Matt Crafton, No. 88 Fisher® Nuts/Menards Toyota Tundra
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series
Atlanta Motor Speedway
Race No. 2 of 23
Hampton, GA (February 28, 2015) – Matt Crafton, driver of the No. 88 Fisher® Nuts/Menards Toyota Tundra, proved why Atlanta (Ga.) Motor Speedway (AMS) is his favorite race track. The two-time NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS) champion captured his first win in his 14th start at the 1.5-mile quad oval, winning the Hyundai Construction Equipment 200 on Saturday night. The victory marked the two-time champion’s first win at AMS and the sixth of his career.
The ThorSport Racing driver started the 130 lap race from the 15th position and surged through the field, battling a “free through the center and off the corner” Toyota Tundra. Crew chief Carl “Junior” Joiner brought the No. 88 machine to pit road for the first time at lap 19 for four tires, fuel and a chassis adjustment to aid in the handling. Crafton would restart fifth at lap 22 and never look back. By lap 30, the Fisher® Nuts/Menards Toyota Tundra was scored third and at lap 45, the ThorSport Racing driver was passing the No. 4 machine for the lead.
Crafton would bring his Tundra down pit road two more times at laps 51, under caution, and 101, under green, for four tires and fuel as he continued to pace the field for the remaining 85 circuits. The ThorSport Racing driver would eventually prevail as the race winner, claiming his first checkered flag of the 2015 NCWTS season.
Quote:
“It’s an awesome feeling to be able to come back here. We’ve been close a few different times and finally got it. Our truck was very, very good. They kept trying to slow me down and I slowed down at some points, but right there at the end I just tried to make a statement and show them how fast this Menards Toyota Tundra was. This is my favorite race track, by far. You search and you move around so much – now that I have this win, it’s an amazing feeling. It’s all about these guys behind me, everybody believing in me and never giving up. I have to thank Menards and Toyota.”
Notes:
- Matt Crafton won the 7th annual Hyundai Construction Equipment 200, his sixth victory in 340 NCWTS races
- This marks Crafton’s first victory, and fourth top-five finish at the Atlanta Motor Speedway in 14 starts since 2001
- The ThorSport Racing driver led a race-high 85 laps in Saturday night’s NCWTS event
- Crafton gained three positions in the 2015 NCWTS driver point standings and now sits second, two points behind leader Tyler Reddick
- Ty Dillon (second), Ben Kennedy (third), Daniel Suarez (fourth), and Tyler Reddick (fifth) rounded out the remainder of the top-five finishers
- ThorSport Racing teammate, Johnny Sauter finished sixth, and Cameron Hayley was 14th
- Up next: Kroger 250 at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway on Saturday, March 28
Practice 1: 8th (31.18 seconds)
Qualifying: 15th (31.13 seconds)
Stats:
Started: 8th
Finished: 1st
Laps: 130/130
Status: Running
Driver Points: 2nd (-2)
Owner Points: 2nd