Scott Lynch finished 23rd at Texas. Credit: Nate Mecha/HSP

Lynch betting on PIR to jump-start season

You've probably never heard of Scott Lynch. Same way you hadn't heard of Kevin Harvick or Kurt Busch when they hit the Craftsman Truck Series.

Racing out west will do that to you. The racing is great, but national exposure is hard to come by.

Scott Lynch Credit: Nate Mecha/HSP

Scott Lynch is trying to change that. Lynch exploded with nine straight top-fives this summer while driving in the NASCAR Grand National Division (formerly Winston West Series) where guys like Harvick won titles before cutting their teeth in the Craftsman Truck Series.

Lynch is banking on a five-race stint with Orleans Racing to try to draw up interest from car owners for the 2006 season.

After Orleans Racing parted ways with driver Steve Park in October, the team was going to retire the No. 62 Dodge for the remainder of the year, but Lynch stepped in with the sponsorship needed to run the final five races.

So far, Lynch has struggled, although he made strides at Texas by finishing on the lead lap.

Lynch, 25, is relying heavily on this weekend's Chevy Silverado 150 at Phoenix, where he finished second in April in a West Series event.

"I'm really stoked about Phoenix. I've raced there a lot and I've got tons and tons of laps," said Lynch, a native of Burley, Idaho. "I'm positive we're going to qualify good and race good there. Hopefully out of all the races that one goes good for us and we'll stand out in that race."

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

Phoenix is a very hard place to pass in any of NASCAR's divisions, but qualifying well is especially vital in the Craftsman Truck Series races there, which are limited to 150 laps.

The Truck Series races at Phoenix sometimes last just 90 minutes. Qualifying well is vital. Only two of PIR's 14 winners have qualified worse than seventh, but Lynch says the track is not as tight as it used to be.

"It's not as tricky," said Lynch. "They finally widened Turn 2 out a little bit, so you can have a couple different lanes to chose from coming off of Turn 2. It's really important to make sure that your truck turns good there."

Lynch is counting on a large psychological boost from racing in Phoenix. This is his first true West Coast test in the Craftsman Truck Series, and he says being around family will help.

"My brother went to college there, so I'd always make up excuses to go down and visit because it's just an awesome, awesome city," Lynch said. "My brother is racing the night before, so all my family is probably going to stay the next day and watch the race.

"I think it will give me a little extra boost there."