A special thanks to the guys over at the NASCAR Wire Service from the Sporting News. They provide excellent coverage of the racing action so I decided to post their coverage of the AAA Insurance 200 at Dover International Speedway. If you check out the print version of The Examiner each week you will find the weekly 12-gauge column that is also provided by the Sporting News folks.
By Reid Spencer
Sporting News NASCAR Wire Service
DOVER, Del. (May 30, 2008) -- Making the most of his sixth start in NASCAR's Craftsman Truck Series -- and capitalizing on transmission troubles that temporarily sidelined Kyle Busch's dominant Toyota -- former Formula 1 driver Scott Speed ran away from the field after a late restart to win the AAA Insurance 200 on Friday at Dover International Speedway.
Speed, whose previous best finish was eighth at Kansas Speedway, is the third straight first-time winner in the series, following Matt Crafton (Lowe's Motor Speedway) and Donny Lia (Mansfield, Ohio) to victory lane.
Jack Sprague held off Chevrolet teammate Ron Hornaday for second position, as Sprague crossed the finish line 3.379 seconds behind Speed. Travis Kvapil finished fourth and Crafton fifth. David Starr, Mike Skinner, Colin Braun, Rick Crawford and Johnny Benson completed the top 10.
"Today we had a good strategy and an awesome truck, and we got everything we could out of it," Speed said of his No. 22 Bill Davis Racing Toyota. "The learning curve I've had has been amazing. Every time I go out on the track, I feel I come away with a lot of knowledge.
"I'm just having an awesome time trying to learn this sport."
With a two-tire stop on Lap 133, Speed improved his track position dramatically, restarting third behind Todd Bodine and Shane Sieg on Lap 136. After picking off Sieg, Speed passed Bodine for the lead on Lap 150 and opened a lead of more than 3.5 seconds over Hornaday (who gained three positions to second).
Speed's lead disappeared, however, when Bodine's No. 30 Toyota blew a right front tire and slapped the Turn 3 wall on Lap 170.
But Speed said his truck was quicker on two tires, and after taking the green flag for a restart on Lap 179, he stretched his advantage to nearly four seconds over Sprague before backing off on the final circuit.
"It was time to get a little aggressive," Speed said of the restart.
Busch led the first 96 laps of the race, until heavy smoke from his No. 51 Toyota forced him to the garage. Busch lost 19 laps as his crew changed a transmission, a turn of events that opened a window of opportunity for the truck series regulars. He finished 17 laps down in 27th place after making up two laps during the remainder of competition.
But veterans Hornaday and Sprague had nothing for the series rookie at the end of the race.
Sprague thought he had a chance to win, but the performance of his No. 2 Chevy fell off after the restart with 22 laps to go.
"I could barely outrun (Hornaday) with a sour motor," Sprague said. "After the green (on Lap 179), I got tight again. Dammit! I want to win."
Hornaday also felt he could catch Speed until his engine lost power late in the race.
"I don't know if we broke a header, but we lost a little bit of power," Hornaday said. "I had to pull down and let Jack go."
A flashy dresser and a bit of an eccentric (he just had the tips of his toenails painted blue), Speed found a quick way to gain acceptance among the series veterans.
"He's a winner in the Craftsman Truck Series now, so he'll fit right in," Hornaday said.
One victory, however, won't be enough to satisfy Speed, who was informed in victory lane that there has never been a repeat winner in the truck series at Dover.
"I haven't been back," Speed said.
Note: Crawford took over the series points lead, with Crafton 20 points down in second.
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