ThorSport Racing

NASCAR_Owner_Infobox
Company Name = ThorSport Racing


Owner(s) Name = Duke & Rhonda Thorson
Racing Series = Craftsman Truck Series
Championships = 0
Car Number(s) = #13
#88
Driver(s) = Shelby Howard (#13)
Matt Crafton (#88)
Primary Sponsor(s) = Menards (#88)
Shop Location = Sandusky, Ohio
Homepage = [http://www.thorsport.com ThorSport Racing]

ThorSport Racing is a Sandusky, Ohio based NASCAR racing team that competes in the Craftsman Truck Series. Owned by Duke Thorson and his wife Rhonda, the team currently fields two Chevrolet Silverados in Craftsman competition; the #13 driven by Shelby Howard, and the #88 driven by Matt Crafton.

Truck #13 history

The #13 truck began racing in 2004, with Tina Gordon driving with sponsorship from Vassarette and Microtel. After five races, she left the team due to injuries she suffered at Atlanta, and Lance Hooper and Paul White shared the ride for the next several races. After several lackluster results, Jimmy Spencer drove at Loudon, finishing eighteenth, before Jason Small and Andy Houston finished out the season in the truck. For 2005, Tracy Hines drove the truck and had a fifth-place finish at Richmond International Raceway with sponsorship from David Zoriki Motorsports. He was released with two races to go, and Chad Chaffin and Johnny Sauter filled out the schedule in his place.

Kerry Earnhardt drove for ThorSport Racing during the 2006 season, his best finish being 11th which he recorded twice, at Nashville and Las Vegas. He was not retained for 2007 and rookie Willie Allen was signed to replace him. He had two top-tens and won Rookie of the Year, but was replaced at the end of the year by USAR Hooters Pro Cup driver Shelby Howard.

Truck #88 history

The #88 truck was the first out of the ThorSport stable. Debuting in the 1996 season at the Milwaukee Mile, Terry Cook finished 12th in the race for the team, which was then known as Sealmaster Racing. He ran two additional races in the truck that season, but did not finish better than 21st. Cook drove a limited schedule with the team in 1997 in the PBA Tour Chevy. Despite not finishing in the top-ten, Cook won his first career pole at Flemington Speedway, and finished 24th in the final standings. The team received enough funding to compete full-time in 1998, and Cook won his first career race at Flemington, but only improved to a twentieth-place points finish.

ThorSport began the 1999 without primary sponsorship before Big Daddy's BBQ Sauce joined the operation late in the season, allowing Cook to finish 15th in points. In 2000, [http://www.pickuptruck.com PickupTruck.com] became the team's new sponsor, and Cook had a total of eight top-ten finishes, but was replaced in the final event of the season by Matt Crafton, who finished ninth. Fast Master Driveway Sealer and XE Sighting System shared sponsorship duties for Crafton, who picked up eleven top-tens and finished 12th in points in his rookie season. Despite Menards becoming a full-time sponsor in 2002, Crafton only had six top-tens and dropped to fifteenth in the standings, but improved to eleventh the following year. For the season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway, Buddy Rice was placed in the 88 truck, while Crafton drove the 98, finishing 20th and 15th, respectively.

In 2004, rookie Tracy Hines became the team's new driver, and he posted three top-ten finishes and finished eighteenth in points. Crafton returned to the 88 for 2005, winning his first career pole at New Hampshire International Speedway and finishing ninth in points, a team-best. He slipped to fourteenth in points in 2006 despite ten top-tens, and repeated his top-ten total in 2007, moving up to eighth in points.

tatistics

Owner Statistics

Statistics current as of July 25, 2008.

External links

* [http://www.thorsport.com Team Website]