Skinner looks to continue while Kvapil seeks change

Mike Skinner and Travis Kvapil -- two former Craftsman Truck Series champions -- had certain expectations on how their 2007 seasons would go. For Skinner, three races in it couldn't get any better but for Kvapil, some missed opportunities leave the driver coming up short and looking to turn things around.

In Saturday's Kroger 250 (3 p.m. ET, FOX) at Martinsville Speedway, Skinner hopes to remain red-hot as he looks for his third consecutive win.

By the Numbers: Martinsville

Martinsville has held more races than every other track but two, yet there has only been one two-time winner in the 12-year history of the Truck Series. Five drivers including Mike Skinner, who has won the last two NCTS events, look to change that.

• Complete story

Skinner is the only NCTS driver to finish in the top five in all three races this season. He began the year with a fourth-place finish at Daytona and then reeled off two consecutive wins at California and Atlanta.

Now it's off to Martinsville where the driver has been successful. In eight races, Skinner has finished in the top 10 six times, including three top-fives and a win more than a decade ago.

"I have had a lot of success in Martinsville," the current points leader said. "I won back in 1996 in the Truck Series and won another race there in the Late Model series. I love Martinsville. I absolutely love it. It is a very hard track to run in that you use a lot of brakes, but I think it is a very cool place to race."

Despite success at the .526-mile track and on his season as a whole, Skinner remains grounded and isn't getting too excited about the opportunity to run away from the field.

"Our goal this week is simple; it is just like every other week. We want to come out of the race with all our fenders on this No. 5 Toyota Tundra," Skinner said. "We are simply looking for a top-10 finish again this week.

"Our goal this year has been consistency and so far that seems to be working, so we will just keep going from there."

Things haven't been quite as simple for Kvapil in his return to the Craftsman Truck Series.

After dominating Daytona by leading 49 of the race's 100 laps but coming up third on a dramatic three-wide finish, Kvapil has disappeared from the front.

A 16th-place finish at California followed by a 15th at Atlanta is not what many were expecting from the 2003 Truck Series champion in his return in a Roush Fenway Racing Ford. Currently sitting ninth in points, 148 behind Skinner, Kvapil hopes a trip to Martinsville will right the ship.

"I really love racing [at Martinsville], you can't beat racing at the short tracks," Kvapil said. "Hopefully we can run up front this weekend. It would be great to pull off the win and get our season turned around."

Saturday's race marks a special occasion for the driver who just celebrated his 31st birthday on March 1 -- Martinsville will be Kvapil's 100th race in the Craftsman Truck Series.

In 99 Truck Series starts, Kvapil has wins at Texas, Memphis, Bristol, Michigan and New Hampshire, recorded one pole, 41 top-five and 65 top-10 finishes and earned almost $2.5 million.

"I've been very fortunate," Kvapil said. "I've worked with some great teams over the years, and we've been lucky enough to win some races and of course the championship back in 2003. If it wasn't for the Craftsman Truck Series, I never would have had the opportunity to make my dream job of being a professional racecar driver a reality.

"Martinsville is one of my favorite tracks on the circuit, so it makes this weekend that much more special."