Bobby Hamilton Racing Back to Victory Lane

The Craftsman Truck Series returned to action Saturday night at Martinsville for the first time in three weeks since points leader Kyle Busch won in Atlanta. This time, however, it was Dennis Setzer taking the checkered flag in the Kroger 250, sending Bobby Hamilton Racing to victory lane for the first time since the late Bobby Hamilton himself won in Mansfield back in 2005. It was also the first win for Setzer since his victory in Mansfield back in May of last year.

Setzer’s no. 10 Dodge was the class of the field for the majority of the day, but had a steady pack of challengers not far behind him late in the race. Brendan Gaughan appeared to have a truck capable of competing for the checkers, but had to pit alone for fuel under caution with about 25 laps remaining. The stop sent him to the back of the pack and out of contention, though he was able to rebound to an 11th place finish. With only four laps to go, Mike Skinner ran out of gas in turn 2 while running in third place, causing a charging Kyle Busch to get into him and bring out the 14th caution of the day. Skinner was able to get back on the track, but now found himself 2 laps down.

The field lined up for the final restart of the day with Setzer still leading the way, followed by Johnny Benson and Kyle Busch. Setzer pulled away from the field and had the race well-in-hand, but on the final turn of the last lap Busch tried to get under Benson for 2nd place, and incidentally spun them both out, giving them finishes of 25th and 26th, thus ruining both their days.

After starting the race in 35th, Chrissy Wallace finished 17th for Germain Racing in her official NASCAR debut.  Ron Hornaday finished the day off in 8th, moving him into third in points. Kevin Harvick Inc. continued to experience their woes with the other driver, however, as Jack Sprague finished up in 24th after his involvement in an accident between he and Shelby Howard with about 30 to go. Cup Series regulars Denny Hamlin and Ken Schrader both made their first truck series starts of the season. Hamlin finished 21st, while Schrader finished 4th.

Complete Results (from nascar.com):

Truck Series Standings (from nascar.com):