Matt Crafton scored one of the most coveted trophies in all of auto racing, a Martinsville Speedway grandfather clock, with the win in Sunday’s NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race. Photo by Rainier Ehrhardt/NASCAR via Getty Images
In fading sunlight, in the second race of a Sunday doubleheader at Martinsville Speedway, Matt Crafton beat pole sitter Darrell Wallace, Jr. to the finish line to win the Kroger 250 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series event under yellow because of a last-lap accident.
The reigning series champion sealed the victory on the second attempt at a green-white-checkered-flag finish in a race that went six laps past its scheduled distance of 256 laps at the .526-mile short track.
The win was Crafton’s first of the season, his first at Martinsville and his fourth in 318 career starts. To secure it, Crafton had to survive a series of late restarts that tested both his talent and his patience.
Rookie Ben Kennedy ran third in a race that produced a record 17 lead changes. Johnny Sauter was fourth, followed by Ryan Blaney.
The Kroger 250, postponed from Saturday because of rain, was run after the conclusion of Sunday’s STP 500 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race.
Crafton’s No. 88 Toyota started out sluggish but benefited from successful adjustments throughout the race.
“At the beginning of the day, we were terrible,” said Crafton, who led 47 laps. “I’m not going to lie. We were terrible. We were really, really tight from the center (of the corner) off. I didn’t think we were going to get it right there on those first two runs, but that’s just the way these guys never give up.
“We made track bar adjustment, another track bar adjustment, air pressure adjustment and finally we got that thing going.”
Crafton grabbed the lead from Peters on lap 208 and held the top spot until a caution for debris on the frontstretch slowed the field on lap 225.
The lead-lap trucks already had visited pit road under caution on lap 193 for the final stops, and all the contenders stayed out on the track under the lap 225 yellow and took the green for a restart on lap 232, with Crafton leading the field to the stripe.
Moments later, former series champion Ron Hornaday, Jr., who had led 62 laps, slammed the wall between turns 3 and 4 after contact from the Toyota of German Quiroga.
Crafton retained the lead after the subsequent restart, and after Peters and Wallace settled second place, with Peters prevailing on lap 239, the No. 17 Toyota began chasing the No. 88 Tundra of the race leader.
Gray Gaulding’s spin off turn 2 on Lap 243, however, caused the eighth caution and set up the overtime finish. Erik Jones spun on the backstretch after contact from Sauter to foil the first attempt at a green-white-checkered.
NASCAR-Camping World Truck Series
Martinsville Speedway – Martinsville, VA
Kroger 250 – March 31, 2014
1. Matt Crafton
2. Darrell Wallace, Jr.
3. Ben Kennedy
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5. Ryan Blaney
6. German Quiroga
7. Timothy Peters
8. Ben Rhodes
9. Ron Hornaday, Jr.
10. Brian Ickler
11. Cole Custer
12. John Hunter Nemechek
13. Chase Pistone
14. Ross Chastain
15. Brandon Jones
16. Tyler Reddick
17. Joey Coulter
18. Erik Jones
19. Gray Gaulding
20. John Wes Townley
21. Jeb Burton
22. Caleb Holman
23. Travis Kvapil
24. Ray Black, Jr.
25. Justin Jennings
26. Korbin Forrister
27. Jennifer Jo Cobb
28. Norm Benning
29. Mason Mingus
30. Clay Greenfield
31. Tyler Young
32. Spencer Gallagher
33. Bryan Silas
34. Josh Williams
35. Raymond Terczak, Jr.
36. Alex Guenette
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