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Another Texas-sized victory could put Ron Hornaday back in the points lead.By the Numbers: Truck
Top 10 from Texas earlier this year, and extra tidbits
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Texas Motor Speedway is the last venue of the season at which the Craftsman Truck Series has raced earlier this year, giving drivers a more recent idea of how things might shake out the second time around.
If the June race is any barometer -- this week's Chevy Silverado 350K (8:30 p.m. ET, SPEED) will start at roughly the same time although the fall temperatures may alter track conditions to a varying degree -- the back-and-forth points battle between Johnny Benson and Ron Hornaday could tighten even more or even flip again.
Fast facts
| What | Chevy Silverado 350K |
| When | 9 p.m. ET Friday |
| TV | SPEED, 8:30 p.m. ET |
| Radio | MRN (Sirius Ch. 128), 9 ET |
Benson leads Hornaday by 31 points, but Hornaday was dominant in winning the Sam's Town 400 in June. Benson finished third, but Hornaday scored 25 more points.
The two leaders at the track in top-10s -- Dennis Setzer and Rick Crawford each have 12 -- did not finish among the 10 best in June. Setzer wasn't far behind in 11th place, but it marked the fourth consecutive race at Texas in which he has failed to post a top-10. Crawford, one of only two drivers to make all 21 starts at TMS -- Terry Cook is the other -- finished 21, his fourth-worst result at the track. He finished fifth in this race last year, at the time his third top-five in a four-race span.
Cook has yet to post a top-five at Texas and has six top-10s, the last coming in November 2006. After dominating TMS to begin his career with a runner-up finish followed by four consecutive victories, tied for most in the series, Brendan Gaughan has only two top-15s since -- a runner-up finish last November and a 15th-place finish this past June.
Speaking of the aforementioned 21 starts for the Trucks at Texas, it's the most starts of any of NASCAR top touring series at the track. The Truck Series debuted at TMS in 1999 and have been racing twice a year there since 1999.
1Ron Hornaday won for the first time in 11 starts at Texas, and has three top-fives in the past four races there. He led 140 laps, making him the track leader with 495. Three times he has led more than 100 laps at Texas including two of the past three races. He has seven top-10s there, all in his past nine starts, but finished 18th in this race last year.
2Kyle Busch posted his second runner-up finish in the past three races at Texas, but didn't lead a lap either time. He also has a third-place finish in five career races, but his other two starts have resulted in DNFs including last November. He led 27 of the 70 laps he ran before engine failure relegated him to 29th.
3Johnny Benson proved he finishes well at Texas, when he finishes. His past three starts prior ended with DNFs (engine) but before that he had three top-fives in his first four races including two runner-up finishes, which added to his result earlier this year account for all four of his top-10s. In eight starts he's only led 16 laps, eight coming in the June race.
4Jack Sprague posted his series-best eighth top-five in 17 starts at Texas, and 11th top-10. In five starts in the No. 60 Toyota, Sprague has one top-five and three top-10s including a sixth-place finish last November. His average finish in those five races is 10.6. His average finish overall is 10.2.
5Todd Bodine recorded his first top-10 at Texas that wasn't a victory. The four-time winner has made eight starts there, with an 8.6 average finish. His past two fall starts have resulted in finishes of 14th in 2006 and 16 in 2007, but he also has two wins at the track in October and November.
6Chad McCumbee scored his second top-10 in four starts at Texas. He's never finished worse than 13th and that includes a DNF (crash) last year two laps from the end. They are the only two laps he has failed to complete there.
7Matt Crafton finished seventh for the third consecutive race at Texas, his seventh top-10 in 15 starts. Only twice has he finished outside the top 20 and his worse result is 23rd after a DNF (engine). He has one top-five.
8Bobby East posted his first top-10 in three starts at Texas. He made two starts in 2006, finishing 28th and 21st in the No. 21 Ford of the Wood Brothers. He drove the 09 Ford for Roush Fenway Racing this past June. He's the only driver among the top-10 finishers from that race not entered this week. Travis Kvapil, who has one win, five top-fives and six-tops in 10 starts at Texas, is in the 09.
9Mike Skinner ended a streak of six consecutive top-fives at Texas with his seventh top-10 in nine starts. He's never finished worse than 11th, and has an average finish of 5.2, best among all drivers with more than two starts there. His average starting position is even better with a series-high five poles and three more starts on the outside of the front row.
10Jon Wood recorded his second consecutive top-five at Texas after not having raced there in the series since 2004. He has five top-10s overall in nine starts, the latter two coming in the Wood Brothers' 21 truck.
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Texas Motor Speedway
Sam's Town 400
| Pos. | Start | Driver | Make | Led |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | 3 | R. Hornaday | Chevrolet | 140 |
| 2. | 17 | Ky. Busch | Toyota | 0 |
| 3. | 15 | J. Benson | Toyota | 8 |
| 4. | 8 | J. Sprague | Chevrolet | 20 |
| 5. | 6 | T. Bodine | Toyota | 0 |
| 6. | 10 | C. McCumbee | Chevrolet | 0 |
| 7. | 24 | M. Crafton | Chevrolet | 0 |
| 8. | 13 | B. East | Ford | 0 |
| 9. | 2 | M. Skinner | Toyota | 0 |
| 10. | 4 | J. Wood | Ford | 0 |
Craftsman Truck Series
Official Standings
| Pos. | +/- | Driver | Points | Behind |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | -- | Johnny Benson | 3324 | Leader |
| 2. | -- | Ron Hornaday | 3293 | -31 |
| 3. | +1 | Todd Bodine | 3106 | -218 |
| 4. | +2 | Erik Darnell | 3027 | -297 |
| 5. | -2 | Matt Crafton | 3027 | -297 |
| 6. | +1 | Rick Crawford | 2983 | -341 |
| 7. | -2 | Mike Skinner | 2981 | -343 |
| 8. | -- | Dennis Setzer | 2800 | -524 |
| 9. | -- | Jack Sprague | 2792 | -532 |
| 10. | +1 | Chad McCumbee | 2654 | -670 |
Truck Series News
- Busch wins in Texas, holds off Crafton and Hornaday
- Busch has Truck owners' title in mind for Ballew
- Almirola pushes Busch past Bodine at Talladega
- Braun earns pole at 'Dega; Dillon fails inspection, DQ'd
- Truck Series adjustments announced for '10 season
- Bodine brings streak, experience to Talladega
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