LAS VEGAS — Johnny Sauter raced to his first career NASCAR Trucks Series victory, taking the lead from Matt Crafton with 16 laps left and holding on to win the Las Vegas 350 on Saturday night.
Tayler Malsam of Mill Creek fought his way back from an early spin to finish 10th.
Crafton, who took over the lead following a caution period with 26 laps remaining, held on to finish second in the 146-lap race on the 1.5-mile oval.
“My truck just didn’t have the speed that Johnny Sauter’s did,” said Crafton, second in the standings — 197 points behind leader Ron Hornaday Jr. “Wow, that truck was fast.”
Jason White was third, followed by pole-sitter Todd Bodine, Timothy Peters and points leader Hornaday. The 51-year-old Hornaday, who has six victories this year, led 33 laps before Sauter passed him on the 89th lap.
Mike Skinner was seventh, followed by Aric Almirola, Brian Ickler and Malsam.
Saturday at Las Vegas Motor Speedway
Las Vegas, Nev. Lap length: 1.5 miles
(Start position in parentheses)
1. (2) Johnny Sauter, Chevrolet, 146 laps, 143.3 rating, 195 points, $45,600.
2. (9) Matt Crafton, Chevrolet, 146, 116.1, 175, $24,895.
3. (3) Jason White, Dodge, 146, 111.3, 165, $23,965.
4. (1) Todd Bodine, Toyota, 146, 116.8, 165, $19,205.
5. (24) Timothy Peters, Toyota, 146, 96.3, 160, $17,405.
6. (4) Ron Hornaday Jr., Chevrolet, 146, 124, 155, $13,755.
7. (16) Mike Skinner, Toyota, 146, 100.1, 146, $12,555.
8. (20) Aric Almirola, Toyota, 146, 84.6, 142, $12,030.
9. (17) Brian Ickler, Toyota, 146, 87.6, 138, $11,980.
10. (22) Tayler Malsam, Toyota, 146, 81, 134, $13,280.
11. (6) Rick Crawford, Ford, 145, 86.3, 135, $11,880.
12. (13) T.J. Bell, Toyota, 145, 72.8, 127, $11,755.
13. (15) James Buescher, Ford, 145, 67.6, 124, $11,705.
14. (11) Ryan Sieg, Chevrolet, 144, 64.5, 121, $9,405.
15. (18) David Starr, Toyota, 144, 77.9, 118, $12,880.
16. (7) Chad McCumbee, Chevrolet, 144, 84.2, 115, $11,430.
17. (5) Colin Braun, Ford, 144, 84.4, 117, $11,330.
18. (12) Max Papis, Toyota, 144, 58.3, 109, $8,955.
19. (21) Brian Scott, Toyota, 144, 67.8, 106, $11,105.
20. (14) Stacy Compton, Toyota, 143, 63.1, 103, $11,755.
21. (10) Mikey Kile, Chevrolet, 141, 57.3, 100, $8,655.
22. (8) Ricky Carmichael, Chevrolet, 140, 73.3, 97, $9,555.
23. (26) Lance Hooper, Chevrolet, 140, 44.9, 94, $8,455.
24. (34) Norm Benning, Chevrolet, 136, 34.9, 91, $9,355.
25. (33) Mike Harmon, Chevrolet, vibration, 90, 41.8, 0, $8,330.
26. (19) Terry Cook, Toyota, 79, 44.9, 85, $8,305.
27. (30) Wayne Edwards, Chevrolet, clutch, 57, 39.3, 82, $8,255.
28. (31) Brandon Knupp, Chevrolet, engine, 28, 37.2, 79, $8,230.
29. (25) Nick Tucker, Dodge, transmission, 26, 49.8, 81, $8,205.
30. (28) Dillon Oliver, Dodge, ignition, 18, 41.7, 0, $8,180.
31. (32) Danny Efland, Chevrolet, brakes, 17, 38, 0, $8,655.
32. (27) Butch Miller, Chevrolet, overheating, 16, 34.7, 67, $8,130.
33. (29) Chris Fontaine, Chevrolet, vibration, 10, 35.3, 64, $8,105.
34. (23) Shane Sieg, Chevrolet, rear end, 2, 33.7, 61, $8,085.
35. (35) Trevor Boys, Chevrolet, vibration, 1, 31.7, 0, $8,055.
Race Statistics
Average Speed of Race Winner: 127.593 mph.
Time of Race: 1 hour, 42 minutes, 59 seconds.
Margin of Victory: 2.474 seconds.
Caution Flags: 5 for 22 laps.
Lead Changes: 15 among 9 drivers.
Lap Leaders: R.Hornaday Jr. 1; J.Sauter 2-23; N.Tucker 24-25; R.Crawford 26-46; C.Braun 47-51; M.Harmon 52; R.Hornaday Jr. 53-64; T.Bodine 65-67; R.Hornaday Jr. 68-88; J.Sauter 89-110; T.Bodine 111-116; T.Peters 117-118; J.Sauter 119; M.Crafton 120-129; J.Sauter 130-146.
Leaders Summary (Driver, Times Led, Laps Led): J.Sauter, 4 times for 62 laps; R.Hornaday Jr., 3 times for 34 laps; R.Crawford, 1 time for 21 laps; M.Crafton, 1 time for 10 laps; T.Bodine, 2 times for 9 laps; C.Braun, 1 time for 5 laps; T.Peters, 1 time for 2 laps; N.Tucker, 1 time for 2 laps; M.Harmon, 1 time for 1 lap.
Top 10 in Points
1. R.Hornaday Jr., 3,210; 2. M.Crafton, 3,013; 3. M.Skinner, 2,955; 4. B.Scott, 2,714; 5. J.Sauter, 2,647; 6. T.Bodine, 2,645; 7. C.Braun, 2,632; 8. R.Crawford, 2,576; 9. T.Peters, 2,573; 10. D.Starr, 2,552.
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.
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
