Aric Almirola piloted the No. 51 FedEx Express Chevrolet Silverado NASCAR Craftsman Truck at the Memphis Motorsports Park Saturday night for the running of the O'Reilly 200, as part of a joint venture between Billy Ballew Motorsports and Joe Gibbs Racing. Almirola, in his third start in a NASCAR Craftsman Truck at the 3/4-mile track, was looking for his first win there but handling issues dashed that opportunity.

Almirola had an early draw for qualifying going out fifth of the 36-truck field posting a time of 23.268 seconds at a speed of 116.039 mph putting him in the 18th starting position for the O'Reilly 200.

The team was optimistic for a solid run heading in to the race, but almost from the drop of the green flag, Almirola had difficulty finding rear grip and looked for a good line to run on the short track. Almirola was using a lot of front brake and the brake rotors could be seen glowing by lap 46 of the 200-lap event.

When the first caution flag flew, the No. 51 FedEx Express Silverado came down pit road for adjustments. Track bar, air pressure and spring rubbers were what crew chief Richie Wauters called for, giving the over-the-wall crew a full plate for the stop. Unfortunately a tire got a way from the pit crew costing them valuable time and spots on the track. Almirola dropped 10 spots in the running order when he took the green flag for the restart on lap 76.

Although Almirola was disappointed, the race was young and he was up to the challenge. He started passing competitors one by one advancing to the 15th position by the third of four caution periods on lap 114.

Almirola still wasn't completely happy with the handling of the truck, telling the crew that the right rear tire felt like it spun at will. The first adjustments were reversed and four fresh sticker Goodyear tires were put on the truck but once again Almirola lost four spots on pit road and had to restart 19th.

Almirola was able to pick up positions and was solidly in the 15th place position and looked to be heading for the finish the race in that spot. The final caution came out as a "quickie yellow" keeping the team on the track not wanting to get caught on the restart in the pits putting on new tires. The flag was waved off and several drivers behind Almirola had taken the chance pitting.

They were sitting behind Almirola on fresher tires for the six-lap shootout. Almirola crossed the line in the 17th place position. Despite his struggles, Almirola passed 22 trucks during the race advancing his FedEx Express Silverado position 16 times during the race.

"The truck just wasn't where we needed it tonight," Almirola said. "Track position is so important at a short track and we had a couple bad pit stops which kept us from gaining positions in the pits. I struggled to find rear grip all night. We figured we didn't have anything to loose and were going to stop and take on fresh tires on that last caution but they said it was a quickie yellow so we opted to stay out - then they called it off so we were a little disappointed with that. I think we could have gained a couple spots with fresher tires and jumped into the top-15. I really enjoy driving these trucks and I had a great time. I have to thank Billy Ballew Motorsports for having me in the No. 51 this week and to FedEx Express for coming onboard. I always enjoy meeting the employees. I just wish we could have given them the win."