Jack Sprague is a three-time Craftsman Truck Series champion. Credit: Autostock

Las Vegas anything but a gamble for Sprague

Truck Series veteran all over the record books at LVMS

Jack Sprague has better odds than most at Las Vegas.

Pick a Las Vegas Motor Speedway record and chances are you'll find Sprague's name on it. Among the records Sprague owns: Most wins (two), most money won ($317,165), most top-five and top-10 finishes (six), most laps/miles led (298/447) and most laps/miles completed (919/1,378.5).

	Credit: Autostock
	Inside the Numbers Jack Sprague at LVMS Year Start Finish 1996 3 1 1997 1 2 1998 1 1 1999 6 2 2001 1 2 2003 8 5 2004 4 36

What's more, he's never started a race there from outside the top 10.

"I have loved racing at Las Vegas since the first time the trucks unloaded there in 1996," Sprague said. "It is wide and fast with room to pass.

"I have clinched a championship there and lost one there as well," Sprague said. "It is just a track that I enjoy, I am not sure how to explain it. I think every driver has tracks that have been special in their career and Las Vegas is one of those for me."

Although Las Vegas has a reputation as a "cookie-cutter" track, Sprague said the 1.5-mile oval in the desert has characteristics that fit his driving style.

"Although it isn't as flat as New Hampshire, IRP and a couple others we run, it doesn't have the banking of the other 1.5 mile tracks we run which gives us a lot of speed, but you still really have to drive the track.

"I have always liked flatter tracks, they just suit my driving style."

That said, Sprague's trip to Vegas last year was special for different reasons. His No. 16 Chevy lasted just five laps before its engine expired. He finished last.

"We had a great truck last year but the engine problem put us out early," Sprague said. "We will head back this year and see if we can't recapture the Las Vegas luck of the past."

Sprague's quest for a fourth Craftsman Truck Series title has been less than fruitful this season. In 19 starts, he has just seven top-10 finishes and he sits 11th in the standings, 465 points behind leader Dennis Setzer.

"Our Chevy Trucks team has had some huge disappointments this season," Sprague said. "It would be nice to get a win and set the stage for a strong finish to the season."

Championship update

After losing nearly 80 percent of a 227-point championship lead in three races, Dennis Setzer got things turned around at New Hampshire. But Setzer had to prevail in an end-of-race duel with his closest rival to build his lead to 59 points with six races remaining.

Setzer finished second in the Sylvania 200 with Ted Musgrave third after the pair spent most of the race's final 25 laps side-by-side and bumper-to-tailgate.

Things look good for Setzer at Las Vegas, as well. The points leader is riding a streak of five consecutive top-10 finishes.

"If you can exit the corner good and throttle up quicker, its going to give you an advantage down the straightaways," Setzer said.

2005 CRAFTSMAN TRUCK SERIES •   Results •   Standings •   Schedule •   Best 25 Over Last Six Races •   Best Starts •   Best Finishes

However, there is a concern.

"We expect to run well here this weekend, but I am a little concerned about the tire we will have. This tire is the same tire that we ran here last year and it was pretty inconsistent."

Hey, rookie

Several competitors new to the Craftsman Truck Series will debut at LVMS. They include Joey Miller, winner of the most recent ARCA/REMAX event at Salem, Ind.; David Gilliland, currently fourth in the Grand National Division, West Series points standings and Burney Lamar, a two-time Grand National Division, West Series winner in 2005, making his first start in Kevin Harvick Inc.'s No. 92 HPS/Groeniger Chevrolet.