Scott brings Shore Lodge Tundra home 10th

After starting the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Kroger 200 from the third position, Brian Scott was running in the top five in the closing laps before he became a victim of over-aggressive driving. Nelson Piquet Jr.’s No. 30 truck dive-bombed Scott’s No. 18 Shore Lodge Tundra shortly after the second-to-last restart of the race, causing the Idaho native to surrender several positions in the running order. Scott, who was making his first start at Martinsville since 2010, was able to salvage a top-10 finish for Kyle Busch Motorsports’ flagship Tundra. The top-10 result was the team’s sixth consecutive and allowed the group to remain seventh in the Truck Series owner’s point standings with three races remaining.

 

“We had a good run going in our Shore Lodge Toyota,” said Scott, who registered his second top-10 finish across six Truck Series starts at Martinsville.  “I just have to thank Kyle (Busch, team owner) for giving me the opportunity to drive this.  We had a good truck.  I don’t know if we had a truck that could have kept up with Denny (Hamlin) — congratulations to him — but we had a top-five truck.  There’s a correct way to dive bomb somebody and an incorrect way.He (Nelson Piquet Jr.) wasn’t even close and he drove in there and should have wrecked us all. Luckily, I was able to save it.”

 

Scott ran inside the top five until he found himself lined up on the outside lane for a lap-36 restart. The Shore Lodge Tundra was unable to make his way to the bottom lane and by lap 40 had fallen back to the seventh position. The Idaho native remained scored inside the top 10 until the third caution of the race occurred on lap 93.

 

Crew Chief Eric Phillips summoned his driver down pit road, where the over-the-wall crew put four fresh tires on the No. 18 Toyota and filled it with fuel. Scott was scored in the seventh position when the race restarted on lap 99.

 

The No. 18 Tundra remained in the seventh position until the next caution slowed the field with 49 laps remaining. Scott, who communicated to his crew that his Tundra needed more ‘forward drive,’ came down pit road for fresh tires and major chassis adjustments.

 

The race restarted with 41 laps remaining and Scott in the seventh position. The Nationwide Series regular quickly returned to the top five, where he remained until a one-truck incident slowed the field for the final time on lap 188. Shortly after the ensuing restart, Piquet Jr. aggressively dove to Scott’s inside into the corner, nearly sending the Shore Lodge Tundra into the outside wall. The 24-year-old driver was able to regroup and maintain a top-10 finish for KBM.

 

Scott’s KBM teammate, Denny Hamlin, collected his sixth win across NASCAR’s top-three divisions at his home-state track. Nelson Piquet Jr. finished in the second spot and Joey Coulter finished third. Matt Crafton and Scott Riggs rounded out the top-five finishers.

 

There were seven caution periods for 40 laps. Five different drivers led at least one lap, exchanging the lead 40 times. Only five drivers failed to finish the race.

 

Team owner-driver Kyle Busch will make his second 2012 Truck Series start for KBM when the NASCAR’s third division returns to action Friday, Nov. 2, driving the Dollar General Tundra in the WinStar World Casino 350 at Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth. The race begins at 8 p.m. ET, with SPEED’s live coverage commencing with the NCWTS Setup Show at 7:30 p.m. ET.

 

KBM PR