SPARTA, Ky. — Ron Hornaday Jr. knows he didn’t have the fastest truck Saturday at Kentucky Speedway. What he did have was a lot of experience and a little luck.
The three-time NASCAR Camping World Truck Series points champion won his third straight race, but this one might never have happened if not for some timely spinouts that caused 10 of the last 20 laps to be run under a caution flag.
One of those late-race cautions resulted when the left-rear tire of rookie Tayler Malsam blew. Malsam, of Mill Creek, finished 13th after running near the front of the field for most of the race.
Hornaday was the beneficiary of the late yellows. He was losing ground at a rapid pace to Mike Skinner, who finished 0.135 seconds behind — the narrowest margin in the 10-year history of the Built Ford Tough 225 at the 1½-mile track in northern Kentucky.
“If it wasn’t for restarts, I hate to say, but it’s really hard to pass here if your truck’s not right,” Hornaday said. “You bottom out. If there were a couple more laps, we probably would have been second.”
Having won the race in 2006, he became the first repeat winner. And, by winning from the pole position, Hornaday snapped what had been a surprising phenomenon — no Kentucky winner had won from the front row.
Hornaday, who also won this month in Milwaukee and Memphis, captured his fourth victory of the season and extended his points lead to 96 over Matt Crafton, who finished third Saturday despite constant visits to pit row with various problems.
“Without a doubt it isn’t bad,” Crafton said, “but the guy sitting in Victory Lane is leading in points and we’re second and lost points to him.”
Eight different drivers led at some point Saturday, including Todd Bodine who led the most laps with 45, fading from second to 16th in the final 10 laps after experiencing engine problems.
But the biggest threat to Hornaday’s lead late was Skinner, who qualified 19th out of 20 drivers and was still running fifth with 10 laps left.
“Our old truck just got a little tight right there,” Skinner said. “We could get her done.”
The race was delayed for seven cautions, including three in the last 20 laps, half of which were run under the caution.
There were 12 lead changes, with Hornaday regaining it for good with 18 to go.
“We finally got the truck right,” Hornaday said.
Brian Scott, who started second, took the lead early on his second lap around the track and held on for 28 consecutive laps. However, his chances were derailed minutes later when he cut his right front tire against the wall and spun into Stacy Compton, sending the race into its first caution. Scott finished sixth.
It was just one of several challengers to Hornaday who cost themselves either through accidents or mistakes. Hornaday, who led 29 laps — tied for second with Scott, said he was pleased to be leaving with a win.
“I’m just fortunate,” he said. “Luck’s on our side.”
Saturday at Kentucky Speedway
Sparta, Ky.
Lap length: 1.5 miles
(Start position in parentheses)
1. (1) Ron Hornaday Jr., Chevrolet, 150 laps, 133.9 rating, 190 points, $74,900.
2. (19) Mike Skinner, Toyota, 150, 107.9, 170, $58,645.
3. (15) Matt Crafton, Chevrolet, 150, 92.7, 170, $37,240.
4. (9) Timothy Peters, Toyota, 150, 119.8, 160, $29,580.
5. (13) Aric Almirola, Toyota, 150, 100.9, 160, $24,430.
6. (2) Brian Scott, Toyota, 150, 100.1, 155, $19,280.
7. (3) Ricky Carmichael, Chevrolet, 150, 92.1, 146, $19,280.
8. (21) James Buescher, Ford, 150, 66.4, 142, $19,180.
9. (17) David Starr, Toyota, 150, 68.9, 138, $16,280.
10. (16) Dennis Setzer, Chevrolet, 150, 76.9, 134, $17,030.
11. (18) Chad McCumbee, Chevrolet, 150, 79.4, 135, $16,580.
12. (6) Stacy Compton, Toyota, 150, 78.5, 127, $15,405.
13. (8) Tayler Malsam, Toyota, 149, 108.2, 129, $15,305.
14. (20) Jason White, Dodge, 148, 68.8, 121, $15,205.
15. (11) Terry Cook, Toyota, 147, 91, 118, $16,455.
16. (5) Todd Bodine, Toyota, rear end, 145, 114.8, 125, $14,905.
17. (14) Rick Crawford, Ford, 144, 72.5, 112, $14,805.
18. (32) Norm Benning, Chevrolet, 142, 44.8, 109, $14,705.
19. (24) Ryan Sieg, Chevrolet, 141, 49.8, 106, $12,355.
20. (7) Colin Braun, Ford, accident, 134, 74.9, 103, $14,005.
21. (4) Brian Ickler, Toyota, accident, 133, 93.2, 105, $13,255.
22. (12) Johnny Sauter, Chevrolet, engine, 128, 81.4, 97, $12,180.
23. (10) T.J. Bell, Toyota, engine, 121, 63.5, 94, $12,130.
24. (34) Wayne Edwards, Chevrolet, sway bar, 54, 39.3, 91, $12,080.
25. (25) J.J. Yeley, Chevrolet, accident, 52, 56.4, 88, $12,030.
26. (22) Chris Jones, Chevrolet, transmission, 30, 46.2, 85, $11,980.
27. (23) Mario Gosselin, Chevrolet, suspension, 18, 48.5, 82, $11,930.
28. (35) Brandon Knupp, Chevrolet, ignition, 17, 32.8, 79, $11,830.
29. (28) Jamie Mosley, Chevrolet, clutch, 15, 35.3, 76, $11,730.
30. (31) Nick Tucker, Dodge, fuel pump, 13, 42.6, 73, $12,130.
31. (33) Sean Murphy, Chevrolet, brakes, 12, 41.9, 70, $11,530.
32. (29) Michelle Theriault, Chevrolet, ignition, 11, 37.7, 67, $11,430.
33. (26) Ryan Hackett, Ford, vibration, 7, 34.1, 64, $11,330.
34. (27) Shane Sieg, Chevrolet, overheating, 5, 37.5, 61, $11,230.
35. (30) Ben Stancill, Ford, ignition, 3, 33.8, 58, $11,130.
36. (36) Brent Raymer, Ford, rear end, 1, 32.1, 55, $11,032.
Race Statistics
Winner’s Average Speed: 121.933 mph.
Time of Race: 1 hour, 50 minutes, 43 seconds.
Margin of Victory: 0.135 seconds.
Caution Flags: 7 for 30 laps.
Lead Changes: 12 among 8 drivers.
Lap Leaders: R.Hornaday Jr. 1; B.Scott 2-29; R.Hornaday Jr. 30-35; C.McCumbee 36-41; R.Hornaday Jr. 42-45; T.Malsam 46-57; T.Bodine 58-101; B.Ickler 102; M.Crafton 103-111; B.Scott 112; T.Bodine 113; A.Almirola 114-132; R.Hornaday Jr. 133-150.
Leaders Summary (Driver, Times Led, Laps Led): T.Bodine, 2 times for 45 laps; R.Hornaday Jr., 4 times for 29 laps; B.Scott, 2 times for 29 laps; A.Almirola, 1 time for 19 laps; T.Malsam, 1 time for 12 laps; M.Crafton, 1 time for 9 laps; C.McCumbee, 1 time for 6 laps; B.Ickler, 1 time for 1 lap.
Top 10 in Points: 1. R.Hornaday Jr., 1,903. 2. M.Crafton, 1,807. 3. M.Skinner, 1,749. 4. T.Bodine, 1,689. 5. B.Scott, 1,623. 6. D.Starr, 1,620. 7. T.Malsam, 1,547. 8. T.Cook, 1,533. 9. D.Setzer, 1,513. 10. R.Crawford, 1,509.
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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