, made an extreme ruckus in the final stages of the truck series race. With 10 laps to go in 3^rd place, the #88 Chevrolet Silverado of Matt Crafton was tempted heavily by a chance at victory. Instead of using precision passing to pass the two trucks, Crafton decided it was 'Hammer Time' for his Menards-sponsored truck taking out Todd Bodine as well as the championship points leader Ron Hornaday in the course of two restarts to take the races lead. Removing Bodine's Toyota and Hornaday's Chevy from contention, the resulting two incidents made casualties of three other race trucks. Inferring “I'm not scared!” after the first incident, NASCAR officials penalized Crafton for has brazenly aggressive driving. Finishing 6^th, Matt Crafton lost the chance for a 2^nd truck series victory but seemingly skated with a slap on the wrist compared to the damage done at Gateway.

Nice: Randy Moss Motorsports Goes All the Way- In only his second full season as a NASCAR Truck Series team owner, football wide receiver Randy Moss has evidently been a fast-learner to building a competitive NASCAR race team. As Bill Davis Racing was sold off and shut down, Randy Moss Motorsports, who had just begun a manufacturer switch from Chevrolet to Toyota, made homes for rookie driver Tayler Malsam as well as 1995 series champion Mike Skinner (Skinner also got to keep his truck #5). While Malsam fought a good fight with Johnny Sauter for the 2009 rookie of the year award, Mike Skinner scored 3 victories and a 3^rd place overall in the overall points standings. Although endlessly praising the efforts of the entire Randy Moss Motorsports #5 team, Skinner had indicated the lack of resources and sponsorship dollars have kept the team from challenging the KHI Chevrolet of Ron Hornaday.

Naughty: Manufacturer Support being pulled by Chevrolet, Ford and Dodge- Just by looking at the full grid of a 2009 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race will tell which auto manufacturer is still committing support. Toyota Tundras outnumbers the combined contingent of American badged vehicles. With Ford and Dodge drawing down their support for truck series operations before the 2009 season, General Motor's bankruptcy affected the Chevrolet Silverados campaigned by Kevin Harvick Inc (KHI) and ThorSport Racing. In the case with KHI, while Ron Hornaday Jr's #33 truck remained strong, those cuts seemingly impacted the team's junior drivers Rick Carmichael and JR Fitzpatrick. For the final races, Kevin Harvick and Ryan Newman took over driving duties in a move to please victory-seeking truck sponsors but left 2 NASCAR prospects out the door of KHI.

Nice: Hornaday Streaks to the Championship- Winning his 4^th NASCAR truck series championship title this year, Ron Hornaday Jr is a long-time competitor in the tour. Between driving trucks for Dale Earnhardt Inc and the Richard Childress Racing team which eventually began KHI, Hornaday holds records in many of the series' categories including most wins, expended to 45 this year. Hornaday's 2009 season run was highlighted by a 5-race winning streak (a record for a NASCAR driver in the top three touring series since 1972 or the establishment of NASCAR's so-called modern era). Winless after his streak-ending race at Nashville Superspeedway on August 1^st, Ron Hornaday finished well-enough to maintain a comfortable lead over Matt Crafton clinching the top spot in points after the 2^nd to last round in Phoenix.

Naughty: Treatment Shown to Former Series Champions- Ron Hornaday Jr won his 4^th championship in 2009 proving that the veterans are still a force to be reckon with in the truck series. However, other past champions were hit hard in 2009 as economics and promotion of younger drivers made the veteran champions' off-track fight more challenging than the fender-beating action of the NASCAR truck series. Starting with three-time truck series champion Jack Sprague. Sprague sat out the entire 2009 schedule after being dropped from the Wyler Racing Toyota after the Homestead finale in 2008. I have yet to determine if Jack Sprague has retired or has been racing elsewhere in this past year.

Entering the 2009 season, Mike Skinner was hustled out of his race team since 2004 when Bill Davis Racing sold his operations to a buyer interested only in supporting race team in NASCAR. Fortunately, Randy Moss Motorsports picked up the veteran and just three weeks before the Daytona International Speedway truck series race. Winning 3 races, Skinner's on-track results proves that the inaugural truck series champion deserves to be respected.

Johnny Benson was also a victim of the Bill Davis Racing team shut down after winning his 2008 NASCAR truck series championship. Enjoying a racing career renaissance which once had Benson driving in the Cup series, 2009 would be a most unkind year. Starting the season inside another Toyota Tundra, the #1 campaigned by Red Horse Racing, Johnny Benson lost his place in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series when his team was forced to suspend operations due to lack of sponsorship. With his truck ride lost on June 8^th, 5 days later Benson was seriously injured in a IMSA Supermodified race held at his home track of Berlin Raceway. He returned later in the year as a commentator for the Speed channel truck series coverage. For 2010, Kyle Busch Motorsports is considering fielding a truck for Benson, pending sponsorship.

Photo Credit: Getty Images for NASCAR

Nice: Kyle Busch's Commitment to the Camping World Truck Series- Being the first division that Kyle Busch was able to display has eventual prowess as a NASCAR superstar, the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series seems to hold a special place in the heart of the young racer. Only 16 years old at the time he debuted in the series with a Roush Racing Ford F-150, Busch's presence actually led to a NASCAR rule change when a truck race weekend was co-sponsored by a tobacco company. Because tobacco advertising laws, a rule mandating a minimum competitor age of 18 disqualified Kyle Busch's participation in the race. The next season, NASCAR declared a minimum age of 18 throughout the top three touring series.

Despite Busch's early set-backs in the NASCAR Truck Series, he returned to the series in when Billy Ballew Motorsports wanted a driver for their DEI (Dale Earnhardt Inc)-supported #51 Chevrolet. Earning the fitting nickname 'Rowdy Busch' on similarities of his truck to the car seen in the movie Days of Thunder, Busch has intensified his raid on the truck series in recent years driving a #51 Toyota. Closing the 2009 NASCAR season with only 69 starts in the truck series, Kyle Busch holds a magnificent 16 victories in the tailgate competition. In 2010, Kyle Busch will become even deeper embedded into the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series when he takes on the role of owner through his purchase of Xpress Motorsports in December forming Kyle Busch Motorsports.

Photo Credit: Kyle Busch Motorsports

Naughty: Kyle Busch's Commitment to the Camping World Truck Series- While Kyle Busch's involvement in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series is viewed as positive by some, the age-old argument of Cup drivers competing so prolifically in the Truck and Nationwide series has grown in recent years. With corporate sponsors demanding top value even in the lower levels of NASCAR, Cup drivers running on the lower series are often preferred over the entry-level drivers. While Kyle Busch has an intense thirst for racing in his young career, he attracts top sponsorship money and resources to dominate the shorter truck races. While some fans might continue to grumble about the presence of Cup drivers in the ladder series of NASCAR, Kyle Busch's involvement in 2010 will actually aid the younger drivers breaking into NASCAR. Through Kyle Busch Motorsports, Tayler Malsam will run the full season in the Camping World Truck Series will Brian Ickler will share Kyle Busch's truck through 2010.

Nice: A Trio of First Time Truck Winners- Colin Braun, Brian Scott and Timothy Peters have all broken through the established Camping World Truck Series ranks for their first victories on the tour. For Colin Braun and Brian Scott, their 2009 wins may shape up to be their only victories on the schedule in the foreseeable future as both drivers transition to the NASCAR Nationwide Series in 2010.

Kyle Busch Announces New NASCAR Truck Series Team

Photo Credit: Kyle Busch Motorsports

In the final races of 2009 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Kyle Busch plainly indicated that he was not returning to his familar part-time ride in the #51 Billy Ballew Motorsports Toyota. Immediately, it was speculated that Busch's plans for the 2010 truck series schedule would exist with his own team. Through acquired equipment from the Xpress Motorsports operations, the formulation of Kyle Busch Motorsports in the Camping World Truck Series has been officially publicized on Friday. Being an ultimate force in the top three NASCAR touring divisions himself by winning 41 races combined in the past 2 seasons of competition, Kyle Busch endeavour's into car ownership first the first time in a major NASCAR division showing some considerable team building savvy.

Sporting a two-truck operation using Toyota Tundras, Kyle Busch Motorsports will wear Busch's current Sprint Cup number #18 and the #56 through the full 2010 schedule. Much like previous years, Kyle Busch will commit to running a sizable part-time effort in the #18 Miccosukee Resort & Gaming Toyota in races run on companion weekends with his NASCAR Sprint Cup schedule. The remaining races on the Truck schedule will allow Brian Ickler to compete in 2010. Having served as the second driver of the #51 Toyota truck at Billy Ballew Motorsports 2009, Ickler proved extremely formidable in the same equipment as Busch in Camping World Truck Series competition.

Driving the #56 Toyota, Kyle Busch lured 20 year old Tayler Malsam from Randy Moss Motorsports following a productive 2009 rookie campaign. Malsam will be planning full-time in the #56 truck which was shown wearing sponsorship of ActivWater. At the press unveiling, Malsam commented "To team with someone who has won two of the last three series championships is going to be awesome. And I’m proud to continue my relationship with Toyota."

Overseeing the entire Kyle Busch Motorsports is one of the biggest surprises during the NASCAR Truck Series off-season. Rick Ren, 2009 championship-winning crew chief of Ron Hornaday's #33 Kevin Harvick Incorporated Chevrolet, jumped ship for a Director of Competition role with Busch's newly-assembled team. "There have been great racecar drivers, but Kyle has the opportunity to be one of the all-time greats. Getting the chance to help a guy like that who has a dream of building his own race team is an honor.” Ren commented on his reason for taking the new job for the 2010 truck series season.

NASCAR Truck Series: Kevin Harvick Wins 2009 Truck Series Finale Ford 200

Photo Credit: Sam Greenwood/Getty Images


As NASCAR's 3 major touring series (Camping World Truck, Nationwide and Sprint Cup) concludes with Ford Championship weekend at Homestead-Miami Speedway. With the 2009 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series driver's title clinched by Ron Hornaday Jr one week ago at Phoenix International Raceway, Friday night's Ford 200 event might have been anti-climatic in the seasonal scheme. However, thanks to the less publicized owner points, a battle remained up for grabs. The accumulative points of the truck team, #33 KHI (Kevin Harvick Incorporated) Chevrolet team is under pressure by the #51 Billy Ballew Motorsports Toyota through the combined driving efforts of Brian Ickler, Aric Almirola, Travis Kvapil, and most prominently Kyle Busch.

Perhaps the hardest hit of the three major NASCAR touring series, current economics conditions effected the 2009 Camping World Truck season. Reflecting on that note, Roush Racing (running under extremely limited Ford support for 2009) is set to pull the plug on its Truck series operation after 15 seasons of competition. In their swansong race, Roush's #6 Ford driven by Colin Braun took the pole for the 200 mile race around the 1.5 mile oval.

As Braun's Ford F-150 race truck took the flag for the Ford 200, the #4 Chevrolet Silverado of Kevin Harvick acted quickly to repeat his Phoenix performance of one week earlier. The #51 truck of Kyle Busch lurked closely behind the #4 truck in effort to steal the owners championship from Kevin Harvick's #33 team.

By midway through the event, Busch's mission appeared to be accomplished as Ron Hornaday was only able to achieve an average pace around Homestead-Miami. Looking prime to capture the owner championship for Billy Ballew Motorsports, Kyle Busch's quest was effectively ended on lap 82. With tire wear existing as a minor story as the race progressed, the #51 truck was claimed amongst the victims of a tire cut. Falling one lap down due to a green flag pit stop, the lost opportunity for the #51 Toyota team was compounded by a pit road penalty. Kyle Busch's best efforts resulted in a 13th place finish failing to capture any gain on the #33 team. In related news, Kyle Busch is widely rumoured to buy the Xpress Motorsports equipment to run with his own truck team next year meaning this could be Busch's final race for Billy Ballew Motorsports.

With 4 laps left in the Ford 200, 9 of the 10 remaining lead lap trucks, which included 1st place Kevin Harvick, made a surprising move to pit in the final minutes of the Camping World Truck Series as a result of the pace new tires have shown. This pit stop wounded up being a good decision by the #4 Chevy team as one tire displayed significant wear on Harvick's leading truck. The #17 Toyota of Timothy Peters, the only truck not to pit, gambled in favour of track position as the field braced for a green-white-checkered finish. Immediately on the green flag, Harvick used fresh tires and a perfected restart to pass the underdog Peters. As pursuers Matt Crafton and Colin Braun were left to deal with passing Peters' Toyota, Kevin Harvick checked out to win the Ford 200. Using a last lap move, the #88 Chevrolet driven by Matt Crafton skated by Colin Braun and Timothy Peters to take second place.

Crossing the finish line 8th, Ron Hornaday was officially declared the 2009 Champion concluding the year 187 points ahead of Matt Crafton. For a second time, KHI celebrated the double victory as Harvick and Hornaday threw up a tire-squealing smokescreen along with Homestead-Miami Speedway's front stretch.



Photo Credit: Chris Graythen/Getty Images


Please stay tuned to XSL Speed Reporter for the 2009 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Year in Review as well as the events leading up to the 2010 season.

NASCAR Camping World Truck Series
Ford 200

Top 10:

1. Kevin Harvick #33 Chevrolet
2. Matt Crafton #88 Chevrolet
3. Colin Braun #6 Ford
4. Timothy Peters #17 Toyota
5. Todd Bodine #30 Toyota
   
6. Mike Skinner #5 Toyota
   
7. David Starr #24 Toyota
   
8. Ron Hornaday #33 Chevrolet
9. Johnny Sauter #13 Chevrolet
   
10. T.J. Bell #11 Toyota
    

Harvick wins in Phoenix, Ron Hornaday Clinches 4th Truck Series Championship

Photo Credit: Rusty Jarrett/Getty Images for NASCAR



A big night for Kevin Harvick Incorporated (KHI) saw two trucks overcome early race adversity to complete a double victory in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series' Lucas Oil 150. While Kevin Harvick personally netted his fifth Camping World Truck series victory by winning the 150 lap affair in the desert, him and wife DeLana Harvick also celebrated as car owners of the #33 Chevrolet Silverado piloted by acclaimed truck series points champion Ron Hornaday Jr.

Adding drama to Kevin Harvick's drive in his team's #4 Chevrolet truck, the KHI co-owner's race at Phoenix International Raceway was complicated when one of his tires touched an oil slick spinning out Harvick. Using his winning experience from last year's truck race on the 1 mile oval, Kevin Harvick possessed a quickened pace suited to passing the Toyota's of Aric Armirola and Kyle Busch to lead the late stages of the truck series event.

Clinching his 4th truck series championship, Ron Hornaday Jr's 2009 championship was supported by a considerable points lead gained contributed by a five-race winning streak. However, the past 2 months of racing kept the opportunity for challenger Matt Crafton to steal the truck top honours in mathematical reach (through the likelihood remained remote). Despite a pit stop violation penalty, Hornaday decisively claimed the championship by finishing in 4th place. The #33 truck more importantly finished ahead of Crafton's #88 Chevrolet to create a 215 point pad. Having won the truck series championship previously in 1996, 1997 and 2007, the 51 year old Ron Hornaday plans to hopefully add a 5th series crown with his KHI #33 team slated to remain the same into the 2010 season.

The Billy Ballew Motorsports duo ran up front through much of event with Aric Almirola leading NASCAR's current renaissance man Kyle Busch leading most of the 150 lap distance. While Busch's part-time campaign in the Camping World Truck Series tour has left him out of contention for the championship in that division of NASCAR for 2009, truck owner points places the #51 Toyota just 75 points behind the #33 KHI Chevrolet going into the Phoenix race. While Hornaday and KHI will claim the driver's title, Busch's 2nd place finish closes the gap to 60 points going into the season finale at Homestead-Miami next Friday.

NASCAR News Wire: Kyle Busch Wins Truck Showdown in Texas

Photo Credit: Robert Laberge/Getty Images for NASCAR


FORT WORTH, Texas (Nov. 6, 2009) -- If Kyle Busch enters a NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race, odds are better than 50-50 he'll win -- at least where the 2009 season is concerned.

Busch led the final 50 laps of Friday night's WinStar World Casino 350 at Texas Motor Speedway and won his fifth straight race in as many starts in the series.

The victory was Busch's seventh in 13 starts this season, the 16th of his career and his first at the 1.5-mile track. Matt Crafton ran second, .995 seconds behind Busch at the finish. Ron Hornaday Jr. came home third and left Texas with a 197-point lead over second-place Crafton in the series standings.

Hornaday can wrap up the series championship with finishes of 22nd or better in the final two events.

Todd Bodine ran fourth and Colin Braun fifth.

"It's an accomplishment to beat the 33 bunch (Hornaday) here, that's for sure," Busch said. "And we got it done today. I really hate to see the 88 (Crafton) finish second to me. I wish he could get a win."

Crafton acknowledged it would be difficult to pick up the second victory of his career and his first of the year as long as Busch keeps entering races.

"I'm going to lock him in his motor home and take him out of the equation," Crafton joked.

Busch passed Hornaday for the lead on Lap 98 after bumping Hornaday's No. 33 Chevrolet on the backstretch. As Busch pulled away, Hornaday told crew chief Rick Ren to tell the No. 51 team that Talladega (where bump-drafting is commonplace) was last week.

By Lap 114, Crafton had passed Hornaday for the second position, as Hornaday fought a loose handling condition in his race truck. Crafton gradually closed on Busch, but the driver of the No. 51 Tundra maintained a lead of close to one second over his pursuer for the final 30 laps, as Crafton tried to save fuel in his No. 88 Chevrolet.

Busch, who has won the last three NASCAR Nationwide Series races at Texas, will try for the second leg of a possible weekend triple in the O'Reilly Challenge race on Saturday. He'll start sixth. On Sunday, Busch starts fifth in the Dickies 500, the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race.

"It would be pretty awesome to get 'em all three done here at Texas," Busch said. "I've wanted to win a truck race here for a long time, so this is pretty cool, and as soon as I get a Cup win here, another one will get knocked off the list."

JR Fitzpatrick splits from Kevin Harvick Inc

Confirmed by Kevin Harvick Incorporated (KHI), JR Fitzpatrick tenure with the championship-winning Camping World Truck Series team has ended following the truck race at New Hampshire. Having run 6 truck race and 2 Nationwide series road course events in 2009, 21 year old Fitzpatrick's best finish was 11th place on two occasions at Dover and Bristol.

No reason for the parting was given but KHI operations have been affected by the trouble of the American auto industry. Fitzpatrick's part time development driver role with the team may not have corresponded with competitive demands. Too many times in NASCAR, the youth success of Kyle Busch and Joey Logano sets the rookie bar way too high as teams expect instant performance from drivers like Fitzpatrick. Ricky Carmichael and Kevin Harvick himself will take over races Fitzpatrick planned to run through the reminder of 2009.

The 2006 CASCAR Superseries (now NASCAR Canadian Tire series) champion, JR Fitpatrick has traveled south to run in one of NASCAR's prestigious touring series. Having started the 2009 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series in the #7 truck for TRG Motorsports netting a career-best fourth place finish at the season opening race at Daytona.

For this weekend's Talladgea truck race, JR Fitzpatrick will again have a chance to demonstrate his restrictor plate prowess be driving the Keselowski #29 Chevrolet with Equipment Express sponsoring the effort.

Paul Tracy testing a truck at Chicagoland

Paul Tracy will be testing a Germain Racing prepped Toyota Tundra tomorrow (May 28th) at Chicagoland Speedway. Paul " The thrill from West Hill" Tracy chance to drive the NASCAR Craftsman Truck machine will be has first time in truck, but not his first time in NASCAR. In 2005, he had run a handful of the NASCAR Busch(now Nationwide) events with little success and had been mentioned as potentially running for another team this season before that organization's plans changed.

The 2003 Champ Car Series Champion and winner of 31 series races, Tracy has been without a full-time ride in 2008 following the closure of Forsythe Racing after the Champ Car/IRL IndyCar merger. Plans to run for an existing IRL team or the hopes of a one-off deal driving the Indianapolis 500 never materialized beyond speculation. In reality, Tracy indicates that his current contract with Forsythe included with limited time to locate another competitive ride caused some difficulty for the 39-yeear old Canadian.

Germain Racing's truck team is currently leading the Craftsman Truck Series points with Todd Bodine, who had won the series championship just two seasons ago. Clearly testing for a top operation, Paul Tracy's previous employers are a whos who of racing with names such as Penske, Newman/Haas, and Barry Green before racing for Forsythe for five seasons.

With Paul Tracy's aggressive and endlessly passionate racing personality, there would be little agrument that the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series would be perfect fit. Entering the test, Tracy says "I'm thankful that Bob Germain is giving me this opportunity. He is a class act and I'm happy to be a part of what he is doing in NASCAR."

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Photo Taken at July 2002 Toronto Indy CART Championship Race