MILLINGTON, Tennessee --- Jack Sprague and the No. 2 American Commercial Lines (ACL) Kevin Harvick Inc. (KHI) Chevrolet team started the O’Reilly 200 Saturday evening from the fifth position. Early trouble on pit road resulted in Sprague making a come-from-behind charge from 28th place to finish in the sixth position.
“It is just really hard to have to go to the back and drive to the front,” Sprague said. “We had a really good American Commercial Lines Chevrolet today. We struggled a little bit on pit road, but all in all we ended up with a good day. I think we even gained a few points with Johnny [Benson] having motor problems.”
Starting fifth, Sprague quickly moved into the top three by lap four. Caution on lap 52 brought the No. 2 ACL Chevrolet to pit road for the first pit stop of the evening. However, the team was forced back to pit road on lap 54 for a lug nut that was knocked off the left-front tire. The return trip mired Sprague deep in the field as he returned to competition in the 28th position.
By lap 112 Sprague had battled his way past 18 trucks into 10th place. Caution on lap 120 brought the No. 2 ACL truck back to pit road for the second and final pit stop of the night. Sprague came in for four tires, fuel and an air pressure adjustment. However, Sprague stopped too short in his pit box and was forced to roll up during the stop; a lug nut was knocked off the left-rear tire costing the team valuable seconds. Sprague would lose four spots in the pits returning to the track in the 14th position.
By Lap 160 Sprague was turning the fastest laps on the track and made his way back to the ninth position. Two late cautions bunched the field and Sprague was able to pass three more trucks to ultimately finish the O’Reilly 200 at Memphis Motorsports Park in the sixth position. This marks Sprague’s sixth top-10 finish of 2008, and he gains one position in the point standings moving into the eighth position, 164 points out of first.
