Carl Edwards scored his second NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series victory Friday night, barely hold off a charging Travis Kvapil at the conclusion of the Power Stroke Diesel 200 at Indianapolis Raceway Park. Edwards, who took the lead in his Roush Racing Ford on the 82nd lap, slowed to conserve fuel - allowing Kvapil's IWX Motor Freight Chevrolet to close to within .617 second - a truck length - on the final lap.
Edwards, the Raybestos Rookie of the Year leader, backed up his July 12 victory at Kentucky Speedway. Kvapil, still winless in 2003, retook the series championship lead by 10 points over Brendan Gaughan, whose Orleans Hotel Dodge came back from a late tire stop to finish fourth. Bobby Hamilton finished third for his first top-five finish since late May. Jon Wood, the winner's teammate took fifth. Edwards averaged 88.121 mph - just a fraction of a second off the IRP track record. There were three lead changes among three drivers with six cautions consuming 25 laps.
Results follow:
1. (5) Carl Edwards #, Ford, 200, $48,660.
2. (9) Travis Kvapil, Chevrolet, 200, $28,325.
3. (16) Bobby Hamilton, Dodge, 200, $21,890.
4. (6) Brendan Gaughan, Dodge, 200, $14,300.
5. (11) Jon Wood, Ford, 200, $13,575.
6. (4) Ted Musgrave, Dodge, 200, $11,500.
7. (13) Ken Schrader, Chevrolet, 200, $10,975.
8. (18) Dennis Setzer, Chevrolet, 200, $11,100.
9. (1) Terry Cook, Ford, 200, $12,475.
10. (20) Matt Crafton, Chevrolet, 200, $12,225.
11. (12) David Starr, Chevrolet, 200, $10,625.
12. (3) Chad Chaffin, Dodge, 199, $10,515.
13. (32) Randy MacDonald, Chevrolet, 199, $11,990.
14. (8) Rick Crawford, Ford, 199, $10,465.
15. (2) Jason Leffler, Dodge, 198, ignition, $10,865.
16. (22) Shane Wallace, Ford, 198, $7,865.
17. (34) Randy Briggs #, Ford, 198, $10,065.
18. (28) Robert Pressley, Dodge, 198, $10,015.
19. (24) Brian Sockwell, Chevrolet, 198, $7,715.
20. (19) Andy Petree, Chevrolet, 197, $10,015.
21. (33) Jody Lavender #, Chevrolet, 197, $8,365.
22. (7) Mike Skinner, Dodge, 196, $8,315.
23. (29) Tim Sauter, Ford, 196, $7,265.
24. (15) Andy Ponstein, Ford, 196, $7,215.
25. (35) T.J. Bell #, Chevrolet, 195, $7,190.
26. (31) Alex Mueller, Chevrolet, 194, $7,140.
27. (36) Jerry Hill, Dodge, 193, $7,115.
28. (23) Bill Lester, Dodge, 191, $7,090.
29. (17) Darrell Waltrip, Chevrolet, 147, suspension, $7,065.
30. (25) Stan Boyd, Chevrolet, 143, driver fatigue, $7,045.
31. (10) Kenny Hendrick, Ford, 135, accident, $7,035.
32. (30) Tracy Hines, Dodge, 110, accident, $7,025.
33. (26) Charlie Bradberry, Chevrolet, 57, engine failure, $7,015.
34. (14) Morgan Shepherd, Ford, 35, handling, $7,005.
35. (27) David Stover, Ford, 32, accident, $6,720.
36. (21) Johnny Chapman, Chevrolet, 11, vibration, $6,685.
Average Speed of Race Winner: 88.111 mph.
Time of Race: 1 hour, 33 minutes, 26 seconds.
Margin of Victory: 0.617.
Caution Flags: 6 for 25 laps.
Lead Changes: 3 among 3 drivers.
Lap Leaders: T. Cook 1-20; J. Leffler 21-60; T. Cook 61-81; C. Edwards #
82-200.
Top 10 in Points: T. Kvapil - 2,170; B. Gaughan - 2,160; T. Musgrave - 2,119;
D. Setzer - 2,063; B. Hamilton - 2,033; J. Wood - 2,031; R. Crawford - 2,011;
J. Leffler - 1,975; T. Cook - 1,897; C. Edwards # - 1,872.
