This Week in Auto Racing July 17 - 18

This Week in Auto Racing July 17 - 18

Philadelphia, PA (Sports Network) - While the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series enjoys its final off-week of the season, the Nationwide Series hits the track at Gateway International Raceway near St. Louis and the Camping World Truck Series visits Kentucky Speedway.

Nationwide Series

Missouri-Illinois Dodge Dealers 250 - Gateway Int'l Raceway - Madison, IL

Days after St. Louis hosts Major League Baseball's All-Star Game, the Nationwide Series rolls into the "Gateway City" to kick off the second half of the 2009 season. With 18 of 35 races completed, Kyle Busch enters the Missouri-Illinois Dodge Dealers 250 with a commanding 192-point lead over Carl Edwards.

Busch continues to increase his lead over Edwards after finishing first or second in the last six Nationwide races. Last Friday at Chicagoland, Busch finished second to Joey Logano, who collected his third win of the season. Logano held off his Joe Gibbs Racing teammate on old tires after a late-race restart.

Logano and Busch have given JGR a one-two finish in four Nationwide races this year. Logano will not drive the No.20 JGR Toyota this weekend. Brad Coleman will occupy the seat.

Kevin Harvick and Reed Sorenson will join Busch and Edwards as those Sprint Cup Series regulars competing in Saturday's race

Busch has finished fifth (2004) and eighth (2006) in two starts at Gateway.

Edwards, Harvick and Sorenson have two victories each there. Dale Earnhardt Jr. is the only other repeat winner at the 1.25-mile track.

Last year, Edwards led a race-high 79 laps and finished nearly seven seconds ahead of Logano for the victory in front of his hometown crowd. He also won at Gateway in 2006.

For the fourth year in a row, Edwards will make his annual trek on bike from his hometown of Columbia, MO to Gateway, which is located five miles northeast of downtown St. Louis.

Harvick recorded his first career Nationwide victory at Gateway during his 2000 rookie season. He won there again the following year. Harvick has gone on to score 33 victories, with his most recent coming in March at Bristol.

"Gateway has been a great track to me over the years," Harvick said. "I have two wins in only three Nationwide Series starts and look forward to continuing that success this time around with the No.33 Jimmy Johns Chevrolet."

Harvick and Earnhardt Jr. are the only drivers to win back-to-back races at Gateway, with Earnhardt Jr. accomplishing the feat from 1998-99.

Sorenson will make his first Nationwide start this season, driving the No.32 Toyota for Braun Racing. Two of Sorenson's three career victories in the series have come at Gateway. He won there in 2005 and '07.

Forty-nine teams are on the preliminary entry list for this year's 250-mile race at Gateway.

Camping World Truck Series

The Built Ford Tough 225 - Kentucky Speedway - Sparta, KY

After a two-week break, the Camping World Truck Series returns to action in the "Bluegrass State" with Saturday's running of The Built Ford Tough 225 at Kentucky Speedway.

Current points leader Ron Hornaday Jr. will attempt to win his third consecutive race. Hornaday Jr. has stretched his lead to 76 points over Matt Crafton after winning at Milwaukee and Memphis.

Johnny Benson is the last driver to win three straight races in the series. During his 2008 championship season, Benson won at Kentucky, O'Reilly Raceway Park at Indianapolis and Nashville before his streak was snapped at Bristol.

Hornaday won three in a row in 1997 when he took Milwaukee, Louisville and Colorado.

Mike Skinner (1996 and 2007), Greg Biffle (2000) and Todd Bodine (2006) have also recorded three consecutive victories. No driver has ever won four in a row in the 15-year history of the series.

Hornaday will also try to become the first repeat winner in 10 truck races at Kentucky.

"We won this race in 2006, and I would like to win there again, especially since nobody else has won there twice," Hornaday said. "(Crew chief) Rick Ren and the guys will be working really hard to get the truck where it needs to be, and I just have to go out there and do my part."

Hornaday leads all drivers with three victories so far in 2009. His first win of the season came at Charlotte.

Dennis Setzer and Mike Skinner are the only other drivers on this weekend's entry list that have won at Kentucky.

One year ago, NFL All-Pro receiver Randy Moss made his debut as a NASCAR Truck Series team owner at Kentucky. Moss purchased a 50-percent stake in long-time series participant David Dollar's team, Morgan-Dollar Motorsports. The team was renamed Randy Moss Motorsports.

Willie Allen, the 2007 Truck Series rookie of the year, drove the No.81 RMS entry to a 15th-place finish at Kentucky.

During the offseason, RMS added series veteran Mike Skinner and rookie contender Tayler Malsam to its driver lineup. Skinner, currently third in points (-134), gave Moss his first team owner victory in April at Kansas. Malsam is seventh in points, with five top-10 finishes so far this year.

"I can't believe that it has already been a year since I started this partnership with David (Dollar)," Moss said. "Mike's win at Kansas was very exciting. I was bummed that I couldn't be there in person, but I talked to him after the race and I was very excited. And to have Tayler as a rookie come out of the gate and perform at such a high level is awesome."

Thirty-nine teams are on the preliminary entry list for The Built Ford Tough 225.