- 2007 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series
The 12th season of the
NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series season set off onFebruary 16 ,2007 atDaytona International Speedway with theChevy Silverado HD 250 , and ended onNovember 16 ,2007 with theFord 200 atHomestead-Miami Speedway .Ron Hornaday ofKevin Harvick Incorporated was crowned champion.Top storylines
*Two series drivers, Tyler Walker and
Aaron Fike , were suspended by NASCAR indefinitely for violations of the organization'ssubstance abuse program. Fike's suspension came after he and hisgirlfriend were arrested on possession charges at theparking lot of theKings Island theme park nearCincinnati, Ohio . Neither driver had been reinstated as ofJune 9 .
*Ted Musgrave , the 2005 champion, was suspended for one race due to an altercation with Kelly Bires during a caution period at theToyota Tundra Milwaukee 200 at theMilwaukee Mile . In the race Musgrave sat out,Brad Keselowski almost drove the #9 truck to victory until a late-race crash withTravis Kvapil took him out. Keselowski's performance is credited with his discovery byJR Motorsports and eventually signing with thatBusch Series team.
*Mike Skinner won three straight races (California, Atlanta and the first at Martinsville) and led in poles as well. Skinner led the standings all season until the race atGateway International Raceway , when he was overtaken byRon Hornaday .
*Trip Bruce ,crew chief for the #23 team and driverJohnny Benson , was suspended for two races for allowing a driver not licensed by NASCAR to test the truck atLowe's Motor Speedway . The team and Benson also lost 25 points in the respective standings and Bruce was fined.
*SPEED Channel began a new eight-year contract to continue NCTS telecasts, but two races were moved to FOX. The second of those, the Ohio 250 atMansfield Motorsports Park , aired on that network for only 19 laps before rain came and the rest of the event aired on SPEED Channel whileMajor League Baseball on FOX aired on the main network. However, most of the race was moved totape delay due to more rain and a conflict with theBusch Series race atLowe's Motor Speedway running simultaneously (NASCAR prohibits more than one national series from being televised at the same time). The other FOX telecast was theKroger 250 atMartinsville Speedway .chedule
Preliminary schedule based on current information available
All races are held in the USA.
Failed to qualify:
Wayne Edwards (#95)an Bernardino County 200
This race was held
February 23 atCalifornia Speedway .Carl Edwards won the pole in the unsponsoredRoush Fenway Racing #50 truck. On one of the 2nd from the final restart #33Ron Hornaday spun out #21 Mark Martin due to a slow restart, the caution flag was soon waved but not until after #5 Mike Skinner made the pass for the lead. NASCAR didn't issue any penalties to the #33 team and Mark Martin after the spin ended up finishing 23rd On the final restart #5 Mike skinner held off #33 Ron Hornaday to get his first truck series win since last year at Las Vegas.Top ten results:
Failed to qualify:
Bradley Riethmeyer (#49),Brian Sockwell (#54),Shane Sieg (#28), Chris Jones (#87),Tim Cowen (#42)O'Reilly Auto Parts 250
The O'Reilly Auto Parts 250 was held on
April 28 atKansas Speedway . This race was moved from its traditional July weekend to late April in hopes of cooler temperatures. It was also held in conjunction with theIndyCar Series ' event, the Kansas Indy 300. The race was dominated by 2006 Raybestos Rookie of the YearErik Darnell , who would lead 91 of 166 laps en route to his first career NCTS victory. Darnell's win ended the win streak of Mike Skinner, who started from the pole but had trouble in the pits.Top ten results:
Failed to qualify:
Kelly Sutton (#51)AAA Insurance 200
The AAA Insurance 200 was held
June 1 at theDover International Speedway . Mike Skinner won his sixth consecutive pole. This race was a historic milestone for the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, as it was the series’ 300th race. The race featured early attrition, including a six-truck pileup on the first lap involving Cup driversClint Bowyer andKen Schrader , along with truck driversBrendan Gaughan ,Bill Lester ,Erik Darnell , andJack Sprague . From the outset, it appeared as thoughKyle Busch would walk away with another victory at Dover. However,Ron Hornaday began to catch up to Busch, who was having handling problems. Hornaday would eventually win by 7 seconds overStacy Compton .Top ten results:
Failed to Qualify: #71-
Bryan Silas Toyota Tundra Milwaukee 200
The
Toyota Tundra Milwaukee 200 took placeJune 22 atThe Milwaukee Mile . Mike Skinner won the pole. Like most races of the 2007 NCTS season, Mike Skinner dominated the first half of the race, leading 103 laps. However, defending winnerJohnny Benson was looking to jumpstart his season. Benson would eventually pass Skinner just past the halfway mark and would not look back, leading 96 laps en route to his first victory of the season.Top ten results:
Failed to Qualify: none
Power Stroke Diesel 200
The
Power Stroke Diesel 200 took placeJuly 27 at theO'Reilly Raceway Park . Mike Skinner won the pole as qualifying was rained out and set by owners points.Top ten results:
Did not Qualify: #54-
Brian Sockwell Missouri/Illinois Dodge Dealers Ram Tough 200
The
Missouri/Illinois Dodge Dealers Ram Tough 200 was heldSeptember 1 at theGateway International Raceway . Mike Skinner won the pole. Although Skinner would lead the first 19 laps, his chances of victory would end with a cut right front tire, sending him hard into the wall. Skinner, with his crew, would repair the truck and later return to the race. With Skinner in the garage, the race lead would turn to his championship rival,Ron Hornaday , who dominated the race. However, fellow contenderJohnny Benson took advantage of Hornaday's loose truck, passing him with 13 laps to go and holding of the "Restart Master" for his second consecutive win, albeit under caution, asRyan Matthews crashed on the final lap.Top ten results:
Mountain Dew 250
The
Mountain Dew 250 was held onOctober 6 atTalladega Superspeedway .Todd Bodine won the pole. Of note,Formula 1 championJacques Villeneuve made another strong statement in qualifying 10th for the race. Tight packs of 2, 3, and even 4 wide racing was anticipated, based on the excitement of the inaugural race in 2006. The championship race between Mike Skinner,Ron Hornaday ,Travis Kvapil , and defending championTodd Bodine continued to tighten. The pivotal point in the race came on lap 73 asJack Sprague , who is in the midst of a difficult year, cut a tire down while leading.Johnny Benson , who ironically pushed Sprague to the win at Daytona, got into the back of his slowing car, triggering "The Big One". The crash collected contenders Hornaday and Kvapil, although the former was able to rally to a top 10 finish. After the crash, points leader Skinner had problems in the form of a loosened hood pin. The pin eventually broke off and his hood began to flap wildly, prompting NASCAR to black flag him. However, as soon as Skinner was about to pit under green, the truck of Mike Wallace spun, allowing Skinner to remain on the lead lap. With only two laps to go, the racing became tighter than ever, as Rick Crawford and Benson would use the draft to go three wide with Bodine in the tri-oval, but Crawford would come up short by only .014 seconds.Top ten results:
ilverado 350K
The
Silverado 350K was heldNovember 2 atTexas Motor Speedway . Mike Skinner won the pole. Although the early part of the race would be dominated byTed Musgrave , the overall race would primarily be dominated by championship contenders Skinner andRon Hornaday , with Skinner leading the most laps at 40. This race also saw the championship hopes ofTravis Kvapil andTodd Bodine end. As with most Friday night truck races under the lights, the final few laps created a fast and crazy finish. On a restart with 8 to go, Skinner would challenge the Hornaday for the lead on the outside heading onto the backstretch. However,Chad McCumbee made a bold move on both championship contenders, making it three wide heading into turn 3. As McCumbee took the lead, Hornaday sailed up the racetrack and into Skinner, causing a pileup involving Musgrave,Matt Crafton , andErik Darnell . After the red flag was lifted, McCumbee spun his tires on the green-white-checkered restart. With two-time Texas winnerJack Sprague right behind him, McCumbee attempted to block Sprague, who subsequently hooked his quarter panel, sending them both into the wall. McCumbee would take 13th place while Sprague got 6th. Avoiding the carnage, Musgrave would take the checkered flag for the first time in 66 races. After the first wreck, polesitter Skinner would amazingly rally to finish third and extend his points lead.Top Ten Results:
Failed to Qualify: #63-Scott Lynch, #86-
Kevin Lepage , #31-Tim Schendel , #7-Jason White, #71-Bryan Silas Rookies
As noted above, the two main contenders for ROTY, Aaron Fike and Tyler Walker, were both suspended by NASCAR for violating its drug abuse policy. The two main contenders for the title would then be ex-
Busch Series driverTim Sauter andsprint car driver Willie Allen. The fight would come down to the final race, where Allen would prevail by nine points over Sauter. AlthoughJoey Clanton was in contention for the rookie title, he was running only a partial season in the #09. Other contenders, such asJason White ,Ryan Mathews , andBlake Bjorklund also ran partial seasons.ee also
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2007 NASCAR Nextel Cup Series
*2007 NASCAR Busch Series
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