Much has been made of the so-called "new" Mike Skinner, who has become Mr. Consistency after an historic reputation and as a go for broke competitor.

And well it should.

Skinner, who left The Milwaukee Mile with his 10th top-five and 11th top-10 finish, retains a 108-point championship lead over Ron Hornaday Jr.

A year ago, he wasn't even in the top 15 and struggled to finally reach 10th in final rankings.

Here's how he's done it - along with leading all 11 starts and amassing 70 bonus points. He has led 15 consecutive races to extend his own NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series record.

Skinner's finish in nine of the 11 races is higher than his comparable finishes of 2006. The other three? He matched his performances at Daytona, Kansas and Texas.

Friday ninth's finish was Skinner's best - and first top 10 - at The Milwaukee Mile since rejoining the series fulltime in 2004.

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Skinner joined an elite fraternity with a fourth-place finish worth $20,175. He becomes just the ninth driver in series history to reach the $3 million plateau with winnings of $3,009,607.

With his seventh Bud Pole in 11 races, Skinner is within three of his 1995 record.

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Four of the top five in current points - Skinner, Hornaday, Todd Bodine and Rick Crawford - finished among the first five in the Toyota Tundra Milwaukee 200.

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Perfect answer to obvious question courtesy of Hornaday when asked if he had anything for winner Johnny Benson with four laps remaining: "If I did, I would have passed him."

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Mike Bliss extended his Milwaukee Mile top-10 streak to five giving Bobby Hamilton Racing's Open Joist Dodge a seventh-place ranking. He's two-for-two in top 10s at the wheel of the BHR truck.

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Consider Brendan Gaughan's season a case of one step forward and two steps back. Gaughan, who lost several laps to a green flag stop for tires, hasn't been able to build any momentum despite several decent outings in the South Point Hotel Chevrolet.

His three top 10 finishes - sixth, ninth and third - have been followed by finishes of 25th, 36th and 28th.

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Rick Crawford's fifth-place effort marked the Alabama driver's first Milwaukee top five since 2003.

Conversely, Terry Cook, 13th, had gone six consecutive races with a finish of 10th or better.

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Kelly Sutton's fourth and final drive for Billy Ballew Motorsports resulted in a finish of 20th - best by a female driver in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series at The Milwaukee Mile.

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Ryan Mathews topped 13 first-time starters finishing 14th, one position better than Benny Gordon.

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Benson's crew chief, Trip Bruce, cashed with his third different driver - but first fulltime competitor. His previous victories came in 2004: Jamie McMurray at Richmond and Kasey Kahne at Darlington and Homestead-Miami Speedway. Bruce then was an employee of Jimmy Smith's Ultra Motorsports.