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NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series
Race
#4 | Kroger 250
Martinsville Speedway
March 29, 2008
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Jack Sprague proved to be fastest on day one of the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series test at Martinsville Speedway Tuesday in preparation for the Kroger 200 to be held at the legendary Virginia track on March 29. Sprague's No. 2 Kevin Harvick, Inc Chevrolet Silverado posted the best lap of the day touring the .526-mile Martinsville oval in 20.062 seconds (94.387 miles per hour) in the afternoon test session. The speed was just good enough to top Erik Darnell's lap of 20.068, also set in the afternoon session, and the top time 20.075 seconds in the morning practice posted by rookie Brian Scott in the No. 16 Shark Energy Drink/Albertsons Chevy. Scott's top lap of sunny and cool morning session was just one of many surprises in the marathon seven-hour test. While Sprague and Darnell were also fast in the morning session placing fourth and fifth, respectively, Darnell's Roush-Fenway teammate Colin Braun was also quick driving his Ford F150 to the third-best time in session ripping off a lap of 20.088. (Photo Credit: Robert Laberge / Getty Images for NASCAR)
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Terry Cook and Jack Sprague took top honors at day two of the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series test at Martinsville Speedway Thursday. The two veteran drivers, along with a surprisingly large contingent of rookie drivers, were the quickest in the twin test sessions as teams closed out practice for the Kroger 250 Truck Series race to be held at the venerable Virginia raceway on Saturday, March 29. "We finally got our truck pretty good," said Cook of his jet black No. 60 Wyler Racing Toyota Tundra. "We weren't very good on the first day of the test and the guys went back to the hotel and put their heads together as to how we could fix it. We made a lot of changes today and by the end of the day, we were able to put up a lap that was on top of the board." Cook toured the .526-mile Martinsville oval in 20.113 seconds (94.148 miles per hour) to take top honors in the final afternoon session at Martinsville Thursday. The time and speed were just good enough to nip Sprague (20.122) for the top spot in the four-hour afternoon practice, but not quick enough to be the fastest speed of the day as Sprague paced the cooler, early morning test session with a time of 19.792 (95.676 mph). (John Close/TruckSeries.com Photo)
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During Martinsville's two-day test, some new faces were spotted in the garage. Among those newcomers were a couple drivers with familiar last names. Adam Crawford, son of veteran driver Rick Crawford, tested a Circle Bar Racing-prepared truck. The younger Crawford found his way to the top of the speed charts. He closed out day two with the third-fastest truck, posting a fast lap time of 20.142 seconds - a time faster than dad, a former Martinsville race winner. (AdamCrawfordRacing.com Photo)
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Chrissy Wallace will drive the No. 03 Toyota at Martinsville with hopes of following father Mike’s footsteps into NASCAR national series competition. If she’s successful in qualifying for Saturday’s Kroger 250, both father and 19-year-old daughter will have made their debuts at Martinsville Speedway. Mike Wallace, a four-time NASCAR Craftsman Truck winner, finished second in his maiden NASCAR Nationwide Series race at Martinsville on Oct. 28, 1990.
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The 2008 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series hasn't exactly been kind to Mike Skinner so far, but a visit to Martinsville Speedway in picturesque southern Virginia might be just what the doctor ordered for the 1995 series champion. Skinner sits seventh in NCTS points after three of 25 races, and he'll be looking to make a big leap forward in Saturday's Kroger 250 at the 0.526-mile short track, a facility that opened way back in 1947, before NASCAR was even formed. In addition to moving up in points, Skinner also will be looking to make history. He is the only three-time Martinsville winner, and if he can capture the Kroger 250 on Saturday, Skinner will become the first competitor in series history to win three consecutive races at the same short track. He also would be the third driver to win four races at the same track, joining Todd Bodine and Brendan Gaughan, four-time winners each at Texas Motor Speedway. (VPS Motorimages Photo)
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Kyle Busch and Denny Hamlin will be teammates twice this weekend at Martinsville Speedway, where they will fulfill their usual obligations with Joe Gibbs Racing on Sunday in the Goody's Cool Orange 500. In addition to wheeling their Toyota Camrys in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Busch and Hamlin also will be racing Tundra pickup trucks for Billy Ballew Racing in Saturday's Kroger 250 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race at the Virginia oval. Busch, who leads both the NCTS and Sprint Cup points, will drive Ballew's No. 51 Tundra, while Hamlin will drive the No. 15 Ballew entry, which for the first time this season also will be a Toyota. Previously, the team had run the No. 15 as a Chevrolet Silverado. The two JGR regulars are hoping that the double duty in the Truck Series will pay dividends, especially on Sunday. (Sam Greenwood/Getty Images for NASCAR Photo)
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Kevin Harvick Inc. teammates Jack Sprague and Ron Hornaday Jr. qualified first and third, respectively, for this afternoon’s Kroger 250 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race at Martinsville Speedway, with Sprague running a best lap of 96.327 miles per hour in his Chevrolet Silverado. Splitting the two was Virginia native Denny Hamlin, who put Billy Ballew’s Miccousukee Resorts Toyota on the outside of Row 1, with a lap of 95.550 mph, which edged the 95.223 mph Hornaday turned in his Camping World Chevy.
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Dennis Setzer survived a green-white-checker finish to claim victory in the Kroger 250 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race Saturday at Martinsville Speedway. By putting his Duck Head Footwear/Aquadock Dodge Ram into victory lane, Setzer gave Dodge its first NCTS victory since 2005. Finishing behind Setzer were Matt Crafton in the Menards/Ideal Door Chevrolet Silverado, Rick Crawford in the Power Stroke Diesel by International Ford, Ken Schrader in the Federated Auto Parts Toyota and Erik Darnell In the Northern Tool + Equipment Ford. Setzer prevailed in a single-file restart. Not so happy was Mike Skinner, who was in third place when Busch dumped him on Lap 248. But it wasn't Busch's fault, as Skinner ran out of gas. But on the green-white-checkered, Busch dumped Johnny Benson going for second place, knocking both trucks out. It was that kind of race. (VPS Motorimages Photo)
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Kyle Busch paid a visit to the NASCAR hauler after Saturday's Kroger 250 Craftsman Truck Series race at Martinsville Speedway, where he wrecked Johnny Benson on the last lap while racing for second place. NASCAR officials also talked with several members of Benson's crew, who angrily confronted Busch's crew on pit road after the race. NASCAR officials said they are reviewing the actions of several members of Benson's crew. After the race, Benson was angry that he got wrecked and fell from second place to 25th, while Busch was angry that Benson's crewmembers were angry. "I just got spun out," said Benson, who unlike Busch is racing for a series championship. "I went into the corner as hard as I'd been all day and doing everything we needed to do. The 51 (Kyle Busch) - you know I don't know. It's just a shame that it had to happen. It happens a lot within this series. It's just a shame that nothing ever gets done about it." (VPS Motorimages for TruckSeries.com)
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The smiles in victory lane at Martinsville Speedway Saturday were real and so were the tears. Were they ever. The official NASCAR record book will show that on this day, Dennis Setzer won the Kroger 250, his 18th career victory in 246 Craftsman Truck Series starts. And in doing so, Setzer gave Bobby Hamilton Racing its first victory since Mansfield, Ohio, nearly three years ago. But the story today on this otherwise cold and grim afternoon was not about the triumph of one man on a track, but of an entire organization rising up to overcome heartbreak and tragedy. BHR, you seem, lost its namesake and founder Bobby Hamilton to neck cancer in January 2007. Hamilton's widow, Lori, carried her husband's legacy forward, making the hard decision to go on, and an even harder decision to relocate the team from Nashville to Martinsville and rebuild the team the man she loved had created. Yes, the tears in Lori Hamilton's eyes were very real on Saturday. (VPS Motorimages for TruckSeries.com)
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