Derek Kraus had the McAnally-Hilgemann Racing No. 19 NAPA AutoCare Chevrolet Silverado RST in contention as the laps wound down in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Victoria’s Voice Foundation 200 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on Friday night.
He was in a tight battle for fifth place late in the race, when contact with another truck appeared to shoot him toward the infield. He managed to keep from hitting the wall, but lost numerous positions in the process and was 24th in the final rundown.
His MHR teammate, Colby Howard in the No. 91 Gates Hydraulics Chevrolet Silverado RST, experienced a similar fate early in the race. His team had opted to keep him on track during an early caution, to gain track position and stage points. The move vaulted him to third. A tap from behind slowed his restart, however, and led to him getting collected by another truck and spun around into the wall, which ended his night. He was credited with a 34th-place finish.
Kraus was fourth quickest in his Chevy Silverado during practice. He qualified 13th and battled in the top 10 throughout the race, gaining positions as the laps wound down and the intensity increased. He was in a tight pack going down the back stretch, battling for fifth place with a lap to go, when he veered sharply to the left after contact with another truck. He was able to avoid hitting the inside wall, but ended up losing numerous spots.
The MHR drivers and their teams will turn their attention to the next event on the schedule and focus on going to Atlanta on March 19.
MHR welcomed a special group from Gates and NAPA as their VIP garage guests at Vegas on Friday. They were treated to a garage tour, a transporter tour, a tour of pit road, a question-and-answer session with the drivers and the chance to be on the grid during driver introductions. In addition, a VIP crew member was on the pit box for the race.
Quote – Derek Kraus
“We had a fast Chevy, with a lot of speed – which was good. It’s great to have (crew chief) Shane (Wilson) on my pit box this year. I don’t know what happened at the end, but we will bounce back at the next race.”
Quote – Colby Howard
“We had a good Silverado and we were just getting a feel for it. I hate that we are coming home with another wrecked truck.”
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