Johnny Sauter, driver of the No. 98 Nextant Aerospace/Curb Records Toyota Tundra, is in the hunt for his first NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS) title in six seasons of competition. After leading the point standings for five weeks this season, Sauter trails teammate Matt Crafton by seven markers going into Saturday night’s Rhino Linings 350 at Las Vegas (Nev.) Motor Speedway. Fortunately for Sauter, race No. 17 on the 2014 schedule is at a track he knows well, the site of his first NCWTS win in 2009. In fact, the ThorSport Racing driver has four top-five finishes in five starts at the 1.5 mile oval, ranking him third overall in Average Running Position (6.5) and second among drivers entered in Saturday’s 146-lap race. With a win already this season on an intermediate track, and six career wins overall on intermediate tracks, Sauter hopes to roll the dice in Vegas and regain his position atop the standings in his quest for his first series title.
Sounding off – Johnny Sauter:
“The track has become a lot more ‘racier.’ The groove has widened out, and I think a lot of that has to do with the bumps over the tunnel, getting into Turn 1 – it’s kind of forced your hand to have to move around the race track quite a bit. Like any race track, when they get some age on them, they typically race a lot better and put on a better show. It’s a cool place for me just because it’s where I got my first Truck Series win. I know it’s been a few years ago, but it’s just something you’ll never forget.”
Sauter’s Sin City Stats:
• Five NCWTS starts between 2009 and 2013 including one win, and four top-five finishes
• According to NASCAR’S Loop Data Statistics, Sauter ranks:
º First in Fastest Laps Run (72)
º Second in Driver Rating (112.3)
º Third in Average Running Position (6.526)
º Third in Laps in the Top 15 (687)
º Fourth in Laps Led (55)
• Six NASCAR Nationwide Series starts between 2002 and 2008 including nine laps led (2004) and one top-five finish (2002)
• Two NASCAR Sprint Cup Series starts in 2004 and 2007
Johnny Sauter at Las Vegas Motor Speedway:
| Series | Races | wins | Top-5 | Top-10 | Pole | Laps | Led | Avg. Start | Avg. Finish |
| NCWTS | 5 | 1 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 698/730 | 87 | 7.4 | 6.0 |
| NNS | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1179/1208 | 9 | 23.0 | 18.2 |
| NSCS | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 413/534 | 0 | 31.0 | 31.5 |
Johnny Sauter’s Las Vegas Motor Speedway NCWTS Performance Profile:
| Date | Start | Finish | Laps | Status | Led |
| 2009 | 2 | 1 | 146/146 | Running | 62 |
| 2010 | 4 | 2 | 146/146 | Running | 0 |
| 2011 | 4 | 4 | 146/146 | Running | 25 |
| 2012 | 11 | 21 | 114/146 | Crash | 0 |
| 2013 | 16 | 2 | 146/146 | Running | 0 |
[DRIVER NAME] 2014:
• After a fourth-place finish at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in Loudon, Sauter remains second in the 2014 NCWTS driver point standings, seven markers behind teammate and leader Matt Crafton
• Was victorious for the first time in 2014 at Michigan International Speedway in Brooklyn (8/15/14)
• Recorded a season-best first-place start at Chicagoland Speedway in Joliet when qualifying was cancelled due to weather and the field was set based on the 2014 NCWTS rule book (9/12/14)
• In 16 starts in 2014, Sauter has one win, eight top-five and 13 top-10 finishes
• Has led 113 laps
• Has completed 2352 of 2437 laps attempted (96.5%)
• Average start: 8.2
• Average finish: 7.3
• According to NASCAR’s Loop Data Statistics, Sauter ranks
º Second in Laps in the Top 15 (2208)
º Third in Average Running Position (7.927)
º Fourth in Driver Rating (97.7)
[DRIVER NAME]’s Career Truck Series Stats:
• 146 starts since 2003
• 10 wins
• 56 top-five finishes
• 83 top-10 finishes
• Five poles
• 22,104 laps completed
• 1118 laps led
• Average start: 10.6
• Average finish: 10.8
ABOUT NEXTANT AEROSPACE:
Nextant Aerospace is recognized as the first company in the world to introduce aircraft remanufacturing to the business jet market. The Nextant 400XTi is a completely-rebuilt Beechjet 400A/XP with Williams FJ44-3AP engines and the Rockwell Collins Pro Line 21™ integrated avionics suite. The new aircraft also has major aerodynamic enhancements and an improved engine mounting configuration with redesigned nacelles and pylons. The 400XTi is delivered with a two-year full-aircraft warranty and after-sales support provided by a global network of owned and authorized service centers. Founded in 2007, Nextant is based in Cleveland, Ohio. Nextant is a Directional Aviation Capital company. For more information, please visit, like us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter @NextantAero or join us on LinkedIn.
ABOUT CURB RECORDS:
Curb Records is one of the world’s leading independent music companies. Owned and operated by Mike Curb since 1962, Curb Records has achieved 375 Billboard number one records, nearly 1,200 Billboard Top Ten records and charted just under 4,000 Billboard records. Today’s roster includes some of the top names in Country, Christian and Pop/Rock music. Curb Records was honored as Billboard Magazine’s 2001 Country Music Label of the Year and Radio & Records Magazine’s 2005 Overall Gold Label of the Year. For more information visit www.curb.com.
ABOUT THORSPORT RACING:
ThorSport Racing, based in a state-of-the-art 100,000-square-foot facility in Sandusky, Ohio, is the longest-tenured NASCAR Camping World Truck Series team. ThorSport, which has run in the Truck Series since 1996, in 2014 will run the No. 88 Menards Toyota Tundra driven by 2013 drivers’ champion Matt Crafton, the No. 98 Nextant Aerospace/Smokey Mountain Herbal Snuff/Carolina Nut Co./Curb Records Toyota Tundra driven by Johnny Sauter and the No. 13 Carolina Nut Co. Toyota Tundra driven by Jeb Burton in the Truck Series and the No. 13 Toyota Camry in the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards.
