Mike Wallace Wins Talladega Race With Assist From Hornaday

Photo Credit: Jeff Zelevansky/Getty Images for NASCAR

 

 

By Reid Spencer
Sporting News NASCAR Wire Service

 

(October 22, 2011)

 

 

TALLADEGA, Ala.—In his first Camping World Truck Series start since 2009, Mike Wallace won Saturday’s Coca-Cola 250 at Talladega Superspeedway, as Kevin Harvick Inc. teammate Ron Hornaday Jr. pushed him across the finish line.

 

Hornaday ran second, followed by James Buescher, who made a dent in the series points lead of Austin Dillon. Dillon scrambled to a seventh-place finish after he was demoted to 18th for not maintaining pace under the final caution of the race. The recovery enabled Dillon to stay ahead of Buescher in the standings.

 

The victory was the fifth overall for Wallace, who was substituting for Elliott Sadler, whose wife, Amanda, is expecting the couple’s second child. Wallace won in the truck series for the first time since 2000. The victory was his first in any of NASCAR’s top three touring series since he won a Nationwide race at Daytona in July 2004.

 

Wallace had tears in his eyes when he climbed out of his truck in victory lane.

 

“I’m very emotional right now, because a lot of people doubt you,” Wallace said. “They doubt your ability. An opportunity like this just proves, ‘Hey, I can get it done. Give me something good to drive, and I can prove I can do it.’

 

“I’m numb. My son’s at home, my daughters … I wish they were all here. It is my wife (Carla) and my anniversary this weekend. It’s a cool anniversary.”

 

Wallace turned to his wife in victory lane.

 

“This is your exotic weekend, honey,” Wallace said.

 

Johnny Sauter’s championship aspirations suffered a major setback on Lap 35. He and ThorSport teammate Matt Crafton had dropped to the rear of the field to stay out of harm’s way early in the race, but the strategy backfired.

 

The two trucks crashed as they ran together in tandem, after Donnie Neuenberger’s Chevrolet blew a right-front tire in front of them. Sauter, who entered the race second in the standings and five points behind Dillon, lost two laps as his crew made repairs on pit road.

 

With a wave-around and a free pass, Sauter got back on the lead lap and finished 15th, lessening the damage to his title chances.

 

Notes: Buescher trails Dillon by three points with three races left in the season. Sauter is third in the standings, 14 points back of Dillon and two ahead of Hornaday in fourth. … The top two finishers are a combined 105 years old. Wallace is 52, Hornaday 53.

 

 

2011 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series
Coca-Cola 250 Powered by Fred's
Talladega Superspeedway
Race Results

  

1. 6 33 Mike Wallace Anderson's Maple Syrup Chevrolet
2. 5 2 Ron Hornaday Jr. Bad Boy Buggies Chevrolet
3. 1 31 James Buescher Bad Boy Mowers Chevrolet
4. 4 4 Ricky Carmichael Monster Energy Chevrolet
5. 19 23 Jason White Gunbroker.com Chevrolet
6. 25 5 Todd Bodine NTB/Service Central Toyota
7. 3 3 Austin Dillon Bass Pro Shops/Tracker Boats Chevrolet
8. 29 62 Brendan Gaughan South Point Hotel & Casino Toyota
9. 17 18 Kyle Busch Toyota Certified Used Vehicles Toyota
10. 23 9 Max Papis GEICO Toyota
11. 16 6 Justin Lofton CollegeComplete.com Chevrolet
12. 18 82 Grant Enfinger VisitGulf.com Ford
13. 22 51 Josh Richards Joy Mining Machinery Toyota
14. 10 60 Cole Whitt Fuel Doctor/Red Bull Chevrolet
15. 20 13 Johnny Sauter SafeAuto/Curb Records Chevrolet
16. 8 20 Johanna Long Panhandle Grading & Paving Toyota
17. 27 98 Dakoda Armstrong Ferrellgas/Agrisure Chevrolet
18. 24 7 Miguel Paludo Stop Diabetes Toyota
19. 11 32 Blake Feese AccuDoc Solutions Chevrolet
20. 7 22 Joey Coulter Rip It Energy Fuel Chevrolet
21. 26 39 Ryan Sieg Pull-A-Part, LLC Chevrolet
22. 30 76 Ryan Hackett www.jandrsupply.com Ford
23. 15 17 Timothy Peters NTB/Service Central Toyota
24. 32 28 Wes Burton FDNY Racing Chevrolet
25. 14 84 Chris Fontaine Glenden Enterprises Toyota
26. 2 8 Nelson Piquet Jr. tagg/Qualcomm Chevrolet
27. 35 93 BJ McLeod Pull-A-Part, LLC Chevrolet
28. 9 29 Parker Kligerman Penske Truck Leasing Dodge
29. 36 2 Jamie Dick VivaAutoGroup.com Chevrolet
30. 13 81 David Starr BuildYourFuture.org/Zachry Toyota
31. 12 88 Matt Crafton Menards/Certain Teed Chevrolet
32. 31 16 Donnie Neuenberger Eagle Convenience Stores Chevrolet
33. 34 7 Butch Miller ASI Limited/BOBBER.info Chevrolet
34. 28 1 Jeffrey Earnhardt Poynt Chevrolet
35. 21 99 Patrick Sheltra Chase Mattioli Racing Ford
36. 33 66 JJ Yeley Turn One Racing 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

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.

Naughty and Nice for 2010 Racing: NASCAR Camping World Truck Series



Photo Credit: Chris Trotman/Getty Images

Kicking off the XSL Speed Reporter annual race season review, teh 2010 Naughy and Nice list starts with the 25 races, 2010 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series.  


Nice: Young blood Austin Dillon's rookie season

In only a rookie year, Austin Dillon made the most of his grandfather's resources. Participating in a reactivated #3 Richard Childress Racing team, Austin Dillon arrived at Daytona with the guarantee the 19 year old would receive the best equipment possible. As in the case with any driver, the pressure was on for Dillon to prove he was deserving of the dedication. Gaining a pole in the first race of the season at Daytona, the die was casted for an interesting rookie campaign by Dillon and the #3 Chevrolet. Dillon would go on to clinch 4 additional poles over the course of the 25-race 2010 Camping World Truck Series season proving he was indeed a fast driver. However, at the Iowa Speedway's truck race in July, Austin Dillon took home his first NASCAR Camping World Truck Series victory. Winning that time on a short track, Dillon would take a speedway event as well in September. Both times, Austin Dillon's #3 Chevrolet wins came after qualifying efforts resulting from pole. Following the 2010 run, Dillon finished 5th in the final standing certifying this driver as a potential threat to the 2011 truck and maybe a NASCAR Sprint Cup series contender in the near future.

 Naughty and Nice: Daytona demolition

 The Nextera Energy Resources 250 compiled an anxious 36-truck field for the 2010 kick-off to the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series season. A race promising great action, competitors were eager to take on the 2.5 mile superspeedway with Austin Dillon's #3 Chevrolet leading them through what would be a short race for many prime contenders. A lap 2 caution resulted with a range of twisted and bent sheet metal as 10 trucks were part of a early big wreck. Very shortly after the race restarted another 10-truck crash saw the field slowly getting stripped down as more than half the field sustained major damage over the 250 mile race distance.

The good parts about the 2010 season opening race for the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series at Daytona were many to count but is highlighted simply by the final lap. Timothy Peters aced a last-lap scramble for a slim 0.068 second lead over Todd Bodine. Peters, driving the #17 Red horse Racing Toyota, would go on to put together a successful year with the help of his team placing 6th overall in Camping World Truck Series points.

Nice: Todd Bodine and Germain Racing's Rise to the 2010 Championship

When earlier this season the prospect of seeing the #30 Germain Racing Toyota going the full season looked doubtful, Todd Bodine and team parlayed a 2nd place finish at Daytona into a solid 2010 campaign which would go on through the entire season. Taking the lead for the first time briefly after the Atlanta Motor Speedway race, Bodine assumed definite command of the Camping World Truck Series points lead following the Charlotte Motor Speedway's North Carolina Education Lottery 200. Thanks to a season which equated to 20 top-10 finishes and 4 wins, Bodine clinched his second NASCAR Truck Series title at Phoenix. Following the Ford 200 race at Homestead-Miami Speedway, Todd Bodine left with a 207-point lead over Aric Almirola.



Rusty Jarrett/ Getty Images for NASCAR

Naughty: Defending Truck Series Champion's title defense

As the 2009 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series closed, Ron Hornaday Jr and the #33 Kevin Harvick Incorporated were celebrated a championship after a 6 win season. 2010 proved to be a stark difference for the #33 Chevrolet team. While Ron Hornaday Jr's 2010 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series ended with wins at O'Reilly Raceway Park and Martinsville Speedway to add up his tour-leading total of 47 victories, 9 race finishes of 24th or worse resulted in a his worse average finishing result. Defining his season, Hornaday had two sensational big wrecks at Atlanta and Talladega races where he was lucky to escape both times without injury. Hornaday's season ended with a 7th place in the final points standings 627 points away from the lead.



Nice: Johnny Sauter and Ron Hornaday dueling for Kansas Speedway win

The 5th race of the 2010 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series tour, the O'Reilly Auto Parts 250 at Kansas Speedway provided one of the more thrilling lead battles between Ron Hornaday's #33 Kevin Harvick Incorporated Chevrolet and the #13 Thorsport Racing Chevy truck of Johnny Sauter. Both drivers were fighting for their first victory in 2010 season which has proved a harsh start. As Sauter's truck led with 21 laps to go, Hornaday surged on the #13 Chevy sizing up the Thorsport Racing driver for the valuable lead. As Ron Hornaday was able to get alongside Johnny Sauter into turn 3, impact resulted between the two truck. As consequence, both truck went into a sideways drift through the turn 3-4 complex. Amazingly, both Chevrolet trucks of Sauter and Hornaday were able to regain traction. Initially coming out the winner on the near wreck, Ron Hornaday's #33 truck lead across the line for lap 147. However, fatigue on the #33 Chevy through the incident apparently set on as Johnny Sauter was able to blast by Hornaday through the very next lap. With an over 5 second lead over the 2nd place Ron Hornaday, Johnny went on the win the Kansas event.

Naughty: Poor, Broke Busch Story

As much I respect Kyle Busch and the fact he should be considered one of the top driver in overall auto racing (not just NASCAR), his first venture into team ownership in NASCAR has not gone without some excitement. While Kyle Busch himself went on to win a season-leading 8 races and the #18 team were crowned the 2010 team champions in the series (points scored by the #18 team's result with any driver in the truck), issues off the track regarded the team's race shop with a contractor placing a lien on the building and the discontinuation of second truck driver Tayler Malsam's effort when his sponsor pulled out of the team.

I'm sorry to say I can not completely sympathize with a multi-million NASCAR Sprint Cup star crying poverty in running a race team. However, the situation points out a phenomenon almost every professional team owner accomplishes by not spending their own money to go racing. After all, auto racing teams are businesses before pleasure

Nice: Aric Almirola delivers a solid runner-up driver's points performance

The past few year have been a roller-coaster for Aric Almirola who once presided in a NASCAR Sprint Cup ride. Finding a chance to regroup in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, Almirola immediately performed as a potentially forgotten talent. Collecting the most top-10 finishes of any driver on the 2010 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, Almirola's full schedule with the #15 Toyota of Billy Ballew Motorsports resulted in 2 wins and a runner-up position in the series points standing. Aric Almirola is moving up to the NASCAR Nationwide Series for 2011 with the JR Motorsports' #88 Chevrolets.





Photo Credit: Jason Smith/ Getty Images for NASCAR



Naughty: Toyota's near uncontested manufacturer crown

The one problem in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series is the absence of a firm manufacturer's championship battle. For the past several years, Toyota (who went on to win the series' manufacturer championship again in 2010) has optimize the possession of leading teams to win handsomely without any sizable opposition. In the final race at Homestead-Miami Speedway, for example, 12 of 36 trucks competing were Toyota Tundra race trucks. While economic troubles have led Chevrolet and Ford to scale back their support to the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, the American three auto makers have have largely neglected the tour for many years. Chevrolet had a reasonable contingent led by KHI and Thorsport, Ford only had a limited effort the Dodge/RAM truck stable involved mainly one team (the #23 truck driven by Jason White). However, even Dodge's presence with the #23 team was not exclusive as the team experimented with other truck brand bodies throughout the year.

Nice: Elliott Sadler winning inaugural Pocono truck race

Fighting to assert himself in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series with as much bad luck as poor performances within the embattled Richard Petty Motorsports team, Kevin Harvick had been offered Elliott Sadler the chance to drive selected races in the 2010 Camping World Truck Series. Debuting at the Daytona with a strong run up until getting caught in a crash, Sadler and the #2 KHI team were able to piece together an outstanding performance at the first truck race held at the 2.5 mile Pocono Raceway. Leading 31 of the race's 55 total laps, Sadler found himself in a NASCAR winner's circle for the first time since winning the 2004 Pop Secret 500 at California Speedway.

While Elliott Sadler lost his Sprint Cup Series ride, the restored confidence and apparent chemistry with KHI his earned a multi-year pairing in the NASCAR Nationwide Series for 2011.

Photo Credit: Drew Hallowell/Getty Images for NASCAR

Clint Bowyer Blasts to Truck Win at Phoenix; Bodine Locks Up Championship

Photo Credit: Chris Trotman/ Getty Images for NASCAR

By Reid Spencer
Sporting News NASCAR Wire Service

(November 12, 2010)


AVONDALE, Ariz.—Clint Bowyer didn't lose his touch during a three-year hiatus from NASCAR's Camping World Truck Series.


Driving Kevin Harvick's No. 2 Chevrolet, Bowyer won Friday night's Lucas Oil 150 at Phoenix International Raceway in his first start in the series since Oct. 20, 2007 at Martinsville.


Todd Bodine also had reason to celebrate. With a 12th-place finish at Phoenix, Bodine wrapped up his second truck series championship. He leads Aric Almirola by an insurmountable 202 points entering next Friday's season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway.


Bowyer beat race runner-up Kyle Busch to the line by 1.039 seconds. Johnny Sauter finished third, followed by Matt Crafton and Almirola.


"Everybody back at the shop did such a great job building this thing," Bowyer said. "They were excited about it before we came down here, and any time these guys get excited about building a truck back at the shop, you know as a racecar driver that you're going to have a good hot rod, and we certainly did.

"I love this series, and I think this is some of the best racing we have in NASCAR. It's fun to be back in it."


Bowyer had the dominant truck in the early going. After taking the top spot from polesitter Austin Dillon following a restart on Lap 24, Bowyer opened a lead that reached 6.626 seconds before NASCAR called the second caution of the race on Lap 53 because of fluid on the track.


Busch led 25 laps in the middle of the race, but Bowyer reasserted his superiority after beating Busch out of the pits for a restart on Lap 67.


Bodine added the 2010 crown to his 2006 truck series title.


"Along the way, we had a lot of good luck," Bodine said. "Along with good performance, along with hard work, you've got to have good luck, and we had it this year. We did that. But the old adage is 'You make your own luck,' and this team has done a great job all year of doing that."


Note: Busch, who drives his own No. 18 Toyota, holds a 120 point lead over Bodine's No. 30 Toyota, fielded by Germain Racing, in the battle for the owners' championship.

Hornaday Gives Chevrolet First Truck Pole at Talladega

Photo Credit:  Rusty Jarrett/Getty Images for NASCAR

For the second straight week, the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series joins stock car's headline Sprint Cup series for the Talladega Superspeedway race weekend. Friday qualifying for the Mountain Dew 250 set for 3 P.M. Eastern on Saturday afternoon saw Chevrolet performing a first-ever feat in the truck series at the 2.66 mile oval. Wearing the Bowtie logo, the #33 Kevin Harvick Incorporated truck piloted by Ron Hornaday Jr flew to pole at Talladega posting a top qualifying time of 52.839 seconds or the equivalent average speed of 181.230 miles per hour. Hornaday's Chevrolet Silverado outran the #23 Ford F-150 of Jason White through the time trial by more than just 1/10th of a second to give himself as well as his manufacturer a first time pole at the super fast Alabama race track.

Late into the Camping World Truck Series qualifying session at Talladega Superspeedway, Richard Childress Racing rookie Austin Dillon drew a late qualifying run to potentially challenge Hornaday's mark with the #3 Chevrolet. Dillon came short but still produced a 3rd fastest time to start Saturday's Mountain Dew 250. With two of the top-three starting position occupied by Chevrolet Silverados, the Friday qualifying outing was quite a reason to celebrate through the top-10. The #2 KHI Chevy being driven by stock car veteran Ken Schrader secured a front-running 4th spot. 7th through 9th, Turner Motorsports trucks driven by Ricky Carmichael and James Buescher sandwich the another Chevy, the #13 Thorsport Racing truck of Johnny Sauter.

Bucking the usual trend for double-duty drivers during companion races at the same race track leading into the Sprint Cup race, there will only be as many as three drivers planning to run both the truck and cup race at Talladega. Among the most notable, driver and embattled first year truck team owner Kyle Busch will start 18th in his #18 Toyota Tundra. Driving the #9 Ford again for Richard Petty Motorsports after a more than respectable outing in Sunday's NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Martinsville, Aric Almirola runs his season-long campaign with Bill Ballew Motorsports' #51 Toyota. Almirola will start 5th for the Mountain Dew 250 Saturday behind Schrader and ahead of Chris Fontaine's enviable 6th fastest qualifying lap. 

Runaway points leader in the Camping World Truck Series Todd Bodine starts 10th with his #30 Germain Racing Toyota. Holding onto a 282-point lead above Aric Almirola, fortune at Talladega would go a long way to sealing the 2010 championship. After four truck races at Talladega, Bodine comes into the event with stellar history of two wins and a worst ever finish being 4th in 2006.

Though a big qualifying result for Ron Hornaday Jr, Kevin Harvick Incorporated and Chevrolet, qualifying positions will be of little importance once the Mountain Dew 250 at Talladega Superspeedway commences. Guaranteed to be a rough and tumble outing as high-speeds, close quarters as well as drafting is certain to shuffle the field with likelihood of multiple vehicle wrecks looming for 36 competitors.


NASCAR Camping World Truck Series
Mountain Dew 250
Talladega Superspeedway
October 29th, 2010

Starting Lineup:

1. 1 33 Ron Hornaday Jr. E-Z-GO 2Five Chevrolet 52.839 SEC / 181.230
2. 23 Jason White GunBroker.com/Pursuit Channel Ford 52.932 SEC / 180.911
3. 3 Austin Dillon BassProShops/Rmngtn/TrckrBoats Chev 52.942 SEC / 180.877
4. 2 Ken Schrader Moore's Marinade Chevrolet 52.947 SEC / 180.860
5. 51 Aric Almirola Billy Ballew Motorsports Toyota 53.104 SEC / 180.325
6. 84 Chris Fontaine Glenden Enterprises Toyota 53.153 SEC / 180.159
7. 4 Ricky Carmichael Monster Energy Chevrolet 53.262 SEC / 179.790
8. 13 Johnny Sauter FarmPaint.com Chevrolet 53.348 SEC / 179.501
9. 31 James Buescher Wolf Pack Rentals Chevrolet 53.353 SEC / 179.484 
10. 30 Todd Bodine Valvoline Toyota 53.431 SEC / 179.222
11. 88 Matt Crafton Australian Gold/Menards Chevrolet 53.435 SEC / 179.208
12. 95 Grant Enfinger BeasleyAllen.com/Roush Yates Ford 53.475 SEC / 179.074
13. 81 David Starr Zachry Toyota 53.547 SEC / 178.834
14. 60 Narain Karthikeyan SafeAuto Insurance/Wyler.com Chevrolet 53.549 SEC / 178.827 
15. 17 Timothy Peters Red Horse Racing Toyota 53.562 SEC / 178.783
16. 5 Mike Skinner Exide Toyota 53.668 SEC / 178.430
17. 7 Justin Lofton visitpit.com Toyota 53.711 SEC / 178.288
18. 18 Kyle Busch Toyota Tundra/TRAXXAS Toyota 53.731 SEC / 178.221
19. 46 Craig Goess Jr. Greenville Toyota Toyota 53.960 SEC / 177.465
20. 9 Max Papis GEICO Toyota 54.030 SEC / 177.235
21. 10 Jennifer Jo Cobb DrivenMale.com Ford 54.048 SEC / 177.176
22. 12 Mario Gosselin Accell Cnstrctn/TireMnky/JamesCrtr Att Chev 54.050 SEC / 177.169
23. 47 Donnie Neuenberger Plan B Techologies Chevrolet 54.067 SEC / 177.114
24. 6 Jeffrey Earnhardt Firestop/FWI/FuelDoctor Dodge 54.117 SEC / 176.950 
25. 07 Tony Jackson Jr. ASI Limited/Akzo Nobel Chevrolet 54.124 SEC / 176.927
26. 39 Ryan Sieg S&W Towing Chevrolet 54.530 SEC / 175.610
27. 93 Mike Garvey S&W Towing Chevrolet 54.705 SEC / 175.048
28. 53 Justin Hobgood Alabama Cattlemen's Association Chevrolet 54.872 SEC / 174.515
29. 57 Norm Benning Norm Benning Racing Chevrolet 55.071 SEC / 173.885
30. 89 Mike Harmon Lafferty Performance/Blue Ox Ford 55.205 SEC / 173.463
31. 85 Brent Raymer Blast It All Ford/Ford Drive one Ford 55.327 SEC / 173.080
32. 28 Andy Lally FDNY Racing Chevrolet 55.474 SEC / 172.621
33. 72 John Jackson James Carter Att./SponsortheTruck.com Chev 55.515 SEC / 172.494
34. 48 Bryan Silas Pro Gold Chevrolet 55.930 SEC / 171.214
35. 00 Dominick Casola Koma Unwind Chevrolet 56.589 SEC / 169.220
36. 24 Jerick Johnson Lafferty Performance Chevrolet 57.978 SEC / 165.166

 

 

Finally! Veteran Hornaday Wins Martinsville Truck Race

Photo Credit: John Harrelson/Getty Images

 

Before the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Kroger 200 at Martinsville Speedway, the tour's most decorated driver Ron Hornaday Jr has never won at the historic short track. Despite winning on the almost every under one mile oval the Truck Series have visited (including a multitude of race tracks long since vanished from the modern NASCAR schedule), 16 starts for Hornaday had left the 46-time race winner and reigning series champion snake-bitten. After a green-white-checker finish where Hornaday fended off a determined Toyota driven by Kyle Busch, the driver of the #33 Chevrolet crossed the line first at Martinsville. Leading just 11 laps in the Kroger 200, those laps came at am important time for Hornaday's #33 Chevrolet.

As Hornaday did not present himself until the end of Martinsvile's Kroger 200, the race's lead was initially held by pole sitter Kyle Busch for the first 7 laps. As Sprint Cup regular Busch wanted to fill his trophy room with more Camping World Truck Series honours, his lead was maintained only until another Cup star surged past. The Kevin Harvick drove his #2 truck to what would be 35 laps.

Typical of Camping World Truck Series rounds on the 0.526 mile short oval, cautions came often during the 200 lap distance. A total of 11 yellow flags slowed the field for 59 laps. Two crashes occurring in the last 1/3rd of the Martinsville race proved to most extreme. Swarming into turn 3 on lap 165, the lead lap trucks of Timothy Peters and Matt Crafton made contact.

Getting punted on the restart, Timothy Peters skated up the race track getting bumped by the #23 of Jason White and the #3 of Austin Dillon. Losing momentum, Matt Crafton dived below Timothy Peters into turn 3 as two additional vehicles were matched side-by-side. Four-way into the turn, crowded real estate caused Crafton to touch the #17 Toyota one more time propelling Peter's truck hard into the outside barrier. The wrecked #17 car required almost 9 minutes of red flag time to clean up so the precious late laps of the Martinsville race would wrap up. Crafton continued on the finish 10th but the previous race winner Timothy Peters was forced into retirement due to heavy front-end damage to his #17 Toyota.

While Thorsport Racing's #88 Chevrolet of Matt Crafton fared well in the race's running, the #13 teammate vehicle of Johnny Sauter saw his fortunes turn from good to bad. Leading 49 laps before the halfway point of the Kroger 200, Sauter's day went south after an impact from James Buescher's #31 when the two were fighting for position into turn 1 on lap 159. As the #13 Chevy truck attempted to circulate for a finish, a rear tailgate cover began to lift off and hang loosely on the vehicle's rear causing a serious concern that Johnny Sauter would be black flagged. On lap 183, the Thorsport Racing crew instead to convinced the #7 Toyota of Justin Lofton to knock off the loose body panel under race condition. A trick exploited on several occasions through racing to avoid losing ground on pit road, it backfired this time in this case. As the #7 truck pushed against the rear sheet metal to rub off the tailgate cover of the #13 Chevy, the Toyota launched itself over top of the rear end crushing through Sauter's rear bodywork. 3rd in the 2010 Camping World Truck Series points, Johnny Sauter could do no better than 21st place. Justin Lofton would finish in 13th place but made few friends on the day. Also making contact with Kevin Harvick at the end, the #7 truck driver earned a conversation with 'Happy' Harvick.

Topping the laps led count on with 83 circuits, Todd Bodine convincingly paced the Kroger 200 at Martinsville Speedway through the second half of the event. However, the #30 Toyota did not have the strength in the final short runs to hold off competitors. As first Kyle Busch's #18 Toyota maneuvered his way around Bodine, it was Ron Hornaday on lap 196 who took the lead and the race win.     

Todd Bodine finished 3rd in the final results and proceeds to lead the 2010 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series by a giant 282 point gap on Aric Almirola. Next on the tour's schedule is the Talladega event promising to be a wild race on October 30th.


2010 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series
Kroger 200
Martinsville Speedway
Race Results

1. 33 Ron Hornaday Jr. Armour Vienna Sausage / Kroger Chevrolet
2. 18 Kyle Busch Toyota Tundra / Z-Line Designs Toyota
3. 30 Todd Bodine Germain.com Toyota 
4.  23 Jason White GunBroker.com / Pursuit Channel Toyota 
5.  51 Aric Almirola Billy Ballew Motorsports Toyota
6. 5 Mike Skinner International Trucks / Monaco RV Toyota
7. 81 David Starr Zachry Toyota
8. 60 Stacy Compton SafeAuto Insurance / Melling Engine Parts Chevrolet
9. 4 Ricky Carmichael Monster Energy Chevrolet
10. 88 Matt Crafton Tide / Menards Chevrolet

Todd Bodine Wins #6 race at Texas in Camping World Truck Series

Photo Credit: Chris Graythen/Getty Images


By John Sturbin

Special to Sporting News NASCAR Wire Service

(June 4, 2010)

FORT WORTH, Texas—Todd Bodine added to his resume as the Camping World Truck Series' winningest driver at Texas Motor Speedway on Friday night with an overtime victory in the WinStar World Casino 400k.

Bodine drove away from four-time and reigning series champion Ron Hornaday Jr. and Timothy Peters on a green-white-checkered flag restart to notch his sixth career victory on TMS' 1.5-mile oval, and third in the summer event here. Bodine snapped a 24-race winless streak dating to June 5, 2009.

Johnny Sauter finished second, followed by rookie polesitter Austin Dillon, former series champion Mike Skinner and super-sub Ken Schrader. Bodine's margin of victory after 169 laps was 1.007-seconds.

Bodine, 46, scored his 18th career series victory and 11th in 53 starts on a 1.5-mile layout. Bodine and Kyle Busch each have scored six wins at TMS, with Busch working on a five-race Nationwide Series streak. The Sprint Cup regular also has one truck series win.

"It's an honor anywhere to say you've won the most races at a track. It's pretty awesome," said Bodine, nicknamed "The Onion" for his bald pate. "We're proud of the fact we can come to Texas and run this well every time. It's someplace we enjoy and being the only six-time (truck series) winner … it was a goal when Kyle won five to come back and win another one. To get that done, I'm pretty proud of that."

Bodine led a race-high 106 laps en route to his first victory and seventh top-five finish in eight 2010 races.

"We've been struggling all year to make the trucks drive good, and this truck was driving fast and wide open. It was fun to drive," Bodine said. "We had a great Tundra. It was an awesome night all around."

Crew chief Mike Hillman Jr. said his Germain Racing crew tries to treat all the series' 1.5-mile layouts the same.

"But it seems we get our stuff figured out this time of the year," Hillman said. "I'm really proud of our guys. We went to work this winter making our trucks lighter and better. I can't say enough about how hard everyone at Germain works. I'm the lucky guy who gets called the crew chief."

Dillon, the grandson of team owner Richard Childress, capped his first series pole with his first top-five finish.

"What a phenomenal job," said Dillon. "I started off really good and lost it in the middle but at the end I raced hard and got us a good finish. I just had a little trouble on the restarts."

Bodine, driver of the No. 30 Toyota, was leading Peters and a pack of only nine trucks on the lead lap when the night's fifth caution waved to remove the slowing truck of Jason White from the field. None of the leaders chose to pit, setting up a seven-lap shootout.

Bodine easily drove away from Peters, who faltered badly on the start from his spot on the outside lane. But Hornaday, who swept both races here in 2008, barged underneath Bodine from third in an attempt to take the lead. Bodine never lifted and had cleared Hornaday's No. 33 Chevrolet when Matt Crafton and David Starr tangled down the backstretch, bringing out the sixth caution on Lap 164 of the scheduled 167.

"That next-to-last restart, Ron got underneath me," Bodine said. "I've not always been the best at restarts, just OK. But when you got Hornaday on the outside you got to get it right. That last one, I didn't spin the tires until I got into third (gear). And they got racing hard and ended up giving us a good lead."

Bodine leaves Texas with a 65-point lead over Aric Almirola, who finished 12th.

Kyle Busch Takes Truck Race in Charlotte

Photo Credit: Rusty Jarrett/Getty Images for NASCAR


The following article is from an outside news source delivered under agreement of NASCAR.

CONCORD, N.C.—Polesitter Kyle Busch survived a scrape with the wall and held off Todd Bodine in a two-lap dash to the finish to win Friday night's North Carolina Education Lottery 200 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

Busch, who owns the No. 18 Toyota he drove to victory, crossed the finish line .228 seconds ahead of Bodine to give Toyota its first truck series victory at the 1.5-mile racetrack. Ron Hornaday Jr. was third, followed by James Buescher and Elliott Sadler.

The victory was Busch's second in five starts this season, his third at Charlotte and the 18th of his career. Busch has won three straight races in NASCAR's top three touring series, having triumphed in last weekend's Nationwide and Sprint Cup events at Dover.

On Lap 40 of 134, Busch's Toyota broke loose while leading and slammed the outside wall, damaging the front splitter. Initially, Busch slowed after the contact and lost three positions but began working his way back to the front.

As luck would have it, the brush with the wall helped correct a loose handling condition.

"I made it where I could drive it," Busch said. "I knocked some 'tight' into it. This team did a great job in preparing this truck to come here, and I tried to screw it up. I guess the driver owes the car owner a little something today."

On Lap 65, Bodine passed Brad Keselowski for the second spot and regained the lead when Sadler made a green-flag pit stop on Lap 67. Busch stayed out front until Lap 80, when Brent Raymer's truck blew an engine and went up in a ball of fire in the tri-oval to cause the third caution of the race.

After a lengthy pit stop to repair the right front fender on his Tundra, Busch restarted ninth on Lap 90. He gained two spots on the restart lap before Ryan Sieg blew his right front tire and slammed the Turn 3 wall to bring out the fourth yellow flag.

Eleven laps after a restart on Lap 95, Busch passed Bodine for the second position and held it until Dennis Setzer's hard contact with the Turn 2 wall slowed the field for the fifth time. With an excellent restart on Lap 118, Busch took the lead from Hornaday but ran only three green-flag laps before Donny Lia spun off Turn 2 and crashed nose-first into the inside wall on the backstretch.

Bodine leads the series standings by two points over Aric Almirola, who finished seventh.

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.

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."