Lazier Runs 24th.... Buddy Lazier (No. 15 Flanders Beef Patties Chevrolet) finished three laps behind Kvapil in his first NASCAR race but the 1996 Indianapolis 500 champion hopes to return for a better ranking. "I can't say we have any rock solid plans but we have a lot of irons in the fire trying to make things happen," he said. "So I'd like to do it."

Wood Brothers/JTG Racing Hits High Water Mark.... For the first time, both of the team's drivers led the same race as Jon Wood (No. 21 Smith's/Air Force Ford) finished third and Stacy Compton (No. 09 Zaxby's Ford) was eighth. Wood led 49 laps and won the WIX Filters Lap Leader Award. "We definitely had a good truck and we do, week in and week out," said Wood. "My results (three top 10s in five races) show that but our qualifying doesn't," he said after starting 14th. "Qualifying doesn't really pay anything but the race does." Compton, meanwhile, posted his third top 10 of the season as he became the 23rd different driver to compete in 100 NASCAR Craftsman Truck races.

Skinner Pole Bid Foiled.... When Skinner took his Toyota to the top of the qualifying order it appeared he would match a pair of series records - his 10-pole season of 1995 and four consecutive poles at Texas Motor Speedway. Kvapil, however, might have said "not so fast," relegating Skinner to the second spot in the starting order with a lap of 175.387 mph. The pole was Kvapil's third of the year. Pole starters have won the last two races and seven of the season's 19.
 
Roush Fenway Nearing Half Century Mark.... Kvapil's victory was the 48th by a Roush Fenway entered truck raising the possibility that the team, with three entries in each of the season's six races, could reach a milestone 50 victories. The team holds the record by 12 wins over Ultra Motorsports. The closest currently active team - Bill Davis Racing - has won 15 times.

Cook, Wise, McCumbee Post Best '07 Finishes
It's taken awhile but HT Motorsports' Toyota program finally is hitting on all eight cylinders. Celebrating its one year anniversary with Toyota a week late, the team logged its first top-five finish as crew chief Danny Rollins' call for a two-tire stop gave veteran Terry Cook (No. 59 Harris Trucking Toyota) the fourth-place position he held to the finish of the Smith's Las Vegas 350. "Our program keeps getting better and better," said Cook, who joined the team over the winter. His last top five was a second-place finish last October in Atlanta.

Josh Wise (No. 00 Aaron's Lucky Dog Toyota) finished sixth, bettering his eighth place, career bested the previous week in New Hampshire. "We are making progress," said the 25-year-old open wheel graduate, who is sharing the Darrell Waltrip Motorsports truck with AJ Allmendinger and Ken Butler III.

McCumbee's 10th-place finish was his first top 10 of the season - as well as the first ever for MRD Motorsports' No. 8 TheGPSStore.com/Garmin Chevrolet. "I tell you what, we had a truck that could win at times," said McCumbee. "We definitely needed this and I am really looking forward to going to Atlanta with these guys."

Manufacturers' Standings: Ford Wins No. 5 - Travis Kvapil's victory ended a six-race drought for the manufacturer at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. In fact, Ford had not won since 1999 - the season before the series took a one-year hiatus from LVMS competition. Toyota continues to enjoy a 19-point lead over rival Chevrolet in the race for the 2007 Manufacturers' Championship.

Manufacturers' Championship 2007 Point Standings
Toyota - 133
Chevrolet - 114
Ford - 112
Dodge - 59

Bodine's Finish Streak Ends
Todd Bodine's (No. 30 Lumber Liquidators Toyota) 54-race streak without a DNF abruptly ended at Las Vegas Motor Speedway when the defending series champion's truck was too damaged to continue following a Lap 97 accident triggered by a cut tire. Bodine had finished every race since being sidelined by an accident at Memphis Motorsports Park on July 23, 2005. The streak was within sight of the late Bobby Hamilton's series record of 65 straight finishes between 2003 and 2005. "We had the truck to win the race and it's a shame we have to end like this," said Bodine, who led 45 of the event's first 70 laps.

This Week's NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Leaders
(Through 19 races of the 25-race season)
Points leader - Mike Skinner (3,064)
Driver Rating - Mike Skinner (118.7)
Winnings - Mike Skinner ($597,095)
Laps led - Mike Skinner (961)
Victories - Ron Hornaday Jr., Travis Kvapil, Mike Skinner (4)
Bud Poles - Mike Skinner (9)
Top-five finishes - Mike Skinner (14)
Top-10 finishes - Ron Hornaday Jr. (17)
Raybestos Rookie Leader - Tim Sauter (4 points over Willie Allen)
Races led - Mike Skinner (18)
Weeks in Top 10 - Nine drivers tied with 19
Raybestos Rookie of the Year

Although no Raybestos Rookie of the Year candidate was able to generate a top-10 finish in the Smith's Las Vegas 350, standings leader Tim Sauter (No. 07 Lester Buildings Chevrolet) maintained his four-point lead as one of 20 drivers completing all 146 laps of the race.

 Driver - Points
1. Tim Sauter - 138
2. Willie Allen - 134
3. Jason White - 111
4. Blake Bjorklund - 110
5. Joey Clanton - 109

On Deck: Talladega Superspeedway
More than 80,000 fans turned out on a perfect autumn afternoon last year to see the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series tackle the legendary high banks of Talladega Superspeedway. None left unsatisfied with the sometimes five-wide competition that ended with Mark Martin coasting under the checkered and caution flags after a Turn 3 melee on the race's final lap spoiled what could have been the closest, multi-truck finish in series history. Judged by the season-opening race at Daytona International Speedway - where a similar rules package is employed - Talladega's Mountain Dew 250 should be even more dramatic the second time around. Jack Sprague, Johnny Benson (No. 23 Toyota Certified Used Vehicles Toyota) and Travis Kvapil (No. 6 K&N Filters Ford) finished virtually side-by-side-by-side.

Fast Facts
Next Race: Mountain Dew 250
The Place: Talladega Superspeedway
The Date: Oct. 61
The Time: 4:00 p.m. (ET)
TV: SPEED 3:30 p.m. (ET)
Track Layout: 2.66-mile speedway
Race Purse: $780,490
2006 Winner: Mark Martin
2006 Pole: Mark Martin

2007 Standings:
No. Driver Points
1. Skinner 3,064
2. Hornaday 3,061
3. Kvapil 2,883
4. Bodine 2,750
5. Benson 2,666
6. Crawford 2,619
7. Musgrave 2,386
8. Darnell 2,351
9. Crafton 2,302
10. Sprague 2,252

Schedule:
Thursday: Practice 12:10-1:10 p.m.; Rookie practice 1:50-2:20 p.m.; Final practice 2:20-3:20 p.m.
Friday: Qualifying 12:10 p.m.