S.M.'s Craftsman Update, Issue No. 3

Rumors

The biggest one involves Austin Dillon coming to the Craftsman Truck Series to run three races this season. He's the grandson of elite Sprint Cup owner Richard Childress and the son of former NASCAR driver Mike Dillon.

Dillon is yet another extremely talented 18 year old, currently racing in the Camping World East Series rookie league. He's currently the points leader, and in nine starts, has one pole, one win, five-Top Fives and seven-Top Ten finishes.

Dillon will still need to get NASCAR approval to race trucks. He did have a test on 7/26 at Chicagoland in a truck. No word yet how he did; if he gets his credentials will be racing in CTS for a Chevrolet team.

Oficially, no word yet on which team but during Friday's pre-race Speed coverage at O'Reilly Raceway Park, Krista Voda mentioned Randy Moss Motorsports as a possible team. In my opinion, Kevin Harvick, Inc. has to be another possibility for Dillon.

If Dillon is approved for trucks, it's possible he'll be racing in the Toyota Tundra 200 at Nashville Speedway on August 9.

CTS driver Jason White will be running some upcoming races for Billy Ballew Motorports. The first race could be at New Hampshire Motorspeedway. Currently he races for SS-GreenlightRacing in the No. 08 truck with Gunbroker.com sponsorship. 

It appears David Stremme will be driving in two races for Billy Ballew Motorsports. He'll drive the No. 15 truck and mentor rookie driver Marc Mitchell. The races are August 9 at Nashville and August 20 at Bristol Motorspeedway.

According to ESPN's NASCAR Now, Jimmie Johnson will be driving Randy Moss Motorsports No. 81 truck at Bristol's Truck Race on Aug. 20th.  

Driver Profile

This issue it's the defending champion, Ron Hornaday. Has anyone noticed that Hornaday is in better position at this point of the season than he was last year in the points race?

He's poised to be the first CTS back-to-back champion. While it's rare in NASCAR, it's never been done in the truck series. I can easily see him accomplishing the feat. Each race, it seems like he has his No. 33 Camping World truck where it needs to be up front. He's just clicking with crew chief Rick Ren and his pit-crew; they aren't making mistakes. They get the truck running perfectly, make flawless pit-stops and it seems like Hornaday just puts it on cruise control.

Or maybe his Chevrolet Silverado can smell the lead and drives him to it.

The addition of Jack Sprague to KHI has been a big plus for Hornaday. They work well together and both are three-time champs.

Hornaday has always been a fan favorite, he's a racer and a legend in CTS. A benefit for him is that one minute he'll use his bumper when necessary and at other times, he'll switch gears to points racing.

In fourteen starts, he has won three poles, has three wins, seven-Top Fives and Ten-Top Tens. He currently leads the series with thirty-six wins and has eighteen short track wins.

With eleven races left in the CTS schedule, one thing for sure is that it will be a battle between Benson, Hornaday and Crafton. You can bet I'll be cheering for Hornaday to repeat as champion.

Upcoming Races

August 9 - Toyota Tundra 200 at Nashville Speedway, on Speed at 7 PM. (Saturday)

August 20 - O'Reilly 200 at Bristol Motor Speedway, on Speed at 7:30 PM (Wednesday is not a typo, remember to take the night off of work. I already did)

Sept. 6th - Gateway 200 at Gateway International Raceway on Speed at 2 PM (Saturday)

CTS Driver Sightings (Don't worry Shrub will be back, next issue)

Ron Hornaday will be racing in the Nationwide race at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve in Montreal. He'll be driving the No. 33 Camping World car for KHI. I'll be watching him race Saturday on ESPN2 at 3 PM.

Chad McCumbee will be racing in Pocono in the Petty Enterprise No. 45 car and filling in for Kyle Petty. This is his second attempt at running a Sprint Cup race for the team;  he didn't qualify at Texas early this season. McCumbee has a major hurdle to overcome with the car and needs to qualify well on time, since the team is outside the top thirty-five in owner points.

NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Point Standings

1. Johnny Benson                 2071

2. Ron Hornaday                     -15

3. Matt Crafton                       -31

4. Rick Crawford                     -155

5. Mike Skinner                      -157

6. Todd Bodine                      -204

7. Erik Darnell                        -225

8. Terry Cook                        -246

9. Jack Sprague                     -284

10. David Starr                      -322