The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series will race for the 300th time on June 1 in the AAA Insurance 300 at Dover International Speedway. The race will feature six full-time drivers that competed in the series' 100th race - the NAPACARD 200 at Evergreen (Wash.) Speedway on April 3, 1999.
Ron Hornaday Jr. (No. 33 Camping World Chevrolet) and team owner Dale Earnhardt shared a $100,000 bonus posted by sponsor Craftsman for winning at Evergreen. Hornaday, who started on the pole after qualifying was canceled due to weather, battled 1997 champion Jack Sprague in the early going and Butch Miller in the latter stages of the 200-lap race around the .646-mile oval. He took the lead for good at Lap 162, edging Sprague by 2.509 seconds to win his second consecutive race.
Both drivers, as well as Miller and Rick Carelli were eligible to collect the Craftsman bonus, having run all 99 races leading up to the milestone event. Carelli finished sixth, Miller 16th.
Hornaday was the defending series champion at the time, but Sprague went on to win his second series title.
Darnell Wins Again... Just two weeks after his win at Kansas Speedway, Erik Darnell (No. 99 Northern Tool-Equipment Ford) drove to Victory Lane again. Only this time, he did it in the ARCA RE/MAX Series.
Darnell's Kansas win was the first of his career and was the quickest of a non-winning Raybestos Rookie of the Year, taking only 31 starts. Darnell is currently 10th in the standings.
Huffman To Make Season Debut... NASCAR Busch Series driver Shane Huffman will make his season debut in the No. 40 Curtis Key Plumbing Chevrolet for Key Motorsports at Lowe's. Huffman ran four of the last five events of 2006 for Key Motorsports; his best finish was 20th at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
Mike Bliss and Clay Rogers have split driving duties for the first five races. Bliss has the best finish - 10th at California Speedway.
Raybestos Rookie Of The Year Standings
| |
Driver |
Points |
| 1. |
Aaron Fike |
59 |
| 2. |
Willie Allen |
42 |
| 3. |
Tyler Walker |
41 |
| 4. |
Kelly Bires |
37 |
| 5. |
Blake Bjorklund |
36 |
| 6. |
Joey Clanton |
35 |
| 7. |
Tim Sauter |
35 |
| 8. |
Jason White |
12 |
| 9. |
Casey Kingsland |
5 |
| 10. |
Brian Sockwell |
1 |
Toyota Leads Manufacturers' Standings
Toyota has picked up where it left off last year with an early lead in the Manufacturers' Standings. Toyotas have won four of the five races this season, including the season-opener by Jack Sprague and three straight by Mike Skinner (No. 5 Toyota Tundra Toyota). Last year Toyota had 12 wins and won its first-ever Manufacturers' Championship.
Erik Darnell picked up the first Ford win of the season at Kansas. Chevrolet and Dodge are searching for their first wins. Ron Hornaday, runner-up at California, has the best Chevrolet finish of the season; Ken Schrader's 12th-place finish at Martinsville is the best for Dodge.
NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Manufacturers' Championship
Toyota - 42
Ford - 29
Chevrolet - 24
Dodge - 15
This Week's NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Leaders
(Through 5 races of the 25-race season)
Points leader - Mike Skinner (905)
Driver Rating - Mike Skinner (132.3)
Winnings - Mike Skinner ($228,925)
Laps led - Mike Skinner (423)
Victories - Mike Skinner (3)
Budweiser Poles - Mike Skinner (3)
Top-five finishes - Mike Skinner (5)
Top-10 finishes - 3 drivers with 5
Raybestos Rookie Leader - Aaron Fike (12 over Willie Allen)
Races led - Mike Skinner (5)
Weeks in Top 10 - 9 drivers tied with 5
Fast Facts
Next Race: Quaker Steak & Lube 200 presented by Circle K
The Place: Lowe's Motor Speedway
The Date: May 18
The Time: 9 p.m. (ET)
TV: SPEED, 8:30 p.m. (ET)
Track Layout: 1.5-mile paved oval
Race Purse: $544,474
2006 Winner: Kyle Busch
2006 Pole: Mike Skinner
| Pos. |
Driver |
Pts |
| 1 |
Skinner |
905 |
| 2 |
Bodine |
797 |
| 3 |
Crawford |
777 |
| 4 |
Hornaday |
751 |
| 5 |
Sprague |
734 |
| 6 |
Musgrave |
727 |
| 7 |
Benson |
703 |
| 8 |
Crafton |
683 |
| 9 |
Kvapil |
653 |
| 10 |
Darnell |
644 |
Schedule: Friday - Practice 10 a.m. - 11:15 a.m.; 11:20 a.m.. - 11:40 a.m. (rookies) and 11:50 a.m. - 12:50 p.m. Qualifying 4:35 p.m.