Ronda Greer/NASCAR Photo

Defending NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Champion Ron Hornaday Jr. scored a dominating victory in Saturday night's O'Reilly 200 at Memphis Motorsports Park, race No. 12 of 25 on the season.

Hornaday led all but 65 laps on the night, and in the process reclaimed the series points lead over Johnny Benson, who broke a motor midway through the race after running strong early on. Hornaday easily bested Erik Darnell, Matt Crafton and Rick Crawford to seal the deal in a green-white-checkered finish.

Benson took the lead on the opening lap, his Toyota Certified Used Vehicles Toyota Tundra holding off the Zaxby's Ford F-150 of second-qualifier Bobby East. Defending series champion Ron Hornaday Jr. took over the second spot on Lap 2, quickly moving his Camping World Chevrolet Silverado around East.

Todd Bodine spun on Lap 7 to bring out Caution No. 1, his Lumber Liquidators Tundra tangling with Donny Lia's TRG Motorsports Chevrolet in Turn 3. Neither truck was seriously damaged.

The track went green on Lap 12 and Hornaday immediately challenged Benson for the lead, but the Toyota held the point, with Hornaday's Kevin Harvick Inc. teammate Jack Sprague third in the No. 2 American Commercial Lines Chevy.

Caution No. 2 flew for debris on Lap 35. Ted Musgrave, who was running in the top 15 in his Team ASE/Harris Trucking Toyota, led a group of about 10 trucks down pit road for fuel, tires and adjustments. Justin Marks got the Lucky Dog in his Construct Corps/crocs Toyota, putting 29 trucks on the lead lap.

The order when the track went green on Lap 40 was Benson, Hornaday, Sprague, Erik Darnell in the No. 99 Northern Tool + Equipment Ford and Rick Crawford's Circle Bar Truck Corral/Power Stroke Diesel Ford F-150.

On Lap 44, Hornaday took the lead for the first time and immediately pulled out to a two-truck lead over Benson. Hornaday bumped Benson a little in Turn 4 to take the lead. Four laps later, Crawford muscled past Darnell into fourth place. And that's the way they ran at Lap 50, the one-quarter distance: Hornaday, Benson, Sprague, Crawford and Darnell.

Caution No. 3 was for Bodine's second spin, and on Lap 54, the leaders pitted. The order at the Lap 58 restart was Stacy Compton, Colin Braun, T.J. Bell in the Heathcliff's Cat Litter Chevrolet, Chad Chaffin's Key Motorsports Chevrolet, Marks, Musgrave, Hornaday, Benson, Brendan Gaughan's International Maxxforce Diesel Ford and Crawford. The first five all stayed out because they had pitted earlier, while Musgrave took fuel only. Sprague, meanwhile, lost a lug nut and had to make a second pit stop, which dropped him to 27th.

By Lap 66, Hornaday was back up to third, behind Compton and Braun, with Benson fourth and right on Hornaday's bumper. The top four had broken away clean by Lap 70, with Compton's Red River Dodge Dodge Ram, Braun's Con-Way Freight Ford, Hornaday and Benson all running in lockstep.

Hornaday and Benson quickly reassumed the point, then it was Caution No. 4 on Lap 77 as Dennis Setzer's Tahoe Dodge got spun in a chain reaction crash on the backstretch involving Mike Skinner's Toyota Tundra-sponsored Toyota and Shelby Howard's Bobcat Chevrolet.

The track went green on Lap 83, and Benson's truck wouldn't come up to speed, his transmission stuck between gears. That made the order Hornaday, David Starr's Red Horse Racing Toyota, Crawford, Compton and East. By Lap 92, Hornaday had pulled away to a 3.5-second lead. Benson's woes were costly, as they dropped him out of the NCTS points lead in one of the tightest title races in years. "I got stuck in second gear and when I got it out, I over-revved it and I think it broke a valve," said Benson, who was credited with a 33rd-place finish.

At halfway, Hornaday led Crawford, Starr, Darnell, East, Compton, Braun, Brian Scott's Albertsons Chevy, Matt Crafton's Menards/Ideal Door Chevy and Musgrave.

Caution No. 5 flew on Lap 122 for a single-truck spin when Lia lost it between Turns 3 and 4. Hornaday led the lead-lap trucks down pit road the following lap. Hornaday led the race off pit road, too, coming out in front of the Fords of Crawford, Darnell and East, with Starr in fifth for the Lap 127 restart. 

Then there was a big scrum on Lap 132 as Bodine and Jason White's Gunbroker.com Dodge went around in Turn 3, causing a pileup, but not seriously damaging any truck. Five laps later, the track went green with the order up front unchanged from the prior caution.

Darnell took second from Crawford on Lap 139, and set out in pursuit of Hornaday. With 50 to go, Hornaday led Darnell by 0.891 seconds, with the leaders trailed by Crawford, East and Starr.

The seventh caution flag came out after a spin in Turn 4 also involving East, Braun and the Copy Wizard Chevrolet of Chris Jones. The track went green on Lap 170, with Hornaday leading Darnell, Crawford, Crafton and Starr.

By Lap 175, Darnell began pressuring Hornaday for the lead. Behind them, Crafton passed Crawford for third on Lap 180, as Hornaday's lead seemed to stabilize at about half a second.

Caution No. 8 flew on Lap 187 for debris on the frontstretch, which again bunched the field. Again, Hornaday led Darnell, Crafton, Crawford and Starr for the Lap 192 restart. Hornaday made one of his patented great restarts and the race was all but over at that point, his Chevy opening a three-truck gap over Darnell's Ford.

But there was one more caution to come, as Musgrave, Marc Mitchell's Ergon Toyota and Keven Wood's Air Force spun after Willie Allen's Rascal Flatts/Nashville Music City Chevrolet turned Musgrave in Turn 4. The field was red flagged to clean the track, setting up yet another green-white-checkered finish.

But Hornaday would not be denied as he cruised to an easy victory.

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.