Matt Crafton eluded the fender-banging, finger-pointing madness of Martinsville Speedway en route to a career-best 2nd place finish in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Kroger 250 on Saturday.

Crafton avoided a multi-truck wreck on turn four of the last lap to secure his second straight top-5 finish and park the No. 88 Menards Chevrolet Silverado in the thick of championship contention.

"We just had a great truck all day, and I'm thankful to Bud (crew chief Haefele) and the guys for their effort," Crafton said of the No. 88 crew.  "It was a typical, crazy Martinsville race, and the green-white-checkered finish was the icing on the cake.  Guys were running into each other, and patience was at a premium.  We knew we had a top-3 truck when we unloaded, and we learned a few things from testing here earlier this month that made us better.  The weather change from Friday to Saturday caught us off guard and we didn't qualify well (Crafton started 24th), but we were good when it counted.  We pitted three times, and were able to work our way back up front each time, which is difficult to do here with the one-groove racing.  That's a testament to how good our truck was."

Crafton surged to 6th place in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series standings.  Despite the career-best finish, he remains focused on the big picture.

"I'm proud of what we accomplished here, and it's great for our guys, but our mission is to be there at the end of the season with a shot to win the championship," said Crafton.  "We know we have to be strong each time out, because the competition in this series is so tough.  (Owners) Duke and Rhonda Thorson have given us everything we need to compete for a championship, and we feel like we can be as good as anybody.  This team won't be satisfied with anything but top-5 finishes and competing for wins.  We have momentum heading to Kansas, and I expect us to be strong there."