2009 Season Has Competition Roaring To Dover
This weekend the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series heads to Dover International Speedway for the AAA Insurance 200, the seventh stop this season on the 25-race schedule. The 2009 season has lived up to the bill of competition.
►There have been four different points standings leaders over the first six races of the season — Todd Bodine (No. 30 Copart.com Toyota), Kyle Busch (No. 51 Miccosukee Resorts Toyota), Mike Skinner (No. 5 Toyota) and Ron Hornaday Jr. (No. 33 Longhorn Chevrolet).
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►84 points separate first and second in the standings; while first to 10th in the standings are separated by 207 points.
►There have been five different winners in the first six races this season — Bodine (Daytona); Busch (Auto Club Speedway and Atlanta); Kevin Harvick (No. 2 KHI/Bounty Chevrolet, Martinsville); Skinner (Kansas) and Hornaday (Charlotte).
►Kyle Busch has led the most laps in the first six races of the season, leading 285 laps or 34% of the total 847 laps run.
Dover International Speedway will be hosting its 10th Anniversary of NASCAR Camping World Truck Series competiion on the 1-mile banked concrete speedway this weekend. Duplicating success at Dover is very difficult; there have been no repeat winners in the first nine series events. Kyle Busch and Ron Hornaday Jr. are the only previous winners in the field this weekend. And with the momentum both the No. 33 and No. 51 teams have built coming out of Charlotte, it wouldn’t be surprising if either are up front this weekend.
Kevin Harvick Inc. Looking Towards The Future
Kevin Harvick Inc. (KHI) announced this week that J.R. Fitzpatrick (No. 4 KHI Chevrolet) will compete for the team in selected events in both the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series and the NASCAR Nationwide Series throughout the remainder of the 2009 season. The Cambridge, Ontario, Canada native will drive in eight NASCAR Camping World Truck Series events, beginning with the AAA Insurance 200 at Dover on May 29.
“This is a great opportunity for me and I firmly believe that I am joining the best team in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series,” said Fitzpatrick. “I believe racing is all about confidence and I have that knowing that I am going to be in great equipment driving for Kevin Harvick Inc.”
“We’re glad to have J.R. Fitzpatrick join KHI for the remainder of the 2009 season,” said KHI co-owner Kevin Harvick. “J.R. and I both got our starts in go-karts and he has taken a path similar to mine, moving up through the stock-car ranks, during his career. It will be exciting to watch him attempt to take that next step in his racing career.”
In addition, Fitzpatrick will compete in two NASCAR Nationwide Series events, the first being at Watkins Glen (N.Y.) International Raceway and the second at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
Terry Cook Starting To Find His Stride
Terry Cook (No. 25 Cajun Industries Toyota) started driving for James Harris and HT Motorsports in October of last season at Martinsville and since then he has made 11 starts, posting five top-10 finishes including three top fives in the first six races in 2009 — Daytona, Atlanta and Charlotte.
Cook has gotten off to a hot start. He moved up three spots last weekend from ninth to sixth in the points standings after his fifth-place finish at Lowe’s Motor Speedway.
The 2009 NASCAR Season-To-Date Loop Data shows Cook has improved considerably over his 2008 stats. In 2008 after the race at LMS, Cook was ranked ninth in Driver Rating with (86.0); this season he ranks sixth with a rating of (89.4). Last season in Average Running Position he was ranked 10th with (13.399), while in 2009 he ranks sixth with an Average Running Position of (10.967). Cook’s largest improvement is in Laps In The Top 15. Last season at this time he was ranked eighth with 66.7% of his laps run in the top 15; this season he ranks fourth with 81.6% of his laps run in the top 15.
Cook has made nine starts at Dover International Speedway posting one top five and three top-10 finishes.
In 2008, he finished 13th at Dover driving for Jeff Wyler in the No. 60 truck.
Raybestos Rookies Have The Foot To The Floor
The two top drivers in 2008’s Raybestos Rookie of the Year class, Tayler Malsam (No. 81 One Eighty Toyota) and James Buescher (No. 10 International MAXX Force Diesel Ford), are continuing to impress out of the gate.
Malsam has posted two top-10 finishes in the first six races this season to set himself apart as the rookie to beat this season. He is five points ahead of Buescher (second) in the rookie standings.
Malsam’s consistency is playing a big part in his early success. He has posted five top-15 finishes in the first six races of the season. Sitting 12th in the series standings, he’s only 224 points behind standings leader Ron Hornaday Jr.
Buescher, currently second in the rookie standings, is also having an impressive early season. Like Malsam, Buescher has also collected five top-15 finishes in the first six races of 2009. He is 14th in the series standings, 25 points behind Malsam in 12th.
Though Malsam leads the rookie standings, Buescher is gaining on him. The 2009 NASCAR Season-To-Date Loop Data shows Buescher ahead of Malsam in three key categories: Driver Rating–Buescher has (79.3) while Malsam has (79.0); Average Running Position–Buescher has (13.727) while Malsam has (14.548); and Laps In The Top 15, Buescher has 63.3% of laps run in the top 15 and Malsam has 59.4% of laps run in the top 15.
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Neither driver has a series start at Dover International Speedway which could shake up the rookie standings this weekend.
Raybestos Rookie Of The Year Standings
Rk Driver Points 1. Tayler Malsam 62 2. James Buescher 57 3. Johnny Sauter 54 4. Ricky Carmichael 45 5. J.R. Fitzpatrick 42 6. Brent Raymer 24 7. Chris Jones 19 8. Chase Austin 16 9. Brian Ickler 8
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