Team Info/Stats:
Crew Chief: Carl “Junior” Joiner, Jr.
Driver Point Standings: 2nd
Owner Point Standings: 2nd
Spotter: Stevie Reeves
News and Notes:
- This Week’s No. 88 Black Label Bacon/Menards Ford F-150… The No. 88 ThorSport Racing team will unload chassis No. 57 for Friday night’s NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS) Stratosphere 200 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway (LVMS). This chassis was last piloted by Cody Coughlin in 2017 but has since been rebuilt for the 2018 season.
- Looking for a Win… Matt Crafton will make his 18th NCWTS start at the 1.5-mile LVMS Friday night. Although the Menards driver is still looking for his first win in Sin City, his success includes one pole (2015), and 136 laps led en route to six top-five and 10 top-10 finishes. Additionally, Crafton holds the record for the following among active drivers at LVMS in the NCWTS: Most Starts, Most Laps Completed (2424), Most Laps Led, Most Top-Five Finishes, Most Top-10 Finishes, and the Most Lead Lap Finishes (13).
- Intermediate Track Facts… No current NCWTS driver is better at intermediate-size (1.5 or 1.54-mile) tracks than Crafton. In 145 starts, the ThorSport Racing driver has nine wins, eight poles and has led 1,210 laps en route to 14 runner-up finishes, 47 top-five and 91 top-10 finishes.
- Take me back – Las Vegas, 2017… Starting fifth, Crafton finished fifth in Stages 1 and 2 at LVMS and looked poised to contend for the win late in the Las Vegas 350. Unfortunately, a controversial restart in the 146-lap event, left the ThorSport Racing driver with a seventh-place finish.
- 2018 Stats… In two starts this season, Crafton has led seven laps en route to one top-five finish (Atlanta). The Menards drivers best start is second (Atlanta), and he has an Average Start of 4.0, and an Average Finish of 12.0.
- Veteran-Size Stats… Crafton holds the record for consecutive starts (409) in the NCWTS. Among his success in the past 17 seasons, the two-time champion has earned 13 poles, and led 2463 laps en route to 14 wins, 103 top-five and 243 top-10 finishes.
- Catch Crafton at Las Vegas… Crafton will join his ThorSport Racing teammates for an autograph session Friday, March 2, from 1:00-1:45 p.m. PT in the Neon Garage.
Chatting with Matt Crafton…
“This is the first time the Truck Series has been out West this early in the year, and the forecast is supposed to be a lot cooler than we are used to out there, so I’m sure there will be more grip than we’re used to on the race track. The mile-and-a-half tracks are always my favorite – they are a lot of fun to run. Being from out West, it’s always nice to see my friends and family while I’m out there – this year I’ll get to see them twice, which is an added bonus.”