In eight previous Daytona NCTS races, there have been two three-wide finishes at the wire and a wealth of last-lap passes and nail-biting excitement. Ironically, the one thing this race hasn't provided is an NCTS champion - no driver as ever won both this race and the series title in the same season. 

That said, this year's Chevy Silverado 250 field features no less than five former NCTS champions: Todd Bodine, Ron Hornaday Jr., Ted Musgrave, Jack Sprague and Mike Skinner. Collectively, the five have earned eight championships, 114 victories and more than $24 million in winnings. Of the five, though, only Sprague has won at Daytona International Speedway.

Still, all five figure heavily into the mix this year. Hornaday, the defending series champion, and Sprague are teamed up this year at Kevin Harvick Inc., creating a dream team that will be awfully hard to beat, both at Daytona this week and in the series all year long. "I like the way they both are going to drive and so hopefully when it comes down to the end (of the race), they can race each other and keep it in the family," said team owner Kevin Harvick.

Skinner, last year's series runner-up and the first NCTS champion in 1995, returns to the No. 5 Bill Davis Racing Toyota in which he led an unprecedented 24 of 25 races in 2007. He will be fast once again, as will his teammate, Johnny Benson, who finished third in points with a strong finish to the 2007 season. "I think the race is going to be just as interesting as it was last year," said Skinner.

Bodine will begin his fourth full season with Germain Racing where he's won 12 races and finished third, first and fourth in series points.

Musgrave, seventh a year ago, moves to the No. 59 Team ASE/Harris Trucking Toyota. The 2005 champion snapped a lengthy winless streak last fall at Texas Motor Speedway.

Also out of the Toyota squad is the always fast Kyle Busch, who will make his first Daytona NCTS start in the No. 51 Tundra out of the Billy Ballew stable. "I am not saying we will (win). I am not saying we won't," Busch said. "I am just saying we hope to. It would be a great honor to have that."

Another team to keep an eye out for this year at Daytona is Roush Fenway Racing, which will start its 300 consecutive NCTS race on Friday. In the truck series, Roush Fenway Racing drivers have earned one championship, 48 victories and five rookie of the year crowns.

"The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series is a great series to develop a driver and get him ready for the Nationwide Series or the Sprint Cup Series," said team co-owner Jack Roush, who is looking for his third Daytona winner. Roush will field three trucks this year, led by 19-year-old rookie Colin Braun and Erik Darnell. Braun will drive the No. 6 Roush Fenway Ford F-150 that won four races last year with Travis Kvapil behind the wheel. Darnell, meanwhile, topped the speed charts in Daytona pre-season testing.

Keep and eye out, too, for the Circle Bar Racing squad, which fields Ford F-150s for Rick Crawford and Brendan Gaughan.

Another team to watch is last year's winning squad, Wyler Racing. Although Sprague has left the team, the Wyler Toyota is now driven by Terry Cook, one of only four drivers to start all eight races at Daytona. Cook's ninth Daytona start will be his series leading 248th consecutive start, a streak that dates to Jan. 18, 1998 at Walt Disney World Speedway. "I have very high expectations for our team this year," said Cook, who has won six times for four different owners.

Although they come in as underdogs, the Dodge contingent is represented by Stacy Compton, Larry Foyt, Scott Lynch, Dennis Setzer and Jason White.

All told, the 2008 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series field is as deep as it's ever been, with a dozen or more legitimate candidates to win the season-opener at Daytona on Friday. And if history is any indicator, the fight will again go down to the wire, just as it has for the last eight seasons.

Tom Jensen is the Senior NASCAR Editor for SPEEDTV.com, the former Executive Editor of NASCAR Scene and a contributing Editor for TruckSeries.com.  He is the author of "Cheating: The Bad Things Good NASCAR Nextel Cup Racers Do In Pursuit of SPEED," and has appeared on numerous television and radio shows to discuss NASCAR racing. Jensen is the President of the National Motorsports Press Association.