Rick Crawford Celebrates 300th Start
As Atlanta Motor Speedway marks 50 years of racing this season, NASCAR Camping World Truck Series driver Rick Crawford will celebrate a milestone of his own. Baring anything wild and crazy that could keep him out of the race, the Mobile, Ala., native will make his 300th series start Saturday in the No. 14 Circle Bar Truck Corral/International Ford.
“I think about our first start at Walt Disney World. We were there on a wing and a prayer. One truck, one motor, and our All Pro Late Model team was my crew,” he said. “It’s hard to believe we’ve been here ever since.”
Unique in today’s world of racing, Crawford has spent all of his 13 seasons with the same team, Circle Bar Racing, and team owner, Tom Mitchell. The team marked its 300th start in California.
“As I look back, I think I’m proudest of the fact that I’ve reached 300 with one owner and one manufacturer,” he added. “Mr. Mitchell and I have one of the longest driver-owner relationships in the sport. He’s much more than an owner to me, he’s made me part of his family and I could not be here without him.”
Crawford has collected five wins, 72 top-five and 150 top-10 finishes, and five Keystone Light Pole awards in his career. He’s finished inside the top 10 in the championship standings six times with a best finish of second in 2002.
Ask Crawford how he’d like to mark the milestone, and it’s a simple answer. “The perfect ending to start 300 would be to deliver another trophy to the Circle Bar Truck Corral in Ozona, Texas,” he said.
Atlanta Is Billy Ballew’s House - Literally
Atlanta race weekends are always big for team owner Billy Ballew. And not just because one of his drivers, Kyle Busch (No. 51 Miccosukee Resorts/NOS Energy Drink Toyota), has won three out of four races with the team. Atlanta Motor Speedway is Ballew’s house, literally.
The Georgia native has owned a condo at the track since 1994, one year before he started racing in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series. He splits his time between living there and in his hometown of Blairsville.
With the success his team has found at the track lately, his has been a house of celebration. “I’m always excited about going back to Atlanta,” said Ballew. “We’ve had some great finishes in both the No. 15 and No. 51 trucks and of course, its been exciting with Kyle winning three of the four races he’s run there for us. To me, winning there is bigger than winning the Indianapolis 500.”
Racing at home means a few more eyes focused on Ballew. “It’s always nice to race at the hometown race track but I think it adds some pressure as well, wanting to succeed with friends and family on hand,” he said. “Thankfully I have two talented drivers behind the wheel of our trucks with a team of excellent mechanics supporting them. We’ve been doing this since 1996 and we’ve had a lot of help from this community over the years.”
New Blood In The Top 10
It’s early but after two races into the 2009 season, there are a few new faces in the top 10 in driver points.
Todd Bodine (No. 30 Germain Toyota) and Kyle Busch are off to an identical start to last year, as they sit one-two in points, respectively.
Matt Crafton (No. 88 Menards Chevrolet) sits in third while Timothy Peters (No. 17 Toyota) makes his debut in the top 10 in the standings. Peters and his Premier Racing team have collected top-10 finishes in the season’s first two races.
Also new to the top 10 are T.J. Bell (No. 11 Red Horse Racing Toyota) and rookie-of-the-year contender J.R. Fitzpatrick (No. 7 Mammoet Chevrolet). After an 11th-place finish at Daytona and a fifth at Auto Club Speedway, Bell sits sixth in the standings.
Canadian Fitzpatrick had a strong run in the season-opener where in only his fourth start, he finished fourth.
However some veterans are missing from the top, including reigning series champion Johnny Benson (No. 1 Red Horse Racing Toyota).
Heading into the third race last season, Benson sat third in points. He’s started the year slightly in the hole as his night ended early following a wreck at Daytona. He rebounded slightly with a 12th-place finish at California; he currently sits 19th in points.
Two other veterans are conspicuously absent. Both Rick Crawford and Stacy Compton (No. 60 Wyler.Com Toyota) were fifth and tenth, respectively, at this time last year. This year, Compton is 13th while Crawford has a little more catching up to do from 17th.
With a series known for its championship battle going down to the wire, there could be plenty of time to catch up. But with the competition as tough as it’s ever been, for some, it might not be too early to be worried.
Around The Track With Matt Crafton
Series veteran Matt Crafton is off to a fast 2009 start with top-10 finishes in the first two races of the season.
While there are no marks in the win column for the 32-year-old at Atlanta, his record shows he might be one to keep an eye on. In nine starts, he has three top-five and five top-10 finishes. In last March’s race, he worked his way up from a 15th starting spot to finish fourth.
Rookie Standings
Rookie-of-the-year contender Ricky Carmichael is adding a stop at Atlanta this weekend that wasn’t originally on the schedule for he and his No. 4 Monster Energy Drink Chevrolet.
Carmichael comes off a strong performance in California where he started third and finished eighth. After two races, he’s within four points of class leader J.R. Fitzpatrick.
Johnny Sauter is one rookie who has time behind the wheel at the 1.54-mile track, just not in a truck. Sauter has three starts in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series and seven starts with one top-10 finish in the NASCAR Nationwide Series.
After a 17th-place finish at Fontana, he’s looking for a solid run to move him and his No. 13 Fun Sand/Curb Records Chevrolet up the charts.
NASCAR Raybestos Rookie Contender standings after two races of the 2009 season:
1. J.R. Fitzpatrick 26 2. Ricky Carmichael 22 3. Tayler Malsam 17 4. James Buescher 17 5. Chase Austin 16 6. Johnny Sauter 15
Dodge won the inaugural NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race at Atlanta in 2004, but since then it’s been Toyota and Chevrolet’s track.
Chevrolet holds the most wins with five. Toyota is close behind with three.
Manufacturer Battle
Dodge won the inaugural NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race at Atlanta in 2004, but since then it’s been Toyota and Chevrolet’s track.
Chevrolet holds the most wins with five. Toyota is close behind with three.
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