Busch notebook: Vickers on brink of first win

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- Faced with having to sign a new driver for the 2003 NASCAR Busch Series season, car owner Ricky Hendrick gambled on the youthful Brian Vickers to fill the void.

	Brian Vickers

And it's definitely paying off.

Vickers, the 19-year-old racing prodigy, has far exceeded expectations. Vickers jumped to seventh in the NASCAR Busch Series point standings following a fifth-place finish at Dover last weekend, his third top-five finish in the last four races.

"I knew coming into this season they could get the job done as a team and that good things were going to happen," Hendrick said. "But I didn't expect it to happen this soon."

After competing in just a part-time schedule and finishing 30th in the championship point standings in 2002, the timing is also a surprise for Vickers.

"I'm excited about the results we've had," Vickers said. "I think it's a gamble any time you hire a driver who is young and doesn't have a lot of experience.

"So far we've done pretty good and we've been able to come together as a team a little sooner than I thought, but that's not to say I didn't expect this. Maybe the time frame was just a little different."

And perhaps the timing could not be better for Vickers to get his first NASCAR Busch Series victory in Saturday night's Trace Adkins Chrome 300. Nashville Superspeedway has a propensity for crowning first-time winners in its short history.

Three of the four winners at Nashville -- Greg Biffle in 2001, Scott Riggs and Jack Sprague in 2002 -- earned their career-first wins at the 1.33-mile track.

Vickers has been ever-so-close this season. At Nashville in April, Vickers led 30 laps late in the race and was pulling away from the field when his team made their final pit stop.

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"We pitted under green and then got caught by the yellow flag," recalled Vickers. "I knew we had a car capable of winning and things were winding down toward the end, but the last part of the race didn't end like I thought it would or hoped it would."

Vickers ninth-place finish at Nashville propelled him into the top 10 in the series point standings for the first time in his career. It also began a streak of finishes inside the top 20 which has produced four top-10 finishes in the last seven races.

"We just have to improve upon what we did earlier (at Nashville) and not worry too much about winning," Vickers said. "If we can do that, we'll be in good shape."

Jason Keller leads all active drivers at Nashville Superspeedway with three top-five finishes in four starts.

He has led a total of 122 laps and scored his best finish, second, in 2001. Another top-five finish this weekend would push Keller's career earnings to over $7 million. Keller -- who is $20,469 shy of the mark -- would become the first NASCAR Busch Series driver to reach the $7 million plateau.

	Bobby Hamilton Jr.

"Being the first person to reach $7 million says a lot about the people and the teams that I have aligned myself with," Keller said. "You could be the best driver in the world, but unless you are with a great team you are not going to be successful.

"When I think back to my first NASCAR Busch Series race, it's hard to believe that I am now the top money winner."

Pressley -- who currently competes in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series -- has 10 wins and six poles in 205 career starts in the NASCAR Busch Series, with a career high of third in the 1991 championship point standings.

ST Motorsports -- which fielded cars for Pressley in 33 races in 1997 and 1998 -- has plans to announce sponsorship at Daytona International Speedway in July.

"We really appreciate the continued support," said Wallace, 13th in the series point standings. "We're only six races shy of running the full season and hopefully we'll be able to gain additional sponsorship that will enable us to run the full season."

Sauter -- who is ninth in the NASCAR Busch Series point standings -- will drive the No. 5 Victor/UPI Painting Ford, the same car NASCAR Winston Cup star Kenny Wallace drove to Victory Lane at Bristol Motor Speedway in August 2002.

Capitol Records helped put a deal together for Adkins to be the title sponsor -- Trace Adkins Chrome 300 -- for Saturday's race.

"Chrome" is the name of Adkins second gold album by Capitol Records. "I've been a big fan of racing for as long as I can remember," Adkins said. "I'm honored to have a race with my name on it at Nashville Superspeedway."

TrimSpa also sponsors the No. 27 TrimSpa Pontiac in the NASCAR Busch Series driven by Raybestos Rookie-of-the-Year contender Joey Clanton.

Tennessee has the most active NASCAR Busch Series tracks with three -- Bristol Motor Speedway, Memphis Motorsports Park and Nashville.

Quotes

"Last year I won a guitar from (Nashville) and when we built the trophy cabinet, we built it for two guitars. I would like to add that second one this weekend." -- Mike Bliss, who won the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race at Nashville from the pole in August 2002.

"Winning my first NASCAR Busch Series pole is something I will always remember. The team put a great car under me, and I was able to pull off a clean, fast lap. Randy LaJoie broke my track record back in April, so we'll do all we can to get it back on Friday." -- Shane Hmiel, who won his career-first Bud Pole at Nashville in April 2002.

"It's discouraging for us to have such a slow start to the season. We need to remember that last year we were strong at the start, Biffle ran the best mid-season and (Scott) Wimmer finished strong. One good race could turn this season around quickly." -- Jason Keller, who led the series point standings five weeks after 14 races in 2002, but is currently sixth.

"Going back to Nashville is exciting. We're bringing the same car we won with back in April. We had an awesome car then so there is no reason we can't repeat in the Music City." -- David Green

Although Saturday's Trace Adkins Chrome 300 is just the fifth race at Nashville Superspeedway, NASCAR is certainly not new to Nashville.

The NASCAR Busch Series competed nine times at the Nashville Speedway USA short track in 1984, `88-89 and `95-2000. Biffle -- the 2002 NASCAR Busch Series champion -- christened the new Nashville Superspeedway with his career-first NASCAR Busch Series win on April 14, 2001.

Fast Facts

What: Trace Adkins Chrome 300 (Race 15 of 34 in the NASCAR Busch Series).

Where: Nashville Superspeedway, Lebanon, Tenn.

When: 8 p.m. (ET), (7 p.m. local), Saturday, June 7

Track layout: 1.33-mile oval.

Race length: 225 laps/300 miles.

Posted awards: $990,299.

TV: FX, 7:30 p.m. (ET).

Internet: NASCAR.com, Live Leaderboard

Radio: MRN, XM Satellite.

2002 winner: Jack Sprague.

2002 polesitter: Greg Biffle.

Top 10 in points: 1. Todd Bodine 1,947. 2. Scott Riggs 1,871. 3. David Green 1,863. 4. Mike Bliss 1,804. 5. Ron Hornaday 1,797. 6. Jason Keller 1,759. 7. Brian Vickers 1,747. 8. Shane Hmiel 1,715. 9. Johnny Sauter 1,674. 10. Bobby Hamilton Jr. 1,673.

Pre-race schedule (all times local): Friday -- Practice, 1:30 -- 3:30 p.m.; Qualifying, 5:05 p.m.; Final practice, 8:45 -- 9:45 p.m. (Final practice time approximate, follows Kodak Southeast Series race.)