Everett, Wash.
Published: Saturday, July 19, 2008

Benson edges Annett in NASCAR Truck race at Kentucky

Kyle Busch falls short of making history

Herald news services

 SPARTA, Ky. -- Johnny Benson held off Michael Annett to win the Built Ford Tough 225 at Kentucky Speedway on Saturday.

Matt Crafton finished third, followed by Dennis Setzer and Davis Star. Kyle Busch failed in his attempt to win three consecutive races in three national tours, but rallied twice to finish sixth. Mike Skinner finished seventh, followed by Terry Cook, Marc Mitchell and Ron Hornaday.

Busch was attempting to become the first driver to win in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Nationwide Series and Craftsman Truck Series in successive starts. He won the Nationwide Series' Dollar General 300 on July 11 and the Nextel Cup's Lifelock.com 400 the following night.

Benson won for the first time in four starts at Kentucky and with the victory retook the lead in the driver standings, but one point over Crafton. The victory also was the 20th in series history for Bill Davis Racing, making it second among active teams.

Busch was leading early when he pitted under green. While still on pit road, Jack Sprague and Chrissy Wallace got together, bringing out the caution and putting Busch in the hole. Wallace ended up wrecked on the track, bringing out the red flag.

Busch had worked his way back into the top 10 when Ted Musgrave tapped him from behind, sending him up the track and into Chad McCumbee. That ended his attempt at the record.

The early portion of the race featured a number of yellow flags, and nine of the first 24 laps were run under caution. There were eight cautions overall, slowing drivers for a total of 36 laps. There was also a 10-minute, 34-second stoppage for track repairs following a red flag.

The race did boast a historical milestone for Roush Racing, which eclipsed Spears Motorsports to become the team with the most starts in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series.

The race also marked the debut for NFL wide receiver Randy Moss as a truck owner. Willie Allen drove the No. 81 Rascal Flatts Chevrolet under the newly formed Randy Moss Motorsports team and finished 15th.

NASCAR Craftsman Truck-Built Ford Tough 225 results

Saturday at Kentucky Speedway, Sparta, Ky.
Lap length: 1.5 miles
(Start position in parentheses)

1. (4) Johnny Benson, Toyota, 150 laps, 145.3 rating, 195 points, $89,650.
2. (14) Michael Annett, Toyota, 150, 109.9, 175, $57,200.
3. (13) Matt Crafton, Chevrolet, 150, 115, 165, $39,595.
4. (11) Dennis Setzer, Dodge, 150, 94.9, 160, $27,510.
5. (17) David Starr, Toyota, 150, 97.3, 155, $23,360.
6. (2) Kyle Busch, Toyota, 150, 111.3, 155, $17,010.
7. (1) Mike Skinner, Toyota, 150, 122.2, 151, $20,160.
8. (19) Terry Cook, Toyota, 150, 77.5, 142, $17,260.
9. (6) Marc Mitchell, Toyota, 150, 64.9, 138, $17,260.
10. (8) Ron Hornaday Jr., Chevrolet, 150, 97.4, 134, $18,110.
11. (32) Jon Wood, Ford, 150, 62.2, 130, $16,360.
12. (28) Stacy Compton, Dodge, 150, 71.2, 127, $15,985.
13. (15) Ted Musgrave, Toyota, 150, 81.1, 124, $15,285.
14. (31) Rick Crawford, Ford, 150, 61.2, 121, $15,485.
15. (20) Willie Allen, Chevrolet, 150, 63.4, 118, $16,235.
16. (3) Colin Braun, Ford, 150, 74.1, 115, $16,885.
17. (16) Ryan Lawler, Chevrolet, 150, 50.4, 112, $14,785.
18. (26) Jason White, Dodge, 150, 63.8, 109, $14,685.
19. (24) Timothy Peters, Dodge, 149, 53.6, 106, $12,335.
20. (27) Donny Lia, Chevrolet, 149, 44.4, 103, $15,235.
21. (22) John Wes Townley, Ford, 149, 42.4, 100, $13,235.
22. (5) Jack Sprague, Chevrolet, 148, 75.9, 97, $13,160.
23. (18) Chad Chaffin, Chevrolet, 148, 49, 94, $12,110.
24. (34) Justin Allgaier, Ford, 148, 34.7, 91, $12,060.
25. (21) T.J. Bell Jr., Chevrolet, 147, 52.1, 88, $12,010.
26. (35) Jennifer Jo Cobb, Dodge, 144, 31.6, 85, $11,960.
27. (7) Todd Bodine, Toyota, accident, 128, 74.1, 82, $11,910.
28. (30) Brendan Gaughan, Ford, accident, 128, 64.2, 79, $11,810.
29. (25) Erik Darnell, Ford, 127, 80.4, 76, $11,710.
30. (10) Chad McCumbee, Chevrolet, accident, 118, 65.9, 73, $11,610.
31. (9) Justin Marks, Toyota, accident, 118, 93.3, 70, $11,510.
32. (23) Brian Scott, Chevrolet, engine, 63, 33.5, 67, $11,410.
33. (12) Chrissy Wallace, Toyota, accident, 50, 53.8, 64, $11,310.
34. (33) Brent Raymer, Ford, electrical, 41, 31.7, 61, $11,210.
35. (36) J.C. Stout, Chevrolet, power steering, 22, 28.6, 58, $11,110.
36. (29) Shelby Howard, Chevrolet, accident, 2, 28, 55, $11,012.

Race Statistics

Average Speed of Race Winner: 114.592 mph.
Time of Race: 1 hour, 57 minutes, 50 seconds.
Margin of Victory: 0.474 seconds.
Caution Flags: 8 for 36 laps.
Lead Changes: 7 among 4 drivers.

Lap Leaders: K.Busch 1-30; M.Skinner 31-36; K.Busch 37-49; M.Skinner 50-53; J.Benson 54-115; M.Annett 116-118; J.Benson 119-150.
Leaders Summary (Driver, Times Led, Laps Led): J.Benson, 2 times for 94 laps; K.Busch, 2 times for 43 laps; M.Skinner, 2 times for 10 laps; M.Annett, 1 time for 3 laps.

Top 10 in Points: 1. J.Benson, 1,881; 2. M.Crafton, 1,880; 3. R.Hornaday Jr., 1,876; 4. R.Crawford, 1,789; 5. M.Skinner, 1,780; 6. T.Bodine, 1,770; 7. T.Cook, 1,695; 8. E.Darnell, 1,681; 9. J.Sprague, 1,675; 10. D.Setzer, 1,654.

NASCAR Driver Rating Formula

A maximum of 150 points can be attained in a race.

The formula combines the following categories: Wins, Finishes, Top-15 Finishes, Average Running Position While on Lead Lap, Average Speed Under Green, Fastest Lap, Led Most Laps, Lead-Lap Finish.
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