Race Rundown
Harvick wins at Pocono: A green-white-checkered finish saw pole-sitter #2-Kevin Harvick, driving the Ollie's Bargain Outlet Chevrolet for KHI, comfortably held off second-place finisher #18-Kyle Busch to win the Good Sam RV Emergency Road Service 125 at Pocono Raceway. This was Harvick's first truck start at Pocono; his first 2011 win; 10th overall in the series. Caution came out on lap #48 when the #5-Todd Bodine spun while battling for position to set up the race to the finish. Rounding out the top ten were; #18-Kyle Busch, #31-James Buescher, #13-Johnny Sauter, #3-Austin Dillon, #22-Joey Coulter, #32-Mark Martin, #88-Matt Crafton, #33-Ron Hornaday Jr., #17-Timothy Peters. There were two lead changes among two drivers with 7 caution flags for 22 laps. Complete race results are posted on the Pocono Race Results Page.(Official)(8-8-2011)
Post-Race Fast Facts:
Pocono Raceway
2nd Annual Good Sam RV Emergency Road Service 125
Race Winner: Kevin Harvick
Age: 35
Team: No. 2 - Ollie's Bargain Outlet Chevrolet
Owner: Delana Harvick
Crew Chief:Bruce Cook
*Kevin Harvick won the 2nd Annual Good Sam RV Emergency Road Service 125 , his 10th victory in 110 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series races.
*Harvick moves into a tie for 12th with Bobby Hamilton on the all-time series wins list
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*This is his first victory and third top-10 finish in 2011.
*Kyle Busch (second) posted his first top-10 finish at Pocono Raceway. It is his ninth top-10 finish in 2011.
*James Buescher (third) posted his first top-10 finish in two races at Pocono Raceway.
*Joey Coulter (sixth) was the highest finishing rookie.
(Provided by NASCAR Statistics - Sun, August 07, 2011 @ 10:03 AM Eastern)
Race Awards:
Exide Start Positive, Stay Positive Award: James Buescher, #31
Featherlite Most Improved Driver: Johnny Sauter, #13 19 Places
Keystone Light Pole Award: Kevin Harvick, #2 162.684 mph
Mahle Clevite Engine Builder of the Race: Earnhardt Childress Racing Technologies, #2
Mobil 1 Driver of the Race: James Buescher, #31
O'Reilly Auto Parts Position Improvement Award: Johnny Sauter, #13 12 places
Sunoco Rookie of the Race: Joey Coulter, #22(NASCAR Statistics)(8-7-2011)
Lucky Dog Awards - Who got a lap back on each caution at Pocono: (and finish)
Caution 1: #89-Chris Lafferty, 31st
Caution 2: #75-James Hylton, 29th
Caution 3: No benefactor
Caution 4: #6-Justin Lofton, 16ty
Caution 5: #23-Jason White, 21st
Caution 6:#23-Jason White, 21st
Caution 7:#66-Peyton Sellers, 25th
(NASCAR Statistics)(8-7-2011)
Driver Point Standings following race #14 at Pocono Raceway [UPDATED]:are posted on the Pocono Driver Standings Page.(Official)(8-9-2011)
- Owner point standings: following the Good Sam RV Emergency Road Service 125 at Pocono Raceway are posted on the Pocono Owner Standings Page.(Official)(8-8-2011)
Pocono Pit Stall Selections
Harvick wins pole at Pocono: #2-Kevin Harvick was the fastest qualifer, setting a new track record with a top speed of 162.684 mph to win the Keystone Light Pole for the Good Sam RV Emergency Road Service 125 at Pocono Raceway. This is his first pole in 2011; his second career overall. Rounding out the top ten were; #18-Kyle Busch, #8-Nelson Piquet Jr., #29-Parker Kligerman, #32-Mark Martin, #31-James Buescher, #33-Ron Hornaday Jr., #3-Austin Dillon, #62-Brendan Gaughan, #5-Todd Bodine. #13-Johnny Sauter hit the wall coming off Turn 2, and is going to a backup truck and will have to start from the rear. DNQ-none. Complete starting lineup is posted on the Pocono Lineup Page.(8-6-2011)
Post-Qualifying Fast Facts:
Pocono Raceway
2nd Annual Good Sam RV Emergency Road Service 125
Keystone Light Pole Winner: Kevin Harvick(i)
Age: 35
Team: No. 2 - Ollie's Bargain Outlet Chevrolet
Owner: Delana Harvick
Crew Chief: Bruce Cook
*Kevin Harvick(i) won the Keystone Light Pole Award for the 2nd Annual Good Sam RV Emergency Road Service 125 with a lap of 55.322 seconds, *162.684 mph.
*This is his second pole in 110 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series races. His first came at Gateway in July of last season.
*This is his first pole and third top-10 start in 2011.
*Kyle Busch(i) (second) posted his seventh top-10 start of 2011 and his first in one races at Pocono Raceway.
*Nelson Piquet, Jr. (third) posted his first top-10 start at Pocono Raceway. It is his 10th in 14 races this season.
*James Hylton will be the oldest driver to start a NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race at the age of 76 years, 11 months, 11 days.
(Provided by NASCAR Statistics - Sat, August 06, 2011 @ 10:33 AM Eastern)(8-6-2011)
Harvick leads final practice at Pocono: #2-Kevin Harvick, driving the Ollie's Bargain Outlet Chevrolet for KHI, was fastest on track with a top speed of 161.493mph to lead the lone practice session for the Good Sam RV Emergency Road Service 125 at Pocono Raceway. Rounding out the top ten were; #5-Todd Bodine, #18-Kyle Busch, #88-Matt Crafton, #32-Mark Martin, #13-Johnny Sauter, #8-Nelson Piquet Jr., #7-Miguel Paludo, #23-Jason White, #22-Joey Coulter. #66-Peyton Sellers blew the motor; will have to start from the rear. There were 30 trucks on track for the session. Final practice speeds are posted on the Pocono Practice Speeds Page.(8-5-2011)
Official Entry List: There are 31 trucks listed as entered on the final Entry List for the Good Sam RV Emergency Road Service 125 at Pocono Raceway. Added; #75-James Hylton; #89-Chris Lafferty. Complete entry list is posted on the Pocono Entry List Page.(8-5-2011)
Preliminary Entry List: There are 30 trucks listed as entered on the Preliminary Entry List for the Good Sam RV Emergency Road Service 125 at Pocono Raceway. Complete entry list is posted on the Pocono Entry List Page.(8-1-2011)
Some Notes:
#2-Kevin Harvick returns as driver, 1st Pocono truck start, Ollie's Bargain Outlet Chevrolet for KHI
#6-Justin Lofton, sponsored by Lofton Cattle-Shred TV, Eddie Sharp Racing Toyota
#07-Chad McCumbee, driver, TBA Chevrolet for SS Green Light Racing
#18-Kyle Busch returns as driver, CocoaVia.com Toyota for Kyle Busch Motorsports
#28-Wes Burton, 2nd 2011 start, FDNY Racing Chevrolet
#32-Mark Martin, first series start since 2007, driving the Exide Batteries Chevrolet for Turner Motorsports
#66-driver TBA, Turn One Racing Chevrolet
#84-Chris Fontaine, fifth start in 2011, Stingray Chevrolet/Glenden Enterprises Chevrolet(8-1-2011)
UPDATE:
#66-Peyton Seller named as driver for the Turn One Racing Chevrolet
#75-James Hylton to drive second entry for Norm Benning Racing(8-4-2011)
NASCAR's News & Notes
Camping World Truck Series News & Notes - Pocono Raceway
No Clear-Cut Favorite Entering Season's Second Half
Halfway into the schedule, the 2011 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series appears headed for a typical, nail-biting championship finish. Standings leader Johnny Sauter clings to a four-point lead over Austin Dillon, the closest margin since after race No. 7 when Cole Whitt led Sauter by one point. The top five--Sauter, Dillon, James Buescher, Lucas Oil Raceway winner Timothy Peters and Sunoco Rookie of the Year contender Cole Whitt--are separated by just 29 points.
Circumstances--odd or otherwise--have tightened this points battle. Consider:
*Sauter topped the standings after each of the last six races, and has led laps in each. Still the finishes haven't been there, thanks to a restart penalty, a broken rear end and an inopportune flat tire that have produced three finishes of 22nd or worse.
*Dillon, the Nashville Superspeedway winner, was positioned to overtake Sauter in Indianapolis until being dropped to a ninth-place finish by a final-lap accident. In Kentucky--where Sauter finished 24th--Dillon had victory in sight when his Chevrolet's hood blew open costing him a lap.
While the two leaders have fumbled opportunities, their rivals--notably Peters and Buescher--have gained ground. The pair finished one-two at Lucas Oil Raceway.
*Since early June, Buescher has more than halved a 59-point deficit gaining four positions in the standings.
*Peters has gone from 47 behind Sauter to just 22 off the lead.
Sauter will be making his 75th series start at Pocono. He finished 14th in last year's inaugural race at the 2.5-mile track. Dillon and Peters had top-10 finishes while Buescher was 11th.
Rivals Busch, Harvick Return To Contest Owners Championship
Neither Kyle Busch nor Kevin Harvick is eligible to score driver points in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series. But the two NASCAR Sprint Cup Series rivals are going head-to-head for the owners championship that Kyle Busch Motorsports won in 2010 and Kevin Harvick Inc. collected the previous season.
KBM currently holds the No. 1 spot in the standings by a 33-point margin over KHI's No. 2 Chevrolet. That's down 56 points from three races ago. Busch skipped Iowa, Nashville and Indianapolis following his fifth victory of the season at Kentucky Speedway. Harvick's team has won once; Clint Bowyer in Kansas.
Both owner-drivers will be in the lineup at Pocono Raceway. It marks the third time in 2011 Busch and Harvick have faced off. Busch has prevailed on both occasions finishing second to Harvick's fourth at Martinsville Speedway. He won at Dover while Harvick placed fifth. Neither driver competed in last year's Pocono event. Elliott Sadler drove the KHI entry to victory after winning the Keystone Light Pole. Kasey Kahne was second in KBM's No. 18 Toyota.
ThorSport's Pocono Race One For The Record Book
Saturday is a red letter day for ThorSport Racing. When the green flag falls at Pocono Raceway, the Ohio-based team will start its record 354th NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race. Duke and Rhonda Thorson's Sandusky, Ohio-based organization matched Roush Fenway Racing's series record last weekend in Indianapolis. Roush Fenway, no longer active in the series, ran its first race in 1995 and made its most recent appearance at Homestead-Miami Speedway in 2009.
ThorSport entered the series in 1996 with Terry Cook. ThorSport's longest-standing driver, Matt Crafton, has competed in 235 races for the team beginning in 2000. His teammate and series points leader Sauter came aboard in 2009. More than 20 different drivers have carried the ThorSport colors including newcomer Dakoda Armstrong, who made his debut last month in Iowa.
Cook, Crafton and Sauter share the team's six victories, two of which came this year at Martinsville and Iowa. Crafton holds the team's best championship finish--second in 2009.
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Etc.
Mark Martin returns to NASCAR Camping World Truck competition at Pocono Raceway for the first time since his 2006 partial season during which he won six times in 14 races (a .430 winning percentage) and boasted a series-best Driver Rating of 123.9. At Pocono, Martin has finished second six times without a victory, a NASCAR Sprint Cup record he shares with NASCAR Hall of Famer Bobby Allison (Martinsville). ... Series sponsor Camping World has entitlement rights to both NASCAR events at Pocono this weekend beginning with the Good Sam RV Emergency Road Service 125.
