Things look different after Indy

The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series provided some Friday night racing excitement Aug. 3 as it took to the track at Indianapolis Raceway Park. The trip to IRP kind of changed the complextion of the truck series. Capturing his third win of the season, Jack Sprague took command of the points standings while leading 149 laps of the 200-lap event. Its the first time in 2001 that a non-Dodge driver has been at the top of the points chase. The points were close going in to IRP, meaning little room for error at the top of the heap. Scott Riggs had bad luck all night that resulting in him falling from first all the way down to third in the race to the 2001 series championship. Joe Ruttman, by finishing third, remained in second position in the points chase. Ford, seemingly lacking this season, got a little help from NASCAR. Beginning at Indianapolis, the Fords were able to increase the leading edge of their airdams three inches forward from the bumper. This distance used to be only one inch for all three manufacturers. This may have helped Ford drivers - case in point, Terry Cook finished second, Rick Crawford captured sixth, and 16-year-old Kyle Busch (younger brother of 2000 Rookie of the Year Kurt Busch) finished ninth in his truck series debut. It's been awhile since three Ford's have found their way to the top-10 in the same race. The change airdam change for Ford wasn't the only change the series saw in Indy. All teams had to compete with a 390 cfm carburetor. This change results in reduced fuel and airflow, limiting the rpms the motor will turn. The 390 cfm carb is the same one used in the Busch Series. Many drivers didn't think this would affect them much on the straightaways; the most noticeable difference would be getting into the turns. After witnessing Dodge's dominance much of the earlier part of 2001, what seemed fairly odd coming out of IRP, was the fact that only two Dodges finished in the top-10 with Ruttman's third and Bobby Hamilton's fourth-place finish. Chevy claimed half the top-10 positions with Travis Kvapil in fifth, Matt Crafton in seventh, Dennis Setzer in eighth, and Bobby Dotter rounding out the top-10 to add to Spragues win. Dodge dominated the first half of the season; will Chevy dominate the second half? The trucks head into the new Nashville Superspeedway this upcoming Friday night. If the race is anything like the Busch Series debut there earlier this year, the new track will make for some exciting side-by-side racing.

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