Matt Crafton, No. 88 Great Lakes/Menards Toyota Tundra
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series
Bristol Motor Speedway – UNOH 200
Race No. 14 of 23
Stats:
Started: 6th
Finished: 7th
Laps: 202/202
Status: Running
Driver Points: 2nd (-6)
Owner Points: 2nd
CRAFTON COMES UP SHORT – FINISHES SEVENTH AFTER STRONG RUN AT BRISTOL
Bristol, Tenn. (August 20, 2015) – Matt Crafton, driver of the No. 88 Great Lakes/Menards Toyota Tundra, looked like he was in position to capture his fifth win of the 2015 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS) season late in Wednesday night’s UNOH 200 at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway (BMS), but the ThorSport Racing driver came up short on fuel after a strong showing. Leading the field twice for 39 laps, a late race restart, with minimal fuel in the cell of his Toyota Tundra, would hinder the two-time, and defending series champion, from visiting victory lane for the first time in his career at “Thunder Valley.”
Starting sixth, Crafton battled a Toyota Tundra that was “tight through the center of the corner and exit,” through the first 80 laps of the 200-lap UNOH 200. Crew chief Carl “Junior” Joiner brought the No. 88 machine to pit road at lap 81, under the race’s second caution of the night, for four tires and fuel. Crafton would restart fourth at lap 89, and battle with his teammate, Johnny Sauter, for a top spot over the ensuing 50 laps before taking over the lead from Cole Custer at lap 160, one lap before Mother Nature halted the event for rain.
Following a 45-minute delay in action, Crafton would lead the field to green with only 25 laps remaining in the 200-lap event. Pulling away from the field on the initial restart, Crafton had over a half-second lead on second-place when the final caution flag of the night was displayed on lap 197 for an accident in Turn 3, forcing the field into overtime. The ThorSport Racing driver would get shuffled back to seventh when a fuel pick-up issue forced the defending series champion to lose valuable track position. Crafton would settle for a seventh-place finish behind race winner, Ryan Blaney, in the 18th Annual UNOH 200 at BMS.
Quote:
“I would have been fine if they called the race when it started raining – it would have been a little less pressure. I thought we had something when it restarted, we were a little tight through the center and off, but pretty good. Unfortunately, we only had about four gallons of fuel left in the tank on that final restart, and the way the banking is at Bristol, it didn’t pick-up in the fuel cell. It is what it is, I guess. All-in-all it wasn’t a bad points day, just really frustrating.”
Notes:
- Matt Crafton started sixth and finished seventh in Wednesday night’s UNOH 200 at Bristol Motor Speedway
- In 13 starts at BMS, Crafton has three top-five and eight top-10 finishes
- Crafton led the 32-truck field twice, for 39 laps. The ThorSport Racing driver has now led a career high 460 laps this season
- In 2015, Crafton has four wins, eight top-five and 12 top-10 finishes
- The ThorSport Racing driver remains second in the 2015 NCWTS driver point standings following the 13th race of the season, a mere six points behind leader, Tyler Reddick
- Ryan Blaney won the UNOH 200 at Bristol Motor Speedway, followed by Kyle Busch (second), John H. Nemechek (third), Daniel Hemric (fourth), and Brandon Jones (fifth)
- In 352 career NCWTS starts, Crafton has nine wins, 84 top-five and 204 top-10 finishes
- Up next: The NCWTS 250 at Canadian Tire Motorsports Park on Sunday, August 30
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ABOUT MENARDS:
With 287 stores in 14 Midwestern states, Menards has the tools, materials and supplies for all your home improvement needs whether just needing a light bulb or can of paint to building a deck or new home. Menards is known throughout the home improvement industry as the low price leader; it’s no wonder their famous slogan – “SAVE BIG MONEY” – is so widely known and easy to remember. Menards does things right – the company’s strength and success can be seen in the well-stocked and maintained stores, the lowest prices in town and the way guests are always treated like family in a hometown hardware store atmosphere.
ABOUT THORSPORT RACING:
ThorSport Racing, based in a state-of-the-art 100,000-square-foot facility in Sandusky, Ohio, is the longest-tenured NASCAR Camping World Truck Series team. ThorSport, which has competed in the NCWTS since 1996, will run the No. 88 Menards Toyota Tundra driven by two-time NCWTS drivers’ champion Matt Crafton, the No. 98 Nextant Aerospace/Smokey Mountain Herbal Snuff/Curb Records Toyota Tundra driven by Johnny Sauter, and the No. 13 Cabinets by Hayley Toyota Tundra driven by Sunoco Rookie of the Year contender, Cameron Hayley in 2015.
