Kevin Harvick held off hard-charging Kyle Busch to win Lucas Oil 150 Craftsman Truck Series race at Phoenix International Raceway, as title contenders Ron Hornaday and Johnny Benson struggled to wreck-plagued finishes that left them three points apart with one race left.
From Hornaday’s perspective, the championship battle took a turn for the worse on the first lap. Starting from the pole, Hornaday raced side-by-side with Busch into Turn 3, and as the trucks rolled through the corner, the rear of Hornaday’s Chevrolet slid out, starting a spin that would see the defending series champion slam nose-first into the outside wall.
“When the caution comes out, and you look up in the mirror and all you can see is somebody running into the side of that truck - I actually saw it hit the wall, and you are like, ‘Man, we just lost the championship,”’ Harvick said. “But then (Benson) had problems. That’s what is great about our sport. It’s never over until it’s over.”
“It’s been a while since I’ve been in Victory Lane. This is great, but it was a little frustrating on the first lap to see (Hornaday) turned around. But I guess it all worked out pretty good - we won the race and they gained a few points.”—Kevin Harvick
The damage to Hornaday’s truck was the most extensive and it looked as if Benson would earn a big advantage in the standings. But for Benson it was just the beginning. He would be involved in five more wrecks and eventually finished behind Hornaday. Hornaday was 25th and Benson 26th.
FIN ST CAR DRIVER MAKE
1 10 2 Kevin Harvick Chevrolet
2 2 51 Kyle Busch Toyota
3 11 30 Todd Bodine Toyota
4 5 16 Brian Scott * Toyota
5 8 5 Mike Skinner Toyota
6 7 119 Brad Keselowski Chevrolet
7 3 99 Erik Darnell Ford
8 13 88 Matt Crafton Chevrolet
9 20 14 Rick Crawford Ford
10 9 10 Brendan Gaughan Ford
11 12 59 Terry Cook Toyota
12 22 8 Chad McCumbee Chevrolet
13 24 11 David Starr Toyota
14 4 22 Scott Speed * Toyota
15 16 18 Dennis Setzer Dodge
16 15 81 Donny Lia * Chevrolet
17 21 60 Jack Sprague Toyota
18 25 9 Michael Annett Toyota
19 19 13 Shelby Howard Chevrolet
20 30 8 Jason White Dodge
21 28 161 Brett Thompson Dodge
22 23 15 Kenny Wallace Toyota
23 31 21 Jon Wood Ford
24 27 9 John Wes Townley Ford
25 1 33 Ron Hornaday Chevrolet
26 14 23 Johnny Benson Toyota
27 26 7 T.J. Bell Chevrolet
28 18 6 Colin Braun * Ford
29 35 150 Craig Wood Ford
30 6 71 J.R. Fitzpatrick Chevrolet
31 17 40 Mike Bliss Chevrolet
32 33 189 Russ Dugger Chevrolet
33 32 7 Johnny Chapman Chevrolet
34 34 157 Norm Benning Chevrolet
35 29 0 Butch Miller Chevrolet
