DOVER, Del. — It took 16 tries, but Matt Crafton finally got his first NASCAR Camping World Truck Series victory at Dover International Speedway.
With the weather cooperating after a wet Friday, Sprint Cup and Xfinity Series drivers took the track on Saturday. Cup teams had two practice sessions scheduled, and the Dover Xfinity race was scheduled to begin about 2 p.m. ET.
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Rain was expected overnight, but Sunday promised to be sunny but cooler for the AAA 400 Sprint Cup race. Starting time: about 1 p.m. ET.
Matt Crafton (Getty Images)
Crafton held off hard-charging Daniel Suárez throughout a 27-lap green-flag run to the finish of Friday's Dover 200 at the Monster Mile.
"We've gotten close and we've had very fast trucks — and this truck was very, very good today," said Crafton, who has recorded all 12 of his career wins in No. 88 trucks fielded by ThorSport Racing. "It's all about the guys behind me.
"It's awesome," Crafton said. "I've always wanted Miles (the Monster trophy)."
Suárez came home second in the No. 51 Kyle Busch Motorsports Toyota, matching his career best. Christopher Bell ran third, followed by Johnny Sauter and Cole Custer, who overcame an early penalty for jumping the first restart of the race on lap 49 of 200 to finish fifth.
Suárez thought he had the fastest truck during the closing run but couldn't get to Crafton's bumper.
"When I was moving to the top, I thought I was making some ground, but the slow cars were on the top, so it was difficult for me to keep the momentum and stay there," Suárez said. "I don't know what I could have done different to try to complete the pass.
"But what I think was that the 51 truck was the fastest out there at the end of that run, but clean air is super important here, and that paid off really good for the 88 team."
Race results:
1. (5) Matt Crafton, Toyota, 200.
2. (6) Daniel Suárez(i), Toyota, 200.
3. (9) Christopher Bell #, Toyota, 200.
4. (15) Johnny Sauter, Chevrolet, 200.
5. (7) Cole Custer #, Chevrolet, 200.
6. (21) Spencer Gallagher, Chevrolet, 200.
7. (16) Tyler Reddick, Ford, 200.
8. (18) Ryan Truex, Toyota, 200.
9. (8) Daniel Hemric, Ford, 200.
10. (22) Kaz Grala, Chevrolet, 200.
11. (1) William Byron #, Toyota, 200.
12. (3) Matt Tifft #, Toyota, 200.
13. (11) Ben Kennedy, Chevrolet, 200.
14. (17) Timothy Peters, Toyota, 200.
15. (19) John H Nemechek, Chevrolet, 200.
16. (14) Nick Drake, Chevrolet, 200.
17. (26) Austin Hill, Ford, 198.
18. (24) Jordan Anderson, Chevrolet, 198.
19. (4) Cameron Hayley, Toyota, 197.
20. (2) Brandon Jones(i), Chevrolet, 196.
21. (27) Tyler Young, Chevrolet, 196.
22. (13) Rico Abreu #, Toyota, 196.
23. (30) Travis Kvapil, Chevrolet, 195.
24. (29) Tommy Joe Martins, Chevrolet, 194.
25. (31) CJ Faison, Chevrolet, 190.
26. (28) Bobby Pierce, Chevrolet, Accident, 176.
27. (12) Parker Kligerman, Ford, Rear Gear, 136.
28. (10) Ben Rhodes #, Toyota, 131.
29. (20) John Wes Townley, Chevrolet, Accident, 128.
30. (32) Jennifer Jo Cobb, Chevrolet, Brakes, 65.
31. (23) Brandon Brown, Chevrolet, Suspension, 56.
32. (25) Austin Wayne Self, Toyota, Engine, 41.
# — rookie; i — not eligible for points
— Reid Spencer writes for the NASCAR Wire Service