Bill Lester, #8 Dodge Motorsports Dodge:      “If I can just pick up what Robert Pressley and Bobby Hamilton have forgotten, I will be a better racecar driver.  I take every opportunity to tug on Robert’s shirttail and say’ “hey, what’s going to happen here?”  I asked him, ‘what’s this Michigan track like?’ and he told me ‘you haven’t felt loose until you’ve been here.’”

Leffler now holds two dubious records: seven poles in a single season with no wins, and four career second-place finishes without a win.  He reset the pole record at Kentucky and took the record away for runner-up finishes from Geoff Bodine and Kevin Harvick.  No one else has ever had four second-place finishes in one season in series history. 

Jason Leffler, #2 Team ASE Dodge:               “Robert got away from us early when we were racing through traffic.  He got out front and just took off.  But, when you get in the draft of a truck and get within a couple of lengths and catch him just like that.  That’s what I was hoping for.” (4:45 pm ET)

Robert Pressley, #18 Square D Dodge:          “I had run the Busch cars here for four or five years and had run the Cup car for about six years, and the thing that really surprised me more than anything was how important the draft was here today.  I never thought the draft had come in the way it did at this particular race track.  As I got out in front, I realized I was hurting myself by pulling out, because I was beating all the air off all by myself.”  (4:28 pm ET)

Ted Musgrave, #1 Mopar Dodge:        “This is really uncharacteristic.  We never have had a motor problem before.  Everything is set so tight because of the intense competition that we could have sprung a bearing or something.  Anyway, we are done for the day.  The team is really doing great.  This truck is really coming to me and I’ll tell you, we could have won it today.”  (4:23 pm ET)

Lance Norick, #90 Express Personnel Services Chevrolet:   “Today we were fast; we were really really fast.  We got a little too tight there at the end to win the race but we were definitely good enough for the top-10.”  (4:15 pm ET)

Travis Kvapil, #60 CAT Rental Store Chevrolet:         It was definitely an eventful day for the CAT Rental Store Team.  After struggling all weekend and having a bad pit stop, we’re pretty excited about the third place finish.  Our weekend had a lot to do with me coming here for the first time and finding out what kind of feel I needed for this racetrack. We figured that out during the race, made the adjustments and drove the CAT Rental Store Chevrolet to a third place finish.”  (4:12 pm ET)

Bill Lester was the top finishing Raybestos Rookie of the Year candidate for the Michigan 200.  (3:45 pm ET)

Terry Cook, #29 Power Stroke Diesel Ford:               “We were just too tight on the long runs.  We will probably need to get some aero help from NASCAR to be truly competitive on these superspeedways.” (3:41 pm ET)

Brendan Gaughan, #62 NAPA Dodge:             “I don’t know what the problem is.  The last time we ran this truck it was just fine, so we are mystified.  We don’t have the time to take these things back to the shop and get them taken apart and look at it.  After this stretch is over, we will get back and figure out what the problem is.” (3:36 pm ET)

Brian Rose, #4 Bobby Hamilton Racing Dodge:          “We were junk all day today.  We were just very very tight.  It wouldn’t turn.  It actually felt like we were spinning out even before we got to the corner.  Not a good day for the #4 team.”  (3:28 pm ET)

Jason Small, #07 Sunbelt Rentals/Lucas Oil Products Chevrolet:     “Well, I am just happy we finished.  That is a good start to get things turned around.  We didn’t have a great truck, but it wasn’t that bad either.  I hope we can go to IRP and work on getting a little better finish not that we know we can make it to the end.” (3:27 pm ET)

Bobby Dotter, #08 People Against Drugs Chevrolet:             “We just never could find the combination.  We got to the point where we had to use this race as a test to make us better the next time we run a superspeedway like this.  I was trying as hard as I could, it just wouldn’t go fast.” (3:24 pm ET)

The weather held out and the Michigan 200 is in the books!  Robert Pressley has returned the Bobby Hamilton Racing Dodge to victory lane after a 12 race drought.  With new sponsor Square D on board, the team could not have picked a better time to hit their stride. (3:22 pm ET)

Looking the TruckSeries.com Super Doppler Weather Radar…it looks like there are some showers in the area, but the big mass of rain that was on the horizon has appeared to break up somewhat.  Keep your fingers crossed that the weather pattern remains the same and the showers completely dissipate before reaching the track.  (12:02 pm ET)

Also hearing that Doug Keller will go to the rear after arriving late for the drivers’ meeting.  (11:51 am ET)

Hearing that the #72 US Security Chevrolet team of Randy McDonald has changed their engine and will go to the rear of the field for the start. (11:43 am ET)

To update a rumor we heard yesterday, Ware Racing would like to say that it was their original intent to attempt to qualify for the second Martinsville Winston Cup race.  Over the break after Nashville, the team will work on the details to make that plan a reality.  The team would also like to state that they will remain in the Truck Series and is committed to the series for the foreseeable future.  Today, Ware’s trucks start 22^nd and 25^th, but they are looking forward to a good run.  The team’s flagship truck, the #5 driven by Jason Hedlesky, was 10^th in Final Practice. (11:39 am ET)

Dodge Motorsports has released the names of their 8 Diversity Program Scholarship winners.  They are (with the teams they will work with today in parenthesis):

            Jonta Adams (#8 BHR)

            Michael Bethea (#62 Orleans Racing)           

            Carlos Correa (#5 Ware Racing)

Gabriel Lopez (Not in attendance)

Kerry Sano (#1 Ultra Motorsports)

Juan Jose Soto, Jr. (#2 Ultra Motorsports)

Antonio Texidor (#18 BHR)

Cesar Villanueva (#43 Petty Enterprises) (11:35 am ET)

Many of the teams have had their trucks experience mysterious handling symptoms in practice yesterday, and some have pointed to aero problems.  Other, however, are looking at the tires as the cause behind it.  Look for teams to watch tire wear carefully, and if at all possible will make their trucks as mechanically loose as possible to prevent excessive wear on the right front.  (11:30 am ET)

While no driver entered in the Michigan 200 has ever tasted victory of any kind here at MIS, only one driver in today’s field has even led a lap in NCTS competition here.   Unfortunately for him, he is starting shotgun on the field.  In 1999, Bryan Reffner led four laps in the inaugural NCTS event here.  So when the field comes down to complete lap one, unless something REALLY bad happens, look for a new MIS lap leader.  (11:12 am ET) 

One of the major players of the weekend has been Jon Wood.  Woody is a solid contender for his first victory, proving that by turning the third fastest time in Happy Hour.  The Roush Racing team is based within an hour of the speedway in Livinia, Michigan, and is the only truck team to ever win here at MIS (Biffle in 1999 and 2000).  Interestingly, the US Navy has recently done a comprehensive survey on what our sailors like and don’t like.  What is their favorite live television program, you ask?  None other than NASCAR Camping World Truck Series racing on ESPN!  Look for Wood to give it his all to win in the US Navy Ford here today.  (11:10 am ET)

Well…better late than never!  Trackside LIVE! resumes coverage of the Michigan 200 just after 11:00 am ET.  The race is scheduled for 1 pm, however, low clouds have been swirling above us all morning.  Heavy rains have been in the area, and everyone has prepared themselves for the possibility the start could be delayed.  NASCAR has accelerated the pre-race schedule, which will likely see trucks on the track and ready for the green flag at 1:02 pm.  Weather conditions are similar to yesterday, however, in that the rain has been everywhere BUT the race track.  Hopefully, it will remain that way and the Michigan 200 will run to its conclusion at its full distance.  (11:06 am ET)

Trackside LIVE! will resume from MIS tomorrow morning at 9 am ET.  We will come at you with all the pre-race quotes and news you can use from the garage area.  This concludes Trackside LIVE! coverage of practice and (rained out) qualifying for the Michigan 200. (5:44 pm ET)

Practice has ended with no significant changes to the time sheet.  Keep it locked here to TruckSeries.com for the full down as it becomes available.  (5:41 pm ET)

NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series officials have extended the final practice session to 5:40 pm ET to make up for the time lost during the red flag period earlier.  (5:35 pm ET)

The day’s second session has been a virtual copy of the day’s first session.  No incidents of any significance were reported, and except for the debris that stopped practice for a few moments early on, the track has been clean and green. (5:33 pm ET)

With the grains of sand slowly running out of the Happy Hourglass, the full field rundown:

            Musgrave, Pressley, Wood, Crawford, Bliss

            Cook, Leffler, Starr, Setzer, Hedlesky

            Portenga, Norick, Lester, Bickle, Reffner

            Crafton, Gibbs, Gaughan, Kvapil, McDonald

            Rose, Hooper, Jones, Horn, Contreras

            Small, Keller, Boyd, Hill, Dokken

            Dotter, Burr, Hall, Briggs, Bonifield (5:27 pm ET)

Bill Lester has found the road difficult here at MIS, having tire troubles all day.  He has had three right side tires cut down, keeping him from getting a lot of quality time on the speedway.  (5:22 pm ET)

Hearing that Brendan Gaughan broke a gear at the end of the first session.  The crew replaced it between sessions, and Gaughan has been out for virtually the entire Happy Hour session.  (5:20 pm ET)

The Michigan 200 is guaranteed to see a new face in MIS’s Victory Lane, as Greg Biffle won both NCTS events here in the Irish Hills (1999 and 2000).  In fact, no driver entered in the Michigan 200 has ever won an event of any sort at Michigan International Speedway.  Bob Keselowski, crew chief for Terry Cook, has won in ARCA competition here, and is probably as close as we will get to a previous winner at this facility here this weekend. (5:18 pm ET)

Practice has resumed after a brief track inspection.  No changes in the top-10.  (5:07 pm ET)

After 10 minutes, the top-10 are:

            Musgrave, Pressley, Wood, cook, Bliss

            Crawford, Leffler, Starr, Setzer, Portenga (4:59 pm ET)

Practice has been halted for a track inspection.  Several drivers reported some debris in turn 2, and track crews are taking a look.  (4:55 pm ET)  Remember folks, if a hot dog wrapper blows onto the speedway, you hear it here and ONLY here on Trackside LIVE! at TruckSeries.com.

Practice has resumed at MIS, and after five minutes, Ted Musgrave has assumed a familiar position at the top of the speed charts.  The top-10:

            Musgrave, Pressley, Wood, Cook, Crawford

            Starr, Bliss, Portenga, Reffner, Crafton (4:51 pm ET)

Only seven trucks have completed all 200 racing laps run in the previous races at MIS, and five are entered here this weekend:

            50-Roush Racing

            2-Ultra Motorsports

            60-Addington Racing

            1 (now 29)-K Automotive

            88-SealMaster Racing 

The two not entered that also completed all 200 laps are the Impact Motorsports’ trucks, #86 and #25.  (4:32 pm ET)

With just about 20 minutes remaining before NCTS teams retake the speedway for practice, the weather has remained steady.  Clouds still hover and the humidity is still high, but no showers are in the neighborhood.  The teams will have 45 minutes to finish working on race setups from 4:45 to 5:30 pm ET.

Other racing action involving NCTS team members this weekend…Jerry Cook, truck chief for Matt Crafton, will race his late model tonight at Toledo Speedway.  The Keselowski brothers will both be in action tomorrow night, but at different tracks.  Brian will head up the road to Flint and race his late model at Auto City Speedway, while younger brother Brad will race his late model at Owosso.  Mom Kay will go with Brian to Auto City and serve as his spotter for the evening’s events.  (4:16 pm ET)  UPDATE: Weather caused a postponement of the racing action at Toledo Speedway.

Tonight in nearby Jackson, MI, several NCTS drivers will be racing in go-karts.  Drivers expected to participate include Jon Wood, Coy Gibbs, Lance Norick, Travis Kvapil, Lance Hooper and Mike Bliss.  (4:14 pm ET)

In addition to Randy McDonald, Rick Crawford is also celebrating a birthday today.  Crawford is blowing out 44 candles on the birthday cake today.  (4:07 pm ET)

Ford Racing NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Program Manager Robert Brooks has been a mentor for New Horizons children in the Detroit area for several years, and finally had the opportunity to bring his protégés to the track here at MIS.  Though guests of Ford Racing, virtually every team in the garage area opened their doors to the children, offering them tours of team transporters, driver autographs, and even inspirational speeches on occasion.  Rick Ren, crew chief for Travis Kvapil, was seen speaking to a large group of the children early in the morning.  The children were also shown how the trucks are taken through the inspection process and were scheduled for a tour of the ABC/ESPN television compound and production facility.  (4:05 pm ET)

The #86 of Phil Bonifield was the only truck not to take to the speedway in the first session.  (3:56 pm ET)

Practice one is over.  Musgrave lead the parade with his 173.289 lap, followed by Wood (172.891), Cook (172.142), Leffler (171.861) and Crawford (171.306).  (3:48 pm ET)

The first practice session is nearing its final moments.  The top-20 remains unchanged.  The session has been incident free, and that track has stayed clean and green since practice started at 3:00 pm ET.  (3:39 pm ET) 

The second-10 drivers after 30 minutes of practice include:

            Kvapil, Crafton, Pressley, Gibbs, Bickle

            Portenga, Hedlesky, Dokken, Hooper, Rose (3:36 pm ET)

After 30 minutes of the 45 minute first session, the top-10 drivers remain unchanged.  Ted Musgrave’s top speed is 172.289, which in race conditions is not far off estimates heard in the garage area for qualifying speeds.  The track record was set in 2000 by Jamie McMurray at 177.414 (40.483 seconds). (3:30 pm ET)

The Morgan-Dollar Motorsports team will debut their new crew T-shirts this week.  In addition to their normal Acxiom crew uniforms, the team will sport swag with “Fightin’ 46” emblazoned on the front.  (3:27 pm ET)

The #18 BHR Dodge debuts their new relationship with Square D here this weekend.  The team has repainted the truck with a sporty black, yellow, and red paint job, with the big Square D on the hood.  (3:23 pm ET)

The #1 Mopar Dodge has gone back to their traditional black-to-white paint job here this weekend.  (3:21 pm ET)

After 15 minutes of practice, the top-10 drivers are:

            Musgrave, Wood, Cook, Crawford, Leffler

            Bliss, Starr, Lester, Setzer, Reffner (3:17 pm ET)

Word is that Teri McDonald-Cadieux will again be in the #93 Troxell Racing Chevy at IRP next week.  (3:15 pm ET) 

Skies have cleared and there is no immediate threat of rain, however the humidity has increased dramatically.  How this will affect the trucks’ handling and engine performance has yet to be seen.  (3:11 pm ET)

Very early on in practice, the top-10 are:

            Musgrave, Setzer, Crawford, Starr, Bliss

            Portenga, Wood, Bickle, Lester, and Hedlesky (3:04 pm ET)

Practice is underway!  The Tough Trucks took to the speedway right at 3:00 pm ET for their first of two scheduled sessions this afternoon. (3:02 pm ET)

Jon Wood will be the driver of the #9 Gain Ford at Indianapolis Raceway Park next week.  The team’s usual driver, Jeff Burton is unable to participate due to previous commitments, so the team has decided to allow Wood to hop in.  For now, this is the only Busch Series race Wood is scheduled to compete in during 2002.  (2:40 pm ET)

Another of the numerous rumors floating around the speedway has veteran Joe Ruttman back in a truck at Nashville.  There could be an announcement made this afternoon. (2:22 pm ET)

Dodge Motorsports will announce their Diversity Scholarship Winners in a press conference to be held here at the Michigan International Speedway Media Center tomorrow morning.  (2:18 pm ET)

Billy Ballew is still working on a deal that will allow his team to complete the entire 2002 NCTS schedule.  “We haven’t given up on it, that’s for sure.  We hope to hear on Monday what our sponsors have to say,” he said.  Once again, veteran Winston Cup crew chief Doug Richert is assisting the team prepare their Dickie’s Ford.

The #7 Conely Racing Chevrolet is entered here at Michigan with Bryan Reffner again at the wheel.  The team has picked up sponsorship from SBC Ameritech this weekend, and is working with the Michigan State Police and the FBI on finding lost children.

The rumors have kicked into overdrive concerning the schedule for 2003.  Those close to the situation say a return to Bristol is a virtual certainty as part of a “mini-SpeedWeeks” in August.  Other tracks that have been in the rumor mill are Chicagoland, Charlotte, and even a second race at Dover.  The latest rumor has the series scheduling an event at Pocono.  I suppose we will have to wait for the official schedule to come out, but the rumors floating around sure do make it fun to speculate.  (2:11 pm ET)

The #5 Ware Racing Enterprises Dodge of Jason Hedlesky has picked up sponsorship this week from Motor City Dodge and OOIDA.  (2:08 pm ET)  Hedlesky is from nearby Clinton, Michigan and is the team manager for Junie Donlavey’s Winston Cup program.

Revised schedule for the day:

1:15-1:45: IRIPS Practice

1:50-2:20: IRL Group One

2:20-2:50: IRL Group Two

3:00-3:45: NCTS Practice

4:00-4:30: IRIPS Practice

4:45-5:30: NCTS Practice

5:35: NCTS Pit Selection (1:30 pm ET)

The Infiniti Pro Series teams are warming their engines on pit lane.  We should be 45 minutes or so from the start of NCTS practice.  (1:07 pm ET)

Local open wheel hero Brian Tyler is in the field, starting the #25 Motor State Performance Chevrolet out of the Phil Bonifield stables.  Tyler is also a veteran of several IRL starts.  (12:55 pm ET)

The track surface is now 99% dry.  Track officials say the Infiniti Pro Series cars should be in the track within the next 10-15 minutes.  (12:52 pm ET)

The starting lineup is now to be determined by the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Rule Book.  Rule9-5 determines starting positions, and since qualifying times will not set the field (per rule 9-5 subsection A), the starting grid will be based upon 2002 NCTS Owner Points.  The top-35 truck owners in current points are eligible for positions 1-35.  After the 35^th position, we must go all the way to Subsection D (8), which states, in part,  “the next available position(s), if any, will be assigned to truck owners who have made the most number of qualifying attempts in the calendar year in the Series of which the Event is a part.” 

When the track is dried, the schedule will be something like this:

            IRL practice-30 minutes

            CTS practice-45 minutes

            IRL practice-Time TBD

            CTS practice-Time permitting, Time TBD (12:16 pm ET)

Breaking News!  Qualifying for the Michigan 200 has been cancelled by NASCAR Camping World Truck Series officials.  With only 36 trucks on the speedway grounds, series director Wayne Auton has decided that whatever valuable track time the teams can have today will be beneficial for getting the trucks race ready.  The track drying efforts will begin again shortly and after it is completed, the Infiniti Pro Series will have a half-hour practice, followed by at least 45 minutes of practice for the NCTS.  A happy hour session will be scheduled time permitting for later in the afternoon.  (12:10 pm ET)

The unofficial count of spectators waiting for the raindrops to end under Michigan’s famous overhanging press box is 149. (11:53 am ET)

Today is Randy McDonald’s 40^th birthday.

Of course, weather moves faster than I can type!  It is again pouring rain at the speedway and all track drying efforts have been for nothing.  There are hopes that it is a brief shower, but the track will again need to be dried.  (11:51 am ET)

Just one hour after the track was drenched, track drying efforts have proven successful and the track is nearly ready for practice to resume.  There are reports of more showers in the area.  Trackside LIVE will keep you up-to-date on the ever changing weather conditions at MIS.  (11:49 am ET)

Track dryers are on the speedway now as the rain has stopped at the sun has poked through the clouds.  The forecast calls for scattered showers the remainder of the day, so it is a possibility we could get wet again.  (11:19 am ET)

Your interesting fact for the day: since the opening even of the season at Daytona, Mike Bliss has completed all but one lap--2,040 out of 2,041 contested--in the last 11 Truck Series races (11:04 am ET)

Only seven drivers made laps in the abbreviated first practice:

            Mike Bliss

            David Starr

            Travis Kvapil

            Jon Wood

            Terry Cook

            Ted Musgrave

            Lance Norick

The fastest lap was recorded by Starr, a 41.587 second lap.  Norick is the only driver that did not have a chance to get up to speed. (11:00 am ET)

Four minutes into the first practice, the skies have opened and it is raining heavily at Michigan International Speedway.  The track will be quiet for quite a while as the rain moves through.  Historically, the track generally takes an hour and a half to two hours to dry depending on sun and wind.  We will keep you updates on weather conditions as they changed.  (10:50 am ET)

Practice is underway at Michigan, with the first truck rolling onto the speedway at 10:44 am ET. 

Terry Cook is coming to his home track as the hottest driver in the NCTS.  With a three wins, including last week at Loudon, Cook is tied for the series lead in the win column.  He grew up in Sylvania, Ohio, just 45 minutes Southeast of the track.  He will entertain members of the Sylvania Fire Department on race morning.  (10:43 am ET)

For the second time in three weeks, Matt Crafton is taking part in a Team Menard tripleheader.  Crafton will steer the Menards/Colorpave Chevy in the NCTS event at MIS, while Mark Dismore will drive the Team Menard entry in the IRL race.  Ed Carpenter will be at the reigns of the Team Menard machine in the new Infiniti Pro Series as well.  (10:38 am ET)

The first juicy rumor of the morning has Rick Ware Racing Enterprises entering some NASCAR Winston Cup Series races in the very near future.  Ware is evidently planning to enter the Cup series within the next month.  What that means for his Truck Series teams is unclear at this point.  TruckSeries.com will follow this story and update it as it develops.  (10:36 am ET)