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O'Reilly Raceway Park

Ron Hornaday Jr. Ends 22-race Winless Streak

The back-to-basics approach seems to work for Ron Hornaday Jr. and the No. 33 Kevin Harvick Inc. NASCAR Camping World Truck Series team.

Hornaday Jr. snapped a 22-race winless streak in the truck series Friday night, winning the AAA Insurance 200 at O'Reilly Raceway Park.

Watched by team owner Kevin Harvick, Hornaday led 129 laps and beat runner-up Kyle Busch by 2.095 seconds for his first victory since Aug. 1 of last year at Nashville Superspeedway.

Hornaday credited crew chief Ernie Cope — who rejoined the truck team while maintaining his crew chief job with the KHI NASCAR Nationwide Series group — with helping turn things around.

"We couldn't do it without Ernie Cope and all these guys on this Chevrolet," Hornaday said. "They worked their guts out, changing the truck after last weekend. It's just a great day.

Hopefully it keeps a little bit quiet. It took Ernie to come over here and settle everybody down. The guys were getting a little anxious. We know we've got a winning team. We just had to prove it to them."

What did Cope do for Hornaday?

"We just kind of went back to what we call our basic package," Cope said. "We've had people come in and try to do their own thing. I know everyone wants to make an identity for themselves, but it wasn't working.

We had to make changes. We just went back to basics here with Ron and let him drive the truck, don't try to do nothing trick. We just went to basics and let him do his job. You're going to win a lot of races when you do that with Ron Hornaday."

Hornaday chipped in, too, trying to change his luck to get back to the winner's circle.

"I changed my tennis shoes, changed all my luck stuff," Hornaday said. "I just (went) back to my basic (of) come to the racetrack and try to kick butt, and it seems to be working."

The victory was Hornaday's fourth at ORP in 11 starts at the 0.686-mile short track. He led 67 laps in winning the race here in 2009 and has won three of the last four at the facility.

The key moment of the race came on Lap 153, when Hornaday squirted past Busch and polesitter Timothy Peters for the lead in Turns 3 and 4. Busch was trying to pass Peters on the high side but was blocked by Peters, opening the door for Hornaday.

"That's one the things you've got to remember about this place," Busch said. "You can dive-bomb the bottom really fast and pull a slide job on somebody, and he did it so well that I was still stuck behind the 17, so I couldn't even turn back underneath him and do it back to (Hornaday) in the next corner."

Said Hornaday: "Timothy was kind of backing up the corners, so once I got under Kyle, I kind of pinned him back there. We never touched or anything, but that's what you've got to do here at ORP."

Busch finished second after practicing his NASCAR Sprint Cup Series car at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Matt Crafton was third, with Johnny Sauter fourth and James Buescher fifth.

Austin Dillon was sixth, with Todd Bodine seventh, Brad Sweet eighth, David Starr ninth and Peters 10th.

Bodine's series points lead grew to 177 over Aric Almirola, who finished 31st after being involved in a Lap 96 accident with Narain Karthikeyan and Mario Gosselin.

Edwards Wins the battle of the Cup Stars at O'Reilly

http://danspitstopracing.com/nascar_nationwide_series

Race Photo By Dan Peters

After an intense side by side battle with Kyle Busch for the lead, Carl Edwards pulled away and cruised to victory in the final 15 laps at O'Reilly Raceway Park on Saturday night.

Pole Sitter Trevor Bayne won the pole and lead early

Race Photos By Dan Peters

___________________________________________________

NASCAR Nationwide Series News And Notes - O'Reilly Raceway Park at Indianapolis

Feeling The Heat: Busch On Pace To Set New Records

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (July 21, 2009) - Kyle Busch (No. 18 NOS Toyota) is hotter than the weather. The NASCAR Nationwide Series standings leader and defending Kroger 200 race winner at O’Reilly Raceway Park has finished either first or second in his last seven races this season. Busch is on pace to catch Jack Ingram’s series record of nine consecutive finishes of either first or second.

Busch widened his lead to 212 points over second-place Carl Edwards (No. 60 Vitamin Water Ford) with his win at Gateway International Raceway last Saturday. The victory marked his 27th career NASCAR Nationwide Series win, placing him in a tie for fourth with Jeff Burton on the all-time series wins list.

Busch’s six wins after 19 races are well on pace to surpass the single-season record of 10 set by Sam Ard in 1983 and tied by Busch last year. With 16 races to go, he also can challenge the series marks for top fives (25 in 32 races by Jeff Green in 2000) and top 10s (32 in 35 races by Kevin Harvick in 2006); Busch has 13 top fives and 16 top 10s in the 19 races thus far.

He’s run four times at ORP in his NASCAR Nationwide Series career, winning two events. It’s been boom or bust for him at the .686-mile oval, though. He was 33rd in his first race in 2003, won in 2004, was 21st in 2006 and won last year.

“I think we’ve got a good shot at it,” said Busch. “Jason (Ratcliff, crew chief) and all the JGR Nationwide guys have been working really hard on our short track program this season and it really showed at Richmond, New Hampshire and Gateway so far this year.

“But, this is the time of the year where you really focus on the championship now that we are past halfway, said Busch. “Just because you have the points lead doesn’t mean you can relax, that’s when bad things can happen and we know that.”

Jason Leffler Opened The Winning Door For Toyota At ORP

Kyle Busch’s career year is overshadowing some magic seasons for other series drivers; case in point is Jason Leffler (No. 38 Great Clips Toyota). A California native who had great success at O’Reilly Raceway Park in USAC open-wheel competition, Leffler is having the best season of his NASCAR career.

He is fourth in the standings and has accumulated five top fives and 14 top 10s. His career highs are eight and 17 in 27 races in 2004. Leffler won the first NASCAR Nationwide Series race for Toyota in 2007 at ORP. He has three top fives in six races there, plus a pole. He made his series debut at the track in 1999 for Busch’s current team, Joe Gibbs Racing.

“ORP is an exciting track for me,” said Leffler. “I love the place. It really is my home track and the track that I have raced at the most in my career. So I am going back there to a lot of family and friends and a lot of supporters in the stands.

“As well as we ran a couple years ago it would be cool to get another win there. I am going to run a USAC midget there on Thursday night, so maybe I could start it off with a win in that race and carry it in from there. “

Since Toyota has come into the series in 2007 the manufacturers’ teams have posted 31 wins, 108 top fives, 211 top 10s and 24 poles.

ML Motorsports Steps Out On Home Turf

Indiana is historically known for its racing heritage and ML Motorsports continues to build on that heritage in NASCAR this weekend at ORP.

From the owners – the only mother-daughter tandem in NASCAR’s three national series – to the driver, to the entire crew, ML Motorsports will definitely enjoy a homecoming at ORP.

The No. 70 team, led by young driver Shelby Howard (No. 70 ForeTravel Chevrolet) (Greenwood) is based in Warsaw, Ind., and is owned by Mary Louise and Stephany Mullen. Howard replaced Mark Green as the team’s home-grown driver earlier this year for the remainder of its partial 2009 schedule with an eye toward a full-time effort in 2010.

Howard has four top-15 finishes among his nine races this year and will have to qualify on time at ORP in order to race in front of the home crowd. He has yet to post a DNQ this year for MLM.

Howard has one start at ORP in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series where he started sixth and finished fifth.

Drivers Tony Raines (Laporte) and Chad Blount (Walkerton) are among many other Hoosiers who will be racing in familiar territory this weekend. Morris Van Vleet (Lake Village) is the crew chief for Morgan Shepherd, who is running in his second consecutive full-time season in the series.

Busch, Keller Can Catch Shepherd’s Record Three Wins At ORP

This weekend, the NASCAR Nationwide Series’ seasoned veteran, 67-year-old Morgan Shepherd (No. 89 Lagina Plumbing / Eldora Speedway Chevrolet), will return to O’Reilly Raceway Park where he holds track record for most wins (three). This year marks Shepherd’s 42nd consecutive season of driving in a NASCAR national series event.

Shepherd is the only active driver to have won an inaugural event at a track that has been on the NASCAR Nationwide Series schedule for 20 years or more.

He registered his O’Reilly Raceway Park victories in 1982 (inaugural event), ‘84 and ‘88. He’s got three top fives and seven top 10s and led two laps at ORP last season.

If Shepherd qualifies for the race, it will be his 14th start there.

He’s 26th in the series points standings and has posted three top-20 finishes this season.

Kyle Busch and Jason Keller (27 Kroger / Riley Hospital for Children Ford) each have two wins at ORP and are looking to catch Shepherd this weekend.

ORP is one of Keller’s favorite tracks. He has 15 starts there with two wins, seven top fives, nine top 10s and a pole. He made his 400th series start at the track in 2006, only the second series driver to make 400 starts, and he comes off a solid ninth-place finish at Gateway.

In The Loop

Bliss, ‘Special Guest’ Hornaday Boast Solid ORP Histories

With another top-10 finish this past weekend, Mike Bliss climbed to sixth in the NASCAR Nationwide Series points standings, matching his highest position this season.

The success keeps mounting for Bliss in 2009, so much so that an argument can be made that this is a career year for the veteran.

He has a win (his first since 2004), four top fives and 10 tops 10s. With 16 races remaining, Bliss has ample opportunity to match his career highs in top fives (eight in 2003) and top 10s (15 last season).

This season, Bliss has racked up some impressive statistics. He has a Driver Rating of 89.7, an Average Running Position of 13.5, 115 Fastest Laps Run and a Laps in the Top 15 percentage of 70.3.

Those numbers, as well as his top-five and top-10 figures, should increase this weekend. Bliss is strong at ORP, finishing in the top 10 in his last four races there (including a third-place run last season).

In his last two trips to ORP, Bliss posted some of the top statistics in the series. At the Indianapolis short track, Bliss has a Driver Rating of 107.5, an Average Running Position of 8.5, 12 Fastest Laps Run and a Laps in the Top 15 percentage of 88.3.

Also watch for a strong run from Ron Hornaday Jr., the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series points leader who will hop into the No. 33 Chevrolet in the NSACAR Nationwide Series this weekend. This will be Hornaday’s second series start of 2009 – his first was a ninth-place finish in Milwaukee.

Expect another top 10 this weekend. Hornaday finished fifth in 2007 (his last series trip to ORP), posting strong statistics: a Driver Rating of 107.2, an Average Running Position of 8.6, 16 Fastest Laps Run and a Laps in the Top 15 percentage of 85.

Overall in the series at ORP, Hornaday has a Driver Rating of 91.8 and an Average Running Position of 11.5.

NNS Etc: O’Reilly Raceway Park Edition

”Crazy Eight” Double-Duty Drivers In Indy:

Eight drivers will pull double duty – four from NASCAR Sprint Cup Series; four from the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series – this weekend in Indianapolis.

Kyle Busch, Carl Edwards, David Reutimann (No. 32 Dollar General Toyota) and Matt Kenseth (No. 16 Citifinancial Ford) come from the NASCAR Sprint Cup drivers.

Those drivers will have substitutes on hand at ORP – Johnny Sauter will stand by for Busch; Colin Braun for Edwards; Brian Ickler for Reutimann and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. is subbing for Kenseth.

Kenseth will be making his first trip to ORP in 10 years. He has three starts at the track (1997, ‘98, ‘99) and finished sixth, sixth, and fourth, respectively in those races.

Ron Hornaday Jr. (No. 33 Vlasic Chevrolet), Aric Almirola (No. 40 Westerman Chevrolet), Terry Cook (No. 91 MSRP Motorsports Chevrolet) and Dennis Setzer (No. 96 ConelyAuto.com Dodge) make up the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series drivers.
Annett, Ickler Throwing 1st Pitches In Iowa:

Michael Annett (No. 15 Pilot Travel Centers Toyota) and Brian Ickler will participate in a media advance for the inaugural race at Iowa Speedway by attending the Iowa Cubs baseball game on Wednesday, July 22. They’ll both throw out first pitches, sign autographs and meet with members of the media. Annett is a local favorite from Des Moines.
Keller Runs Special Scheme At ORP:

This weekend, the hood of Jason Keller’s No. 27 Ford will be adorned with multi-colored handprints and the names of 34 patients and their families from Riley Hospital for Children.

“I’m really proud to have the kids from Riley featured on our car and I’m looking forward to spending some time with them during the ‘Brickyard Party’ at the hospital,” said Keller. “I’m thrilled to have the chance be a part of this outstanding program.”

Manufacturers’ Standings

2009 Manufacturers' Championship Standings

Toyota          134
Chevrolet       116
Ford              108
Dodge            60
Following Race 19 of 35, Gateway International Raceway

Raybestos Rookie Of The Year Standings

Driver                          Points
1. Justin Allgaier            187
2. Brendan Gaughan       176
3. Michael McDowell       159
4. Scott Lagasse Jr.        146
5. Michael Annett            138
6. Jon Wes Townley        101
7. Erik Darnell                90
8. Ken Butler III               57

Up Next: Iowa Speedway; $75,000 “Dash 4 Cash” Bonus Adds Incentive

The NASCAR Nationwide Series heads to Iowa Speedway on Saturday, Aug. 1, for the inaugural NASCAR national series event at the track.

It also marks the third stop for the Nationwide Insurance “Dash 4 Cash” challenge. A $75,000 bonus is on the line at this race.

Here’s how the program works. It’s open to all NASCAR Nationwide Series-only regulars, up-and-comers and those series regulars who run limited schedules. Double-duty drivers must be full-time in both the NASCAR Nationwide and NASCAR Sprint Cup Series to be eligible for the bonus. Should a “Dash 4 Cash” race winner not be eligible, the $25,000 payout rolls over to the next Dash 4 Cash race.

Joey Logano won the first two “Dash” races at Nashville Superspeedway and Kentucky Speedway. He’s not an eligible driver so the bonus has rolled over to it’s current $75,000 standing at Iowa.

Logano isn’t entered at Iowa, but two-time series champion Kevin Harvick is. He’s not eligible for the bonus, but will certainly be a favorite to win the race.

At the end of the four-race “Dash 4 Cash” schedule (the Oct. 24 race at Memphis Motorsports Park closes out the program), the eligible driver with the most cumulative points from the four events will be awarded an additional $50,000 at the season-ending awards banquet.

The Nationwide Insurance initiative was designed to build more awareness around the stand-alone events and put a premium on series-only competition.

FAST FACTS

The Race: Kroger 200 benefitting Riley Hospital for Children
The Place: O’Reilly Raceway Park
The Date: Saturday, July 25
The Time: 8 p.m. ET
The Distance: 200 laps / 137.2 miles
TV: ESPN, 7:30 p.m. ET
Radio: Sirius NASCAR Radio / MRN
2008 Race Winner: Kyle Busch
2008 Polesitter: Colin Braun

Event Schedule (all times ET): Saturday – Practice 9:30-10:45 a.m.; Final Practice 11:15 a.m.-12:30 p.m.; Qualifying 5:05 p.m.

Track Contact:
Scott R. Smith, (317) 387-3743, ssmith@nhra.com

NASCAR PR Contact:
Tracey Judd, (386) 947-6733, tjudd@nascar.com

2009 STANDINGS

Driver                        Points
1 Kyle Busch               3,121
2 Carl Edwards            2,909
3 Brad Keselowski       2,744
4 Jason Leffler             2,648
5 Joey Logano             2,395
6 Mike Bliss                2,289
7 Justin Allgaier           2,270
8 Brendan Gaughan     2,156
9 Steve Wallace          2,151
10 Jason Keller           2,150

THE HISTORY OF ORP
In 1958, led by Tom Binford, Frank Dickie, Roger Ward and Howard Fieger, 15 Indianapolis area businessmen and racing professionals invested $5,000.00 each to fund the development of what would become O’Reilly Raceway Park at Indianapolis . The group purchased a 267-acre farm about seven miles from the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and developed a multipurpose auto racing facility.
The original intention in creating O’Reilly Raceway Park at Indianapolis was to design a 15-turn, 2.5 mile road course. Nearly as an afterthought, and as an insurance measure against economic problems, the investment group decided to incorporate a quarter-mile drag strip into the long straightaway of the 2.5-mile long road course design.
Constructed with assistance from the NHRA, the drag strip was the first of the three courses to be completed, with the facility’s first event held on the strip in the fall of 1960. During the 1960 U. S. Nationals in Detroit , a handshake agreement between Binford and NHRA founder Wally Parks promised that the event would move to ORP in 1961. The historic three-year pact was signed and sealed under a tree in Detroit Dragway’s pits and ORP eventually became the home of the NHRA’s biggest annual event.
The NHRA purchased the entire facility in 1979. The first major improvement came in 1983 with the construction and dedication of Parks Tower , the four-story drag strip tower. In 1998, new grandstands, suites and a tower complex on the front straightway were completed at the oval track at a cost of nearly $2.5 million, which included the repaving of the entire oval surface as part of a three-phase facility improvement project.
In 2001, NHRA and ORP constructed a new drag strip racing surface, replacing the strip with a 660-foot concrete pad and laying new asphalt on the remainder of the track and shutdown area. Prior to the 2003 Mac Tools U. S. Nationals, eight new luxury suites were added along the top of the west-side grandstands of the drag strip, giving fans a unique perspective of the action on the famed quarter-mile track. In 2005, new soft barrier walls were added to the oval.
In 2006 the track announced its first track entitlement with O’Reilly Auto Parts. The track – which had been long known as Indianapolis Raceway Park – is now known as O’Reilly Raceway Park at Indianapolis .

Busch Holds of Hard Charging "Cousin" Carl and wins Kroger 200

For the second NASCAR Nationwide Series race in a row, Carl Edwards went side-by-side for the lead on the final lap. But Saturday night at O'Reilly Raceway Park, Kyle Busch held Edwards off to win the Kroger 200 at the 0.686-mile track.

Busch Passes Pole Sitter Trevor Bayne and Checked Out..until the closing laps

Last week at Gateway International Raceway, Edwards dumped Brad Keselowski coming to the checkered flag, triggering a multicar accident and forcing NASCAR to penalize both drivers.

This time, Edwards raced Busch cleanly, and Busch grabbed his 38th career Nationwide Series victory, second only to Mark Martin on the all-time win list. Martin has 48 wins in the series.

Edwards and some others on the lead lap pitted for fresh tires on Lap 162, with Edwards restarting 11th with 28 laps to go. Edwards sliced through the top 10 to get to second, and a caution came out with six laps to go.

On the green-white-checkered restart, Busch got the jump on Edwards into Turn 1, though Edwards tried to get to the inside lane on the white flag lap and on the final lap. But Busch was up to the task. He led four times for 144 laps.

Ron Hornaday, who won Friday night's Camping World Truck Series race here, ran in the top five for most of the race until he and the lapped car of J.C. Stout got together in Turn 2 on Lap 161.

"Lapper just turned left," Hornaday said after he drove his damaged car behind the wall.

Aric Almirola finished third, with polesitter Trevor Bayne fourth and Reed Sorenson fifth.

Ladies Day/Night at ORP

Jennifer Jo Cobb looks to get back on track..at Indy

MOORESVILLE, N.C. (July 20, 2010) - O'Reilly Raceway Park is unchartered territory for Jennifer Jo Cobb. The Kansas City, Kan., native will make her first visit to the .686-mile track for this week's AAA Insurance 200. While Cobb may not be familiar with the speedway, she plans to use her two short track starts this season as guidance for the race ahead.

Cobb piloted her No. 10 Driven Ford F-150 to a 26th-place finish at Martinsville Speedway and a 25th-place finish at Iowa Speedway. Each outing was a learning experience for Cobb that she plans to apply in this week's event.

Cobb's second-best qualifying effort of the season came at a short track. She qualified her Ford F-150 in 26th-place at Iowa Speedway.

Cobb won the Position Improvement Award for her effort in last week's race at Gateway International Raceway. Cob started 33rd and finished in 20th-place.

The No. 10 team elected to stay in the Midwest between Gateway and ORP. They worked on the truck at the Ozark Ford dealership. Cobb and her crew appreciate the hospitality from their new friends.

Cobb Comments on AAA Insurance 200:

"We have changed our practice and qualifying strategy to be sure the truck races well. Instead of making one or two laps faster and faster, we have begun working on longer runs to be sure we can keep our finishes inside the top 20. Whether it is a short track or a superspeedway, we seem to excel toward the end of the race and that is how we need to keep things. We have begun working to improve on the start of each event so we can improve our overall position. As a driver, I am overly cautious at the beginning of the races but it has worked well for us so although I would like to drop the hammer from Lap 1 to the end, being there at the end is more important and actually way more fun.
"We had a couple of mechanical issues at Iowa that we have improved on. Our brakes weren't up to the task. We needed equipment that could handle that heat and abuse that comes with short track racing. We didn't expect Iowa to be that tough on our truck, but it definitely was. We've learned our lesson and we're much more prepared for ORP.
"I'm really excited about racing at ORP. There's so much history and tradition associated with the track. It will be really cool to race there. The Camping World Truck Series event at the track is one of the most exciting events on our circuit. It's going to be fun, that's for sure."

About Jennifer Jo Cobb:

Jennifer Jo Cobb is a NASCAR Nationwide Series, NASCAR Camping World Truck Series and ARCA Racing Series driver as well as a national spokesperson, public speaker and television personality.

Jennifer is working to secure sponsorship for 2010. Between race events, Jennifer does appearances for her sponsors, is a public speaker, runs her businesses and works for the Richard Petty Driving Experience.

NASCAR Camping World Truck Series News And Notes - O'Reilly Raceway Park at Indianapolis

Short-Track Swing Begins In Earnest At O’Reilly Raceway Park

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (July 20, 2009) – Summer means time for a short-track swing, for NASCAR Camping World Truck Series teams.

Three of the next five races, beginning with Friday night’s AAA Insurance 200 presented by J.D. Byrider at Indianapolis Raceway Park, will be on tracks measuring less than a mile in length.

Veterans like Ron Hornaday Jr. (No. 33 VFW Chevrolet) and Mike Skinner (No. 5 Exide Toyota) can’t wait to get the short-track action started. They should; together, they have a combined 35 short-track victories.

Both are double winners at ORP, Skinner leading all 350 of the track’s first two races flag-to-flag in 1995-96. The pair also have victories at Bristol Motor Speedway — which continues the short-track portion of the schedule next month — and no doubt are optimistic about becoming the inaugural winner at .875-mile Iowa Speedway on Sept. 5.

The axiom in the series is “do well on the short tracks and succeed in the points standings.” Only one NASCAR Camping World Truck Series champion has failed to win a short -rack race. Todd Bodine (No. 30 Ventrillo Toyota) is the exception, having scored all 17 of his victories on speedways.

Bodine, fourth in the current standings and trailing Hornaday by 214 points, will have to solve his short- track riddle if he is to contend for a second championship as the 2009 season nears its midpoint. Bodine hasn’t exactly been lost on short tracks — he’s finished second four times — but .686-mile O’Reilly Raceway Park has been problematic for the 2006 champion. He’s yet to record a top-five finish at ORP. Bodine’s best finish, sixth, came in 2007.

“We haven’t been perfect with our short-track program and basically you have to be perfect to be in position at the end of the race,” said Bodine.

“We’ve worked really hard on our short-track program and we’ll be trying a totally different set up this week in the Ventrilo Tundra at O’Reilly Raceway Park.”

Crew chief Mike Hillman Jr. agrees being in position to win is important, but isn’t everything.

“A lot of a short-track win is luck,” said Hillman.

Sauter Chasing The Big One That Got Away

Johnny Sauter (No. 13 Fun Sand/Rodney Atkins/Cub Records Chevrolet) very well could be coming back to O’Reilly Raceway Park as a former NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race winner. He did everything but win the AAA Insurance 200 in 2004, leading 150 laps before caution erased a 10-second lead.

Chad Chaffin ultimately won the race after Sauter, on old tires, and Travis Kvapil tangled on a restart.

Still, Sauter finished second — and showed he had the stuff to compete with the series’ best.

“I built that truck in my garage, with a couple of buddies,” said Sauter. “We built it on a whim. There was no pressure. We just built (the truck) for fun.”

Sauter nonetheless was disappointed in the outcome.

“We went there with a truck built for fun but it was a bummer to dominate the race like that and then not win it,” he said.

So this week’s race represents an opportunity for redemption. Sauter has run well in 2009 as a Raybestos Rookie of the Year candidate and has a very real chance at becoming the season’s first rookie winner.

“When you have a car or truck that is handling well, ORP is a blast. It’s a great place to race because it’s a short-track atmosphere but it has big-track characteristics,” said Sauter.

“You’re not stuck on the bottom like many short tracks. You can run the middle or top, too. You have options at ORP.”

Hornaday Looks for Record-Setting Fourth Consecutive Victory At ORP

NASCAR Camping World Truck championship leader Ron Hornaday Jr. is on a roll.

How big that roll may be will be determined on Friday night at O’Reilly Raceway Park.

Hornaday won his third consecutive race on July 18 at Kentucky Speedway and became the track’s first repeat winner.

The Palmdale, Calif., driver scored the “triple” for the second time in his career — 12 years after winning races at the Milwaukee Mile, Louisville Motor Speedway and Colorado National Speedway between July 5-19, 1997.

Hornaday, who finished third at Heartland Park Topeka (Kan.) in his unsuccessful bid for a fourth win, is one of just five drivers to share the consecutive victory mark.

The 50-year-old Palmdale, Calif., veteran and fellow series champion Mike Skinner are the only drivers to accomplish the feat twice.

Hornaday, who won for the 43rd time, stands a good chance of making off with the record at ORP where he’s one of three double winners. He also leads the series in victories on short tracks.

And with midseason approaching, Hornaday is working on one of the largest points leads at this stage of the schedule. He left Kentucky Speedway with a 95-point advantage over Matt Crafton (No. 88 Menards Chevrolet).

“This is really unbelievable. I’m not sure what we’re doing but we need to keep doing it,” he said. “I’m ready to head to O’Reilly Raceway Park.”

Director’s Take: Wayne’s Words

“There are several givens at O’Reilly Raceway Park at Indianapolis.
“One is that the pole winner virtually always chooses the outside front row starting spot because momentum is everything at ORP.
“Fans will see a short-track rarity: the field fanned out two and three wide in an attempt to go where their competition isn’t.
“And with this year’s new pit procedure, the likelihood of a mistake is multiplied by two — the number of times a driver must come down pit road for fuel and tires. Getting onto pit road at ORP is art, science and challenge.
“We’ve heard it said time after time that the cream rises to the top. You can’t say that enough about this week’s race where there’s no such thing as a ‘fluke winner.’
“All of ORP’s multiple winners, Ron Hornaday Jr., Mike Skinner and Jack Sprague, are series champions. Chad Chaffin, who scored a wild, come-from-behind victory in 2004, is the only former winner with fewer than five career wins.
“Speaking of Hornaday, he bucked tradition in 2007. The eighth-place starter, he was the first winner to start worse than fifth.” - Wayne Auton, NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Director

Brian Scott Becomes Series’ New ‘Tough Guy’

Brian Scott (No. 16 Albertsons Toyota) isn’t one to let adversity hand him lemons.

In fact, Scott, who won his first series race earlier this season at Dover International Speedway, has done more than make lemonade.

He’s driven the past three races while a broken wrist heals and hardly has missed a beat.

The Idahoan picked up a top five at Milwaukee and Memphis and finished sixth at Kentucky Speedway despite cutting down a tire early in the race and bouncing off the outside barrier.

Scott stands fifth in series points standings and figures to be a championship contender all the way to the series finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway in November.

“Really, this finish is just a testament to the determination of this Xpress Motorsports team,” said Scott following his most recent outing. “These guys hung in there and worked their tails off every pit stop to try and get our truck competitive and get me a decent finish. I can’t say enough about their efforts.”

Scott refuses to use his wrist as an excuse. In fact, the 21-year-old competitor sees the injury as motivation.

“My wrist definitely didn’t bother me as much as it had in the last two races. I don’t know if it has had time to recover or if it’s the difference between a short track and a big track,” he said. “It’s getting better, but it’s still a little bit of a handicap, really more of a nuisance, a bother. Maybe I’ll get used to it and I won’t even notice it’s there anymore.”

Loop Data: Not All The Smart Money’s On Hornaday At ORP

Though the statistics suggest – strongly – that Ron Hornaday Jr. will make series history this weekend, another veteran could steal the glory.

Rick Crawford is also strong at ORP, and has as good a shot as any at stopping Hornaday from becoming the first NASCAR Camping World Truck Series driver to win four consecutive races.

Crawford’s last victory was at the Indianapolis track, 72 races ago (Aug. 4, 2006). He has three top 10s in the last four races there and has racked up top-five statistics across the board. At ORP over the last four races, Crawford has a Driver Rating of 112.6 (second-best), an Average Running Position of 6.0 (second), 57 Fastest Laps Run (fourth) and 756 Laps in the Top 15 (94.4%), which is second-best.

But most of the attention will surely shift to Hornaday who is trying to win an unprecedented four straight. It’s the second time he’ll attempt the feat. In 1997, Hornaday won three races in a row, but finished third at Heartland Park Topeka in his bid for four straight (he would go on to win the next two, for five victories in six races).

Winning at ORP seems statistically likely. His numbers there since the inception of Loop Data in 2005 are tops in the series. With an average finish of 2.3 in the last four ORP races, Hornaday has a series-best Driver Rating of 130.5, an Average Running Position of 3.2, a series-high 103 Fastest Laps Run and has run all but three of the 801 laps among the top 15 (his Laps in the Top 15 percentage of 99.6% is also a series-best mark).

Several Do Double Duty At ORP

Both of Billy Ballew Motorsports’ drivers, Kyle Busch (No. 51 Miccosukee Resort/Red Top Auto Auction Toyota) and Aric Almirola (No. 15 Red Top Auto Auction Toyota) will do double duty at O’Reilly Raceway Park.

Busch, of course, leads NASCAR Nationwide Series points standings. Almirola’s ORP best finishes include a 10th in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series and a sixth in the Nationwide Series.

He’s coming off a fifth-place effort at Kentucky.

“I wish we could race at ORP more than once,” said Almirola. “It’s a racer’s track.”

Hornaday and fellow ORP truck winners Terry Cook and Dennis Setzer also will be in both races.

NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Rookie of the Year AwardStandings:

Rk  Driver                   Points
1.   Tayler Malsam       129
2.   Johnny Sauter        126
3.   James Buescher    115
4.   Ricky Carmichael    85
5.   Brian Ickler             67
6.   J.R. Fitzpatrick       60
7.   Brent Raymer        45
8.   Chris Jones            38
9.   Chase Austin          16
10. Ryan Hackett          5

Etc.

Caitlin Shaw, a 19-year-old Albuquerque, N.M., competitor, will make her NASCAR Camping World Truck debut at O’Reilly Raceway Park in the No. 1 Red Horse Racing Toyota. Shaw has competed in USAC’s National Midget Series and the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series at Hickory (N.C.) Motor Speedway.
Ricky Carmichael (No. 4 Monster Energy Drink Chevrolet) had his most successful weekend at Kentucky Speedway. The motocross champion qualified third and finished seventh — both series bests. Carmichael also was the leading Raybestos Rookie of the Year finisher.
Ron Hornaday Jr.’s hot streak continues Chevrolet’s surge in series Manufacturers’ Championship Standings. Toyota, however, continues to lead Chevrolet by five points, 90 to 85.

NASCAR Camping World Truck Series 2009 Manufacturers' Championship Standings following Race 12 of 25 at Kentucky Speedway:
Toyota   90
Chevrolet 85
Ford       52
Dodge    37

Up Next: Nashville Superspeedway

The NASCAR Nationwide Series has run its two races of 2009 at Nashville Superspeedway. Now it’s time for the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series’ annual Toyota Tundra 200 to test the 1.333-mile track’s concrete surface.

The series has been a fixture in the Music City since 1996 when drivers raced at the .625-mile short track on the Tennessee State Fairgrounds. Racing moved to Nashville Superspeedway in 2001.

There’s no predicting who will win the Aug. 1 race but one thing is certain: the winner will receive his first trademark Sam Bass-styled guitar since none of the seven previous winners are expected to compete.

Four NASCAR Camping World Truck champions have been to Victory Lane at Nashville including three in their title years.

Mike Bliss won in 2002, the late Bobby Hamilton in 2004 and Johnny Benson in 2008. Travis Kvapil also owns a Nashville Superspeedway win.

The Toyota Tundra 200 is the second of three races to be held in Tennessee this year. The Volunteer State finale will be run later in August at Bristol Motor Speedway.

NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Most Popular Driver Award

Don't forget to cast your vote on NASCAR.com!

Fast Facts

Next Race: AAA Insurance 200 presented by J.D. Byrider

The Place: O’Reilly Raceway Park at Indianapolis

The Date: Fri, July 24, 2009

The Time: 8 p.m. ET

Race Distance: 200 laps / 137.2 miles

TV: SPEED, 7:30 p.m. ET

Radio: MRN, SIRIUS XM. (Local, WNDE-AM 1260.)

Track Layout: .686-mile oval

2008 Winner: Ron Hornaday Jr.

2008 Polesitter: Bobby East

Schedule: Friday—Practice, 11 a.m.-12:15 p.m. and 12:45-2.; Qualifying, 5:05 p.m.

2009 Standings
    Driver                  Points
1   Ron Hornaday Jr. 1,903
2   Matt Crafton       1,807
3   Mike Skinner      1,749
4   Todd Bodine        1,689
5   Brian Scott         1,623
6   David Starr          1,620
7   Tayler Malsam    1,547
8   Terry Cook          1,533
9   Dennis Setzer     1,513
10 Rick Crawford      1,509

___________________________________________________________

2009 OVAL SCHEDULE

MAY
9^th Advance Racing Association (ARA) Cars and Trucks
16^th Advance Racing Association (ARA) Cars and Trucks
23^rd 64th annual TourHendricksCounty.com Night Before the 500 USAC Midget Series, for a schedule of events go, HERE.

JUNE
13^th ASA Late Models
20^th Advance Racing Association (ARA) Cars and Trucks
27^th Advance Racing Association (ARA) Cars and Trucks

JULY
4^th Advance Racing Association (ARA) Cars and Trucks (CANCELLED)
11^th Advance Racing Association (ARA) Cars and Trucks
23^rd USAC Racing
24^th Camping World Truck Series 200-lap race
25^th 28^th annual Kroger 200, NASCAR Nationwide Series Race

AUGUST
8^th UAW Night with Advance Racing Association (ARA)
14^thAdvance Racing Association (ARA) Cars and Trucks

SEPTEMBER
12^th Advance Racing Association (ARA) Cars and Trucks
19^th Advance Racing Association (ARA) Cars and Trucks

OCTOBER
17 Advance Racing Association (ARA) Cars and Trucks
All dates subject to change.

O’Reilly Raceway Park at Indianapolis
Contact Information

Phone Numbers
Voice: (317) 291-4090 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting (317) 291-4090 end_of_the_skype_highlighting begin_of_the_skype_highlighting (317) 291-4090 end_of_the_skype_highlighting begin_of_the_skype_highlighting (317) 291-4090 end_of_the_skype_highlighting
Fax: (317) 291-4220

Tickets:
(800) 884-6472 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting (800) 884-6472 end_of_the_skype_highlighting begin_of_the_skype_highlighting (800) 884-6472 end_of_the_skype_highlighting begin_of_the_skype_highlighting (800) 884-6472 end_of_the_skype_highlighting U.S. Nationals

Mailing Address
O’Reilly Raceway Park at Indianapolis
P.O. Box 34300
10267 East U.S. Hwy. 136
Indianapolis, IN 46234

If you have a question regarding what you can or can’t bring into the track, where we are located or any other question look HERE. Information on gate times, ticket prices and weekly information can be found in This Week at O'Reilly Raceway Park. If you are looking for information on Pinks on All Out go, HERE. If you don’t see an answer to you question you can contact me at ssmith@nhra.com.

DPR Sports & Racing

United States
ph: 630-776-3411
dan@danspitstopracing.com