·
Benson's
three-point lead over Hornaday is the closest in the 14-year history of
the NASCAR Truck Series going into the final race and the second closest
in a NASCAR national series since the current points system was adopted
in 1975. The closest point margin with one race remaining was in 1979
when Darrel Waltrip had a two-point lead over Richard Petty. Petty went
on to win the 1979 NASCAR Winston Cup championship.
·
By
winning the 2008 title, Ron Hornaday would become the first driver in
Truck Series history to win four championships. The only other drivers
to win at least four championships in NASCAR's three elite divisions
(Sprint Cup, Nationwide and Truck Series) are Richard Petty, Dale
Earnhardt and Jeff Gordon.
·
Hornaday
will be attempting to become the first driver to win back-to-back titles
and four championships in the series and the first 50-year-old to take a
NASCAR national series.
·
In 2008,
Hornaday and Johnny Benson each have 14 top-five and 17 top-10 finishes.
·
In case
of a points tie at the end of the race, Hornaday holds the tie-breaker
with six wins over Benson's five.
·
In 13 of
the last 24 races, Hornaday has finished higher than Benson.
·
In seven
of the last 10 races, Hornaday finished higher than Benson.
·
Hornaday
goes into the final race 26 points closer to the lead than he did last
season.
When
Hornaday won his record-tying third Truck Series title, Mike Skinner had
a 29-point advantage over Hornaday going into the final race in 2007.
·
In 1996,
Ron Hornaday led Mike Skinner by 72 points going into the final race of
the season on the way to his first NASCAR Truck Series championship.
·
In 1998,
Ron Hornaday led Jack Sprague by 13 points going into the final race of
the season on the way to his second NASCAR Truck Series championship.
·
Ron
Hornaday could make history by becoming the first back-to-back champion
in Truck Series history.
·
In a
series that has boasted owners like Richard Childress Racing, Hendrick
Motorsports, Dale Earnhardt Inc. and Roush Racing, Kevin Harvick Inc.
could become only the second team to repeat as championship owners
(Steve Coulter repeated in 2002 and 2003 with Mike Bliss and Travis
Kvapil).
·
Hornaday
and Benson are second generation drivers.
·
Both
Hornaday and Benson have an average finish of 10th in the final race of
the last three seasons.
·
Hornaday's average finish for the final race in the three years he won
the title: 6.3.