Race Rundown
Sauter wins race; Dillon wins 2011 Championship: Johnny Sauter, driving the #13 Safe Auto/Curb Records/Mud Jug Chevrolet for ThorSport Racing, was the leader when the rains came and caution came out with just seventeen laps remaining. The race was called complete with fifteen to go and Sauter was declared the winner of the Ford 200 at Homestead-Miami Speedway. This is Sauter's second win in 2011; his fourth series overall. Austin Dillon, driver of the #3-Bass Pro shops, finished tenth to clinch the 2011 Camping World Truck Series Championship. Dillon had two victories this season, and is the youngest driver in series history to win a Championship. Rounding out the top ten were; #18-Denny Hamlin, #2-Kevin Harvick, #22- Joey Coulter, #21-Ty Dillon, #24-Elliott Sadler, #17-Timothy Peters, #23-Jason White, #3-Austin Dillon. There were 14 lead changes among 9 drivers, with 5 caution flags for 16 laps. Complete race results are posted on the Homestead-Miami Race Results Page.(Official)(11-21-2011)
Post-Race Fast Facts:
Homestead-Miami Speedway
17th Annual FORD 200
Race Winner: Johnny Sauter
Age: 33
Team: No. 13 - SafeAuto/Curb Records Chevrolet
Owner: Mike Curb
Crew Chief: Joe Shear Jr.
*Johnny Sauter won the 17th Annual FORD 200, his fourth victory in 86 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series races.
*This is his second victory and 16th top-10 finish in 2011. His first victory this season came at Martinsville in April.
*This is his first victory and third top-10 finish in five races at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
*Denny Hamlin (second) posted his first top-10 finish in one races at Homestead-Miami Speedway. It is his second top-10 finish in 2011.
*Kevin Harvick (third) posted his fourth top-10 finish in six races at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
*Austin Dillon wins the 2011 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series championship by six points over Johnny Sauter.
*Joey Coulter has won the 2011 Sunoco Rookie of the Year. This season, Coulter had five top fives and 13 top 10s.
(Provided by NASCAR Statistics - Fri, November 18, 2011 @ 10:04 PM Eastern)
Race Awards:
Exide Start Positive, Stay Positive Award: Johnny Sauter, #13
Featherlite Most Improved Driver: Ron Hornaday Jr, #33 21 Places
Keystone Light Pole Award: Not awarded
Mahle Clevite Engine Builder of the Race: Earnhardt Childress Racing, #13
Mobil 1 Driver of the Race: Johnny Sauter, #13
O'Reilly Auto Parts Position Improvement Award: Timothy Peters, #17 13 places
Sunoco Rookie of the Race: Nelson Piquet Jr, #8
(NASCAR Statistics)(11-18-2011)
Lucky Dog Awards - Who got a lap back on each caution at Homestead-Miami: (and finish)
Caution 1: #38-Dennis Setzer, 34th
Caution 2: #57-Norm Benning, 29th
Caution 3: No Benefactor
Caution 4: #15-Dusty Davis, 15th
Caution 5 #60-Cole Whitt, 22nd
(NASCAR Statistics)(11-18-2011)
Dillon wins 2011 Points Championship!
Driver Point Standings following race #25 at Homestead-Miami Speedway:
1) #3-Austin Dillon 888
2) #13-Johnny Sauter, 882 -6
3) #31-James Buescher, 859 -29
4) #33-Ron Hornaday Jr., 838 -50
5) #17-Timothy Peters, 832 -56
6) #30-Todd Bodine, 803 -85
7) #22-Joey Coulter, 796 -92
8) #88-Matt Crafton, 785 - 103
9) #60-Cole Whitt, 764 -124
10) #8-Nelson Piquet Jr., 752 -136
Complete driver point standings are posted on the Homestead-Miami Driver Standings Page.(Official)(11-21-2011)
- Kevin Harvick Inc. wins 2011 Owners Championship!
Owner Point Standings following the Ford 200 at Homestead-Miami Speedway are posted on the Homestead-Miami Owner Standings Page.(Official)(11-21-2011)
Homestead-Miami Pit Stall Selections
Qualifying canceled; Buescher on Homestead pole: Persistent rain has forced NASCAR to cancel qualifying for the Ford 200 at Homestead-Miami Speedway, The field has been set by practice speeds, with remaining positions determined by NASCAR rule book. #31-James Buescher will start from the pole with #21-Ty Dillon starting second. Rounding out the top ten are; #8-Nelson Piquet Jr., #3-Austin Dillon, #13-Johnny Sauter, #60-Cole Whitt, #24-Elliott Sadler, Kevin Harvick, Justin Lofton, Joey Couter. Did Not Qualify: #45-Tim George Jr., #20-Ross Chastain, #14-Brennan Newberry, #76-Derek White, #27-Dennis Setzer, #44-Frank Kimmel, #70-Jeff Agnew. NASCAR has stated there will be a competition yellow on lap 20 for tonight's race. Complete starting lineup is posted on the Homestead-Miami Lineup Page.(11-18-2011)
Buescher leads Homestead practice: James Buescher, driving the #31 Exide Chevrolet for Turner Motorsports, was the fastest on track with a top speed of 166.986 mph to lead the lone practice session for the Ford 200 at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Rounding out the top ten were; #21-Ty Dillon, #8-Nelson Piquet Jr., #3-Austin Dillon, #13-Johnny Sauter, #60-Cole Whitt, #24-Elliott Sadler, #2-Kevin Harvick, #6-Justin Lofton, #22-Joey Coulter. #66-Max Gresham scraped the wall resulting in right side damage. There were 43 trucks on track for the final practice session. Final practice speeds are posted on the Homestead-Miami Practice Speeds Page.(11-18-2011)
Official Entry List: There are 43 trucks entered on the final Entry List for the Ford 200 at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Entry list is posted on the Homestead-Miami Entry List Page.(11-18-2011)
Preliminary Entry List: There are 42 trucks listed on the Preliminary Entry List for the Ford 200 at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Complete entry list is posted on the Homestead-Miami Entry List Page.(11-14-2011)
Some Notes:
#14-Brennan Newberry, 1st series start, Brennan Newberry Racing Chevrolet
#15-Dusty Davis returns to series, 4th start driving Billy Ballew Motorsports Toyota
#18-Denny Hamlin, driver for the Dollar General/DIRECTV Toyota for Kyle Busch Motorsports
#21-Ty Dillon, 3rd series start, Charter Media Chevrolet for Richard Childress Racing
#24-Elliott Sadler, driver for the AM FM Energy/Great Play Chevrolet, 3rd start for Joe Denette Motorsports
#44-Frank Kimmel, making 1st truck start since 2004, driver for the Ansell/Menards Chevrolet for Thorsport Racing
#45-Tim George Jr., making 3rd series start; 1st in 2011 driving the Applebee's Potomac Dining Group for RCR/ESR
#51-German Quiroga, 2nd series start, driver for the TELCEL Toyota for Kyle Busch Motorsports
#66-Max Gresham, returns as driver for the MattyBRaps.com/Gresham Motorsports Park Chevrolet for Turn One Racing
#70-Jeff Agnew, 4th series start, driver for the TBA Chevrolet for Team 7 Motorsports
#98-Dakoda Armstrong, returns as driver for the Ferrellgas-Agrisure/EverFi Chevrolet for ThorSport Racing(11-14-2011)
UPDATE:
#07-Johnny Chapman, driver change from Butch Miller, ASI Limited Toyota for SS Green Light Racing
#20-Ross Chastain, late entry, National Watermelon Board Toyota(11-16-2011)
Goodyear Tire Notes
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series -- Race No. 25 – Ford 200
Homestead-Miami Speedway (1.50-mile oval) – Homestead, Fla.
Fast Facts for November 18-20, 2011
Tire:
Goodyear Wrangler Speedway Radials
Number of Tires:
Left-side -- 375
Right-side -- 375
Set limits:
5 sets for the weekend
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 -- 23 psi; Left Rear -- 21 psi
Right Front -- 47 psi; Right Rear -- 43 psi
Notes: Teams in all three NASCAR series will run the same tire codes at Homestead this weekend, though the Sprint Cup and Nationwide Series 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 teams in all three of these series ran at Homestead last season . . . other tracks at which teams have run this exact tire set-up in 2011 have been Chicagoland (all three series) and Texas (Sprint Cup and Nationwide only) . . . as on all NASCAR ovals greater than one mile in length, teams are required run inner liners in all four tire positions at Homestead . . . air pressure in those inner liners should be 12-25 psi greater than that of the outer tire.(Goodyear PR)(11-16-2011)
NASCAR's News & Notes
Camping World Truck Series News & Notes - Homestead-Miami Speedway
Dillon Controls Championship Destiny In South Florida Finale
Twenty-four races down and three competitors are still standing -- the largest championship contingent entering a NASCAR Camping World Truck Series finale since 2003.
The title is 21-year-old Austin Dillon's to control. He holds a 20-point advantage over Johnny Sauter and leads James Buescher by 28. Ron Hornaday Jr. is 48 points behind and will be eliminated when Dillon takes the green flag in South Florida. Dillon guarantees himself his first championship by finishing 16th or better; or 17th or better with at least one lap led; or 18th or better with the most laps led in Friday night's Ford 200 at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
Dillon -- or Buescher, also 21 -- would become the youngest champion in the series' 17 seasons. Travis Kvapil, winner of the 2003 championship in a four-way, final-race battle with Brendan Gaughan, Ted Musgrave and Dennis Setzer, was 27 years old.
The grandson of Richard Childress, Dillon would be the second champion to sit in RCR's black #3 Chevrolet. Skinner became the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series' first titleholder in 1995, edging Joe Ruttman by 127 points.
Here's what the contenders are saying:
- Dillon, who would become the first to win a championship and rookie of the year in consecutive seasons: "The pressure isn't too bad, actually. I know we have a great truck and I have a very capable team. We know we are capable of doing what we need to do there."
- Sauter, 10 times the points leader: "All you can ask for is a shot and I'm privileged right now. That's the coolest thing about racing. You never know how it's going to turn out."
- Buescher, who has battled back from his failure to qualify for the season's second race: "We're going with one goal, which is to win the race. We know we have to get the most points we can in order to have a chance to win the championship."
- Hornaday, who will make his final start for Kevin Harvick, Inc., where he won championships in 2007 and 2009: "It would be really great for us to ... give Kevin and DeLana one last trip to Victory Lane." Hornaday won in Miami in 2002.
No Single Path Leads To This Year's Sunoco Rookie Crown
Creation of the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series provided a place to race for drivers from a variety of motorsports disciplines. The three finalists for this year's Sunoco Rookie of the Year Award may be the most varied contingent yet.
- Miami-area resident Joey Coulter, 21, won two World Karting Association titles before graduating to stock-type car racing. He is the rookie leader, by five points, entering the finale.
- Nelson Piquet Jr., 26, made 28 starts in the Formula One world championship.
- Cole Whitt, 20, is the 2008 U.S. Auto Club national midget champion. He trails Coulter by 10 points in a competition based upon each rookie's best 14 finishes.
Coulter and RCR teammate Dillon can achieve a sweep of rookie and championship awards done just once by the same organization. Roush Fenway Racing's Greg Biffle and Kurt Busch won championship and rookie of the year, respectively, in 2000.
Race A Building Block For Those Who Came Up Short
This season's a closed book for most, but it's never too soon to begin building momentum for 2012. The Ford 200 offers that potential for several likely to be title contenders next season.
- Timothy Peters has ranked among the top five in the championship since race #11, winning once.
- Two-time Miami winner Todd Bodine has one final chance to preserve a streak of at least one win in every season since 2004.
- Matt Crafton won in Iowa and led the points standings three times.
- Parker Kligerman had back-to-back second-place finishes at midseason.
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, Etc.
Hornaday and Setzer are set to become the third and fourth drivers to compete in 300 series races. ... The season ends at Homestead for the 10th consecutive season. This year's NASCAR Nationwide Series and NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Champions Awards Banquet will be held Monday, Nov. 21, at the Loews Miami Beach Hotel.(NASCAR Integrated Marketing Communications)(11-15-2011)
Camping World Truck Series News & Notes - Open week
Rookie Battle As Intense As Championship Struggle
This season's Sunoco Rookie of the Year battle has taken a back seat -- and understandably so -- to a continuing, red--hot NASCAR Camping World Truck Series championship struggle. But those in the know believe that this year's class is the best since the freshman award was instituted in 1996. And that says a lot -- considering a roster of top rookies that includes NASCAR Sprint Cup champion Kurt Busch, current NSCS championship leader Carl Edwards and two NASCAR national series champion Greg Biffle.
"In my career, this is the best rookie class I've seen in motorsports," said NASCAR Camping World Truck director Wayne Auton. "I'm impressed with their ability to handle themselves both on and off the race track. They've been fun to deal with. I've not had one veteran complain about a rookie -- and I think that's a first." Joey Coulter, 21, holds a five--point lead over former Formula One driver Nelson Piquet Jr., 26, with 20--year--old Cole Whitt 10 back entering the Nov. 18 Ford 200 at Homestead--Miami Speedway. The award is based upon a driver's best 14 finishes plus bonus points for overall final ranking and vote by the series' rookie of the year panel based upon competition and interaction with other drivers and the media.
Coulter is Richard Childress Racing teammate to championship leader Austin Dillon, raising the possibility of one owner capturing both awards for only the second time in series history. Biffle and rookie of the year Busch finished one--two in 2000 driving for Jack Roush.
An unprecedented three Sunoco rookie contenders rank among the top 10 (and a fourth, Parker Kligerman, is 11th). Whitt became the first rookie to lead the overall standings after finishing third in the season's seventh race at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
No rookie has won in 2011, but three -- Whitt, Kligerman and Piquet -- have logged second--place finishes. This year's seven--member rookie class has assembled 18 top--five and 48 top--10 finishes.
Contending Crew Chiefs Don't Get Breather From Pressure
Three drivers fighting for the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series title have a week to catch their breath. Dillon carries a 20--point lead over Johnny Sauter into the Nov. 18 finale in South Florida. James Buescher is another eight points back.
But this week and next, the pressure squarely is on crew chiefs and teams to bring their best possible trucks to the Ford 200. Any mechanical mistake, such as the lost wheel that felled Mike Skinner in 2007, can doom a driver's title hopes.
"The most pressure anyone can put on me is myself," said Dillon's Richard Childress Racing crew chief Gary Stockman, who was truck chief during Ron Hornaday Jr.'s 2007 and 2009 championship seasons. He also was Scott Lynch's 2008 K&N Pro Series West championship crew chief. "Keeping everyone calm is key. Trying to keep myself calmed down, too."
Joe Shear Jr., who guides Sauter's efforts at ThorSport Racing, relishes the role of a perceived underdog. "We have a team that a lot of people don't think should be where they are and I don't believe in that," said Shear. "So, we just keep doing what we know works. We have already done some amazing things this season that I am not even sure we thought we could pull off. We have nothing to lose come Homestead."
Chevrolet Snags Seventh Title, Ends Toyota's Streak
Chevrolet has won a record seventh NASCAR Camping World Truck Series manufacturer's championship, clinched by Kevin Harvick's fourth victory of the season Nov. 3 at Texas Motor Speedway. The truck maker ended a five--year title run by Toyota.
The championship was clinched one day after Chevrolet celebrated its 100th anniversary. Chevrolet has won 176 times in NCWTS competition. Three Silverado teams -- Kevin Harvick Inc., ThorSport Racing and Richard Childress Racing -- contributed 14 victories to the championship effort with drivers Harvick, Hornaday, Dillon, Sauter, Matt Crafton, Mike Wallace and Clint Bowyer.
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, Etc.
Kevin Harvick Inc. and the #2 Chevrolet clinched its third owner championship in Texas. DeLana Harvick also won the title in 2007 and 2009. The company became only the second to win 10 races in a season, matching Roush Fenway's 1999 record total. KHI has won 43 times in NCWTS competition. ... The NASCAR Camping World Truck Series takes the weekend off before closing out the 2011 season Nov. 18 at Homestead-Miami Speedway. But there is no rest for Buescher, Hornaday and Ricky Carmichael, who are set to compete for Turner Motorsports in Saturday's NASCAR Nationwide Series Wypall 200 at Phoenix International Raceway.(NASCAR Integrated Marketing Communications)(11-8-2011)
