Johnny Sauter, driver of the No. 13 Safe Auto/Curb Records Chevy Silverado at ThorSport Racing, was able to bump Kyle Busch from the lead on Lap 248 of 250 and held Busch off the final .526 miles to win the Kroger 250 at Martinsville Speedway this afternoon. It was a special win for both team and family, since Sauter’s wife Cortney is at home, due with their second child on Monday morning – a litle girl.
Busch took the lead on Lap 218 and held it through two restarts, but caution came out on Lap 241 due to a spin and Sauter was able to run Busch down becoming the first Truck Series regular to win a race this season.
“I told the guys yesterday that we had a fast truck, and this thing could blow people down all day,” Sauter said. “What a race. I said to Joe (Shear Jr, crew chief) that we were going to race the race track today. Preparation. He said back to me that it was tires, tires, tires. We just had smart pit strategy and some great cautions that helped throughout the race. I’m so proud of the No. 13 guys – fast pits, great execution, we were absolutely dialed in all week here. We just gelled the whole time. Teamwork wins these things.”
Following Sauter, Busch finished second, closely followed by Ron Hornaday, Kevin Harvick and Timothy Peters.
The win is Sauter’s third in the Truck Series and first at Martinsville. With the win, Sauter becomes the new Truck Series points leader, leading teammate Matt Crafton, driver of the No. 88 Menards/Tarkett Chevy Silverado at ThorSport Racing, by five points.
“Now I get to go home and be a dad,” Sauter continued. “I have the easy job, I get to go drive fast and hopefully, like today, win races. Cortney’s got the tough job, having our daughter! It’s just a special weekend for everybody. I’m really proud to bring a win home for the Safe Auto staff and everyone at Curb Records. And above all, Duke and Rhonda Thorson. No one realizes what they go through every week to give us great equipment and invest in this Series and these teams. That Granddaddy is ours, guys!”
ThorSport PR
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