Race Rundown
Dillon wins at Chicagoland: Austin Dillon, driving the RCR #3-Bass Pro Shops/Tracker Boats Chevrolet, wins the Fast Five 225 at Chicagoland Speedway. A two-tire change by Dillon on the final pit stop saw him take over the lead and pick up the checkered flag well ahead of #2-Kevin Harvick. This is Dillon's second win of the season; his fourth career win overall. Harvick had dominated throughout much of the race, leading 99 laps,but after taking four tires on that final stop, and then spending several laps battling for position with #18-Kyle Busch was unable to catch Dillon in the remaining laps. Harvick finished second. Rounding out the top ten were; #8-Nelson Piquet Jr. #29-Parker Kligerman, #18-Kyle Busch, #13-Johnny Sauter, #88-Matt Crafton, #7-Miguel Paludo, #60-Cole Whitt, #33 Ron Hornaday Jr. There were 12 lead changes among 7 drivers, with 3 cautions flaps for 15 laps. Complete race results are posted on the Chicagoland Race Results Page.(Official)(9-19-2011)
Post-Race Fast Facts:
Chicagoland Speedway
3rd Annual Fast Five 225
Race Winner: Austin Dillon
Age: 21
Team: No. 3 - Bass Pro Shops / Tracker Boats Chevrolet
Owner: Richard Childress
Crew Chief: Danny Stockman, Jr.
*Austin Dillon won the 3rd Annual Fast Five 225, his fourth victory in 45 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series races.
*This is his second victory and 10th top-10 finish in 2011. He won in July at Nashville Superspeedway.
*This is his first victory and second top-10 finish in two races at Chicagoland Speedway.
*Kevin Harvick(i) (second) posted his first top-10 finish in one races at Chicagoland Speedway. It is his sixth top-10 finish in 2011
*Nelson Piquet Jr. (third) posted his first top-10 finish in one races at Chicagoland Speedway.
*Nelson Piquet Jr. (third) was the highest finishing rookie.
*James Buescher leads the point standings by 3 points over Austin Dillon.
(Provided by NASCAR Statistics - Fri, September 16, 2011 @ 10:05 PM Eastern)
Race Awards:
Exide Start Positive, Stay Positive Award: Todd Bodine, #5
Featherlite Most Improved Driver: Johnny Sauter, #13 23 Places
Keystone Light Pole Award: Steve Arpin, #32 175.507 mph
Mahle Clevite Engine Builder of the Race: Earnhardt Childress Racing Technologies, #2
Mobil 1 Driver of the Race: Nelson Piquet Jr, #8
O'Reilly Auto Parts Position Improvement Award: Nelson Piquet Jr, #8 9 places
Sunoco Rookie of the Race: Nelson Piquet Jr, #8(NASCAR Statistics)(9-16-2011)
Lucky Dog Awards - Who got a lap back on each caution at Chicagoland: (and finish)
Caution 1: #57-Norm Benning, 27th
Caution 2: #3-Austin Dillon, 1st
Caution 3: #60-Cole Whitt, 9th
(NASCAR Statistics)(9-16-2011)
Driver Point Standings following Race #18 at Chicagoland Speedway:
1) #31-James Buescher, 621
2) #3-Austin Dillon, 618 -3
3) #13-Johnny Sauter, 615 -6
4) #17-Timothy Peters, 601 -20
5) #33-Ron Hornaday Jr., 574 -47
6) #88-Matt Crafton, 572 -49
7) #22-Joey Coulter, 569 -52
8) #29-Parker Kligerman, 567 -54
9) #60-Cole Whitt, 566 -55
10) #5-Todd Bodine, 556 -65
Complete driver point standings are posted on the Chicagoland Driver Standings Page.(Official)(9-19-2011)
- Owner point standings: following the Fast Five 225 at Chicagoland Speedway are posted on the Chicagoland Owner Standings Page.(Official)(9-19-2011)
Chicagoland Pit Stall Selections
Arpin wins Chicagoland pole: Steve Arpin, driving the #32-Mike's Hard Lemonade Chevrolet for Turner Motorsports, was the fastest qualifer with a top speed of 175.507 mph[new track qualifying record] to win the Keystone Light Pole for the Fast Five 225 at Chicagoland Speedway. This is Arpin's first pole in just five starts. Rounding out the top ten were; #2-Kevin Harvick, #29-Parker Kligerman, #4-Ricky Carmichael, #3-Austin Dillon, #31-James Buescher, #60-Cole Whitt, #5-Todd Bodine, #7-Miguel Paludo, #88-Matt Crafton. DNQ: #68-Wayne Edwards; #99-Charlie Vest. Complete starting lineup is posted on the Chicagoland Lineup Page.(9-16-2011)
Post-Qualifying Fast Facts
Chicagoland Speedway
3rd Annual Fast Five 225
Keystone Light Pole Winner: Steve Arpin
Age: 27
Team: No. 32 - Mike's Hard Lemonade Chevrolet
Owner: Steve Turner
Crew Chief: Doug George
*Steve Arpin won the Keystone Light Pole Award for the 3rd Annual Fast Five 225 with a lap of 30.768 seconds, 175.507 mph. This is a new qualifying record for the series at Chicagoland Speedway.
*This is his first pole in five NASCAR Camping World Truck Series races.
*This is his first pole and second top-10 start in 2011. His previous best start was fourth at Texas Motor Speedway in June.
*This is his first pole in one races at Chicagoland Speedway.
*Kevin Harvick(i) (second) posted his sixth top-10 start of 2011 and his first in one races at Chicagoland Speedway.
*Parker Kligerman (third) posted his first top-10 start at Chicagoland Speedway. It is his 13th in 18 races this season.
*Parker Kligerman (third) was the fastest qualifying rookie
(Provided by NASCAR Statistics - Fri, September 16, 2011 @ 04:27 PM Eastern)
Kligerman leads final practice: Parker Kligerman, driving the #29-Chicago Ram Dealers Dodge for Brad Keselowski Racing, was quickest in the final practice session for the Fast Five 225 with a top speed of 175.810mph. Rounding out the top ten were; #32-Steve Arpin, #31-James Buescher, #7-Miguel Paludo, #4-Ricky Carmichael, #60-Cole Whitt, #3-Austin Dillon, #13-Johnny Sauter, #22-Joey Coulter, #88-Matt Crafton. There were 32 trucks on track for the final practice session Final practice speeds are posted on the Chicagoland Practice Speeds Page.(9-16-2011)
Piquet leads opening practice at Chicagoland: Nelson Piquet Jr., driving the #8-Auto Trac/Qualcomm Chevrolet for KHI, had the fastest lap with a top speed of 174.842 mph to lead the opening practice sesson for the Fast Five 225 at Chicagoland Speedway. Rounding out the top ten were; #2-Kevin Harvick, #6-Justin Lofton, #29-Parker Kligerman, #31-James Buescher, #13-Johnny Sauter, #88-Matt Crafton, #4-Ricky Carmichael, #3-Austin Dillon, #33-Ron Hornaday Jr. There were 33 trucks on track for the opening session. Complete practice speeds are posted on the Chicagoland Practice Speeds Page.(9-16-2011)
Official Entry List: There are 38 trucks listed on the final Entry List for the Fast Five 225 at Chicagoland Speedway. Note: #74-Mike Harmon, hrmm8ter Ford late entry. Complete entry list is posted on the Chicagoland Entry List Page.(9-16-2011)
Preliminary Entry List: There are now 37 trucks listed on the Preliminary Entry List for the Fast Five 225 at Chicagoland Speedway. Complete entry list is posted on the Chicagoland Entry List Page.(9-12-2011)
Some Notes:
#2-Kevin Harvick, driver for the Bad Boy Buggies Chevrolet for KHI
#07-Caleb Roark, driver for the BOBBER.info Chevrolet for SS Green Light Racing
#27-David Stremme, driver for the S& W Services Chevrolet; 4th entry for Sieg Racing
#29-Parker Kligerman, new sponsor onboard; Chicago RAM Dealers Dodge for Brad Keselowski Racing
#32-Steve Arpin, returns as driver for the Mike's Hard Lemonade Chevrolet for Turner Motorsports
#66-Peyton Sellers, returns as driver for the TBD Chevrolet for Turn One Racing
#68-Wayne Edwards, 1st start in 2011, driver for the Bosak Dodge for Bill Alger
#98-Dakoda Armstrong, returns as driver for the Ferrellgas-Agrisure Chevrolet for Thorsport Racing(9-12-2011)
UPDATE:
#87-Chris Jones, Copy Wizard Chevrolet, late entry(9-15-2011)
Goodyear Tire Notes
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series -- Race No. 18 – Fast Five 225
Chicagoland Speedway (1.5-mile oval) – Joliet, Ill.
Fast Facts for September 16-18, 2011
Tire:
Goodyear Wrangler Speedway Radials
Number of Tires:
Left-side -- 375
Right-side -- 375
Set limits:
5 sets for the event
Tire Codes:
Left-side -- D-4392
Right-side -- D-4410
Tire Circumference:
Left-side -- 87.1 in.
Right-side -- 88.4 in.
Technical Inspection Inflation:
Left Front -- 30 psi; Left Rear -- 30 psi
Right Front -- 48 psi; Right Rear -- 45 psi
Minimum Recommended Inflation:
Left Front -- 20 psi; Left Rear -- 20 psi
Right Front -- 48 psi; Right Rear -- 44 psi
Notes:
Teams in all three NASCAR series in action at Chicagoland this weekend will run the same tire codes, though the Sprint Cup and Nationwide tires will be branded "Goodyear Eagle," while the Camping World Truck tires will be branded "Goodyear Wrangler" . . . this is the same combination of left- and right-side tires that Nationwide Series teams ran at Chicagoland in June . . . this is also the same exact tire set-up that Sprint Cup and Nationwide teams ran at Texas earlier this season and at Homestead last November . . . for Camping World Truck teams, they ran this set-up at Homestead last season, but ran only this left-side tire code with a different right-side at Texas earlier this season . . . NASCAR teams have also run this left-side tire at Dover (all three series) and Nashville (Nationwide and Trucks) in 2011 . . . talking specifically about Chicagoland, teams in all three of these series ran this same left-side tire code (D-4392) last season, but with a different right-side code . . . compared to what was run at this track in 2010, this right-side (D-4410) features just a minor construction change . . . as on all NASCAR ovals greater than one mile in length, teams are required to run inner liners in all four tire positions at Chicagoland . . . air pressure in those inner liners should be 12-25 psi greater than that of the outer tire.(Goodyear PR)(9-15-2011)
Truck Series News & Notes - Chicagoland Speedway
Title Would Ice Cake For ThorSport Racing's Season
It's been a busy summer for ThorSport Racing. Two projects down and one to go. The Sandusky, Ohio, team moved into its spacious new headquarters about a month ago, giving ThorSport arguably the series' largest, most state-of-the-art facility.
More recently, owners Duke and Ronda Thorson announced that drivers Matt Crafton and Johnny Sauter had inked new contracts and again will be driving the No. 88 and No. 13 Chevrolets in 2012. The team previously signed Dakoda Armstrong to drive its No. 98 Chevrolet and chase Sunoco Rookie of the Year honors. "Clearly with all the exciting things we've had going on in the 2011 season, having all of our drivers back in 2012 just continues the good news here at TSR," said David Pepper, team manager. "We're excited about getting all of our drivers and teams together in 2012 so that we can compete for poles, race wins and top fives into the future."
Project No. 3 would be a championship. Both Sauter and Crafton have taken turns leading the standings through the season's first 17 races. Sauter currently is second, 12 points behind James Buescher while Crafton ranks seventh. Both drivers figure to be contenders in Friday night's Fast Five 225 at Chicagoland Speedway. Sauter and Crafton each have a career victory on a 1.5-mile intermediate style speedway, and rank seventh and eighth in Chicagoland Driver Rating at 100.2 and 99.3, respectively. Sauter has finished fourth and fifth in his two starts at the Joliet, Ill. track. Crafton was the Keystone Light Pole starter in 2009 and finished seventh a year ago." When we do the right things, we win races. When we win races, we get that much closer to championships. We're hoping to be the 'team to catch' going into Homestead in a few months," said Sauter.
Two Winning Streaks On the Line For Owner Championship Rivals
Count on what's become a bitter struggle for the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series owners' championship to continue at Chicagoland Speedway. Kevin Harvick Inc.'s standings leading No. 2 Chevrolet and Kyle Busch Motorsports' No. 18 Toyota are separated by 36 points. Both organizations are hoping to extend winning streaks in Friday night's race.
*Harvick, who sat out the Sept. 2 race at Atlanta Motor Speedway, has won his past three starts at Pocono Raceway, Michigan International Speedway and Bristol Motor Speedway. A KHI truck has won each of the past four races -- Ron Hornaday Jr. having notched career victory No. 49 won in Atlanta.
*Busch is a two-time defending winner of the Fast Five 225. He enters the race virtually untouched in a variety of Loop Data categories. Busch, with a Driver Rating of 148.2, leads or shares the lead in 10 of the rating's components. In 2009, Chicago was Busch's second of five wins in consecutive starts for Billy Ballew Motorsports.
*The two trucks have dominated the 2011 season with five drivers posting a combined 12 victories.
Just Gaining The Top 10 Worthy Goal For One-Time Contenders
With eight races remaining in 2011, the championship contenders have separated themselves from the pack. Pre-season goals for many drivers and teams will go unmet and expectations lowered going down the homestretch. A hoped-for title is now a run for a finish among the top 10.
*Todd Bodine and Parker Kligerman, ninth and 10th, are separated by just two points. For Bodine, his post-championship season has been a disappointment. Kligerman, a Sunoco rookie, is doing better than many might have expected.
*Three drivers, two veterans and a rookie, hold positions 11 through 13. David Starr needs 31 points to catch Bodine. Nelson Piquet Jr. and Brendan Gaughan share the same totals -- 482 points -- and trail Starr by 11.
*Jason White, Max Papis, Ricky Carmichael and Justin Lofton are unlikely candidates to reach the top 10. Still, two points are the difference between 14th (White) and 17th (Lofton).
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Etc.
Rockingham Speedway's announcement of an April 15, 2012, race completes the series' appearance on every 1995 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series track, the season in which the trucks made their debut. ... Hornaday, bidding for win No. 50, finished third a year ago at Chicagoland Speedway. He led two laps en route to 11th in 2009. ... Piquet, Miguel Paludo and NASCAR Mexico Series driver Jorge Arteaga will participate in an autograph session from 12:30-1:30 p.m. CT Friday in Chicagoland Speedway's Hispanic Fan Zone.(NASCAR Integrated Marketing Communications)(9--13-2011)
Camping World Truck Series News & Notes - Open Week, September 7, 2011
Buescher Improbably Becomes Season's Sixth Different Points Leader
James Buescher's march to the top of the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series has been inexorable. In February, few, if any, would have predicted it.Buescher, with his 13th consecutive top-10 finish of the season last week at Atlanta Motor Speedway, is the sixth different driver to lead the points standings. The 21-year-old Texan holds a 12-point advantage over previous leader Johnny Sauter with eight races remaining on the schedule.
Sauter finished 29th suffering his fourth finish of 22nd or worse. Atlanta marked the eighth time the points lead has changed in the season's first 17 races. Buescher has come all the way from 24th, where he landed after failing to qualify at Phoenix International Raceway in February. He's finished 10th or better in 15 of his 16 starts.
The Turner Motorsports driver has history squarely in his windshield. No driver has won a NASCAR Camping World Truck title without starting every race. Ted Musgrave, seventh in 2007, is the highest ranked finisher without a complete log, contesting 24 of 25 races. Buescher is the third driver age 21 or younger to head the standings. Cole Whitt, age 19 when he led after May's race in Charlotte, is the series' youngest leader. Austin Dillon, 21, also held the No. 1 position. Travis Kvapil is the series' youngest champion at 27 years of age in 2003.
Hornaday Closing Fast On Milestone 50th Victory
Ron Hornaday Jr.'s countdown to milestone win No. 50 is on.Hornaday, the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series' only four-time champion, notched his 49th career victory in Atlanta. It marked the Palmdale, Calif. native's second win at the 1.54-mile track and second win of the season. His initial victory came in the series' second race April 8, 1995 at Tucson Raceway Park.
Here are some Hornaday highlights:
*Wins in 13 different seasons
*Wins for three teams: Dale Earnhardt Inc. (25), Kevin Harvick Inc. (23) and Xpress Motorsports (one).
*Most consecutive victories; five in 2009
*Most wins by driver 50 years or older (14). At age 53 years 74 days, Hornaday is the third-oldest to visit Victory Lane trailing only Joe Ruttman and Jimmy Hensley.
*Most short track wins (22)
*Career record-holder for top fives (141) and top 10s (202)
Hornaday's bid for a fifth championship remains something of a long shot but he advanced to fifth in the standings 48 points behind Buescher.
Engineer Mueller Aids Kligerman's Solid Sunoco Rookie Performance
Andrea Mueller, engineer for Brad Keselowski's No. 29 Dodge driven by Sunoco Rookie of the Year contender Parker Kligerman, has a succinct answer for those who say females can't have a prominent role in NASCAR. "If that's what you want to do, go for it," she said. "Don't let anyone talk you out of it," said Mueller, a 31-year-old native of Fresno, Calif. Mueller joined Penske Racing in 2007 and was assigned to Keselowski's truck team this year. She raced while growing up before getting an engineering degree. She previously worked in the aerospace industry."It's a pleasure to be here," she said. "The energy is super high with these guys. Parker is always positive. It's fun to work with them." Kligerman currently ranks third in Sunoco rookie points and ninth in overall NCWTS standings. The team scored back-to-back second-place finishes at Texas and Kentucky.
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Etc.
The NASCAR Camping World Truck Series takes the week off then heads for a Sept. 16 date at Chicagoland Speedway. Kyle Busch is the defending winner. ... Kevin Harvick Inc.'s Atlanta win matched Dale Earnhardt Inc.'s record of four consecutive seasons, 1995-98, with six or more victories. ... Richie Williams, jack man and mechanic for Germain Racing's No. 9 GEICO Tundra, is being inducted into the Appalachian State Hall of Fame on Sept. 9. ... Ricky Carmichael won his first Keystone Light Pole in Atlanta and finished eighth. Turner Motorsports teammate Blake Feese collected his first top-five finish (fourth) in his second NCWTS appearance.
