Chaffin Rebounds Strongly After Crash Hoping To Maintain Momentum At Martinsville
Oct 17, 2007
Key Motorsports
It took his second and third races of this NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series season with the Key Motorsports Team for veteran driver Chad Chaffin to finally establish some momentum. With the Westerman Companies back onboard as the primary sponsor of the #40 Chevrolet Silverado at the Martinsville Speedway this weekend, Chaffin’s goal is to maintain that momentum and produce another strong finish.
Following his crash out in his first race back with Key Motorsports in New Hampshire, Chaffin has rebounded strongly.
He ran well, overcame a bad set of tires and a lost lap to post a 16th place finish at Las Vegas and then backed it up with an 8th place effort at Talladega two weeks ago. That finish was the best-ever for Key Motorsports in 43 career NCTS starts over four seasons. 2007 is the second year in which the #40 has competed full-time on the circuit.
Martinsville has been an up-and-down situation for the #40 over the years marked by two races in which the truck failed to qualify, one in which a broken motor to end the day prematurely, and another DNF due to a wreck. Chaffin, however, might be just the driver to finally produce another noteworthy finish for Key Motorsports and owner Curtis W. Key, Sr.
Over his 7-year career with the NASCAR trucks, Chaffin has performed well on the flat half-mile, paper clip-shaped Martinsville oval. In his six previous Martinsville starts in the trucks, Chaffin had a career-best fifth place finish in the only race at the track in 2005.
Chaffin also was 10th in the spring race there in 2004, was 11th last fall and had a 13th place performance in the fall race in 2003. The Murfreesboro, Tennessee native believes that he can score another top finish this Saturday afternoon in the Westerman Companies Chevrolet.
“I like Martinsville. It has been a very good track for me over the years. I’ve led some races there, and if I have a good truck to drive, I can run near the front. With what Key Motorsports has given me to drive the last two times out, I’m anticipating another good day this weekend,” Chaffin predicted.
“This race team is a whole lot different from what it was the last time I drove for it (first six races in 2006),” Chaffin said. “(Crew chief) Gary (Showalter) and (Director of Competition)Tommy (Morgan) have so much experience to draw from, and from what I have seen and raced with the last three races, I’m pretty confident that I’m going to have a good piece for this weekend,” Chaffin explained.
As if the pressure to maintain the team’s current streak of good finishes wasn’t enough, Chaffin is also quite cognizant of the first multi-race primary sponsor that the Key Motorsports organization has had since coming into the NCTS in 2004 in the Westerman Companies, the manufacturer of many things including containers for storage and transit in the gas, oil and nuclear industries.
“The Westerman folks will be entertaining a bunch of their customers Saturday and I look forward to finally meeting them and performing well for them and their guests. They will be out to watch their race truck perform, so it does make my objectives list just a bit longer for this weekend, and that is to give them a good run and a good finish.
“I have run well at Martinsville and have been in a position to win there before, and though I’m not saying that we are going to win, I will tell you that winning that race on Saturday will be my primary goal,” commented Chaffin.
A good run should help Key Motorsports maintain its momentum, continue its movement up the Owner’s Points ladder and go a long way in helping to secure sponsorship for 2008, but Chaffin also wants to finally show the racing world of just what Key has built with his money, time and passion over the years.
“I have a great amount of respect for Curtis (Key), and I really appreciate him giving me this opportunity to drive this race truck for him.
“He has worked far too hard and spent far too much money not to achieve his goal of fielding a competitive race truck each and every week. I really like the guys who are working here, and they have given me good trucks to drive. The best way for me to reward all of them is to run good, maybe get a top 10 or top 5 finish and bring the truck back home in one piece,” Chaffin stated.
The Westerman Companies folks can give you thousands of good reasons why these are important.
